Cindy Swindell

Qiang Huang ~ Day 3

2011-04-17T18:42:00.006-05:00

A quick paint morning before the afternoon lecture about the business side of art. Qiang is a wonderful teacher, both with the artistic side and the business side. He's very clear, precise and detailed. Did I mention he's an engineer in real life? I definitely would recommend his workshops.

Today's painting is a detailed study of high-key still life from yesterday. Christa & I had planned to change it, but we arrived after our 3rd artist, who had already begun to paint it. Oh well, it felt good to sleep in a bit.

I played with the style of painting. Normally I'm pretty tight and controlled. So today I went loose. Only wiped the canvas twice (but it was in the drawing stage.) But, as they say, "No Pain. No Gain." Later, I had some wonderful and uplifting comments from Qiang and fellow artists. It was great learning experience (but, boy, am I tired!)

Qiang Huang ~ Day 2

2011-04-16T20:03:00.005-05:00

Oh, the pain of a high key painting (light background) and a light pink rose. And Cobalt blue glass bottle? And a silver bowl.... I love a challenge, but hate it at the same time. Again, not a finished piece, but an exercise.

Qiang did a demo that included 3 different color roses. It is so beautifully done, I could weep. Here's a detail from his painting.

Qiang Huang ~ Day 1

2011-04-15T21:09:00.009-05:00

Day 1 of a 3 day still life workshop with Qiang Huang at the Coppini. Qiang started out talking about composition & set-up. The way he presented "clicked" with me and made it easier to set-up a still life for our afternoon painting session. Qiang did a demo for us that made it all look so easy.

We worked in groups to set up a still life, then painted and squinted. We had a lovely set-up, great composition and tones. I loved my painting sooo much that I wiped my canvas after 1.5 hours of work, right after I said I would "use this as a lesson" and try, try, try. Yea. Didn't happen. That artistic/red-head temper kicked in. It was either wipe it all off or pack up and leave. Plus, I was having easel problems that caused a big problem (more later).

So, with a little over an hour left, I flipped the canvas to a vertical format and began again. Much better. It's not complete or perfect. I had to make choices about where to spend my limited time. But it's 1,000x better (and no, I didn't take a picture of the first one.)

About the easel/tripod problems, the tripod wouldn't lock the paint box upright. The box kept falling backwards when attached. This was the first time I used my new easel. I thought it was me, but several fellow artists tried to fix it and couldn't solve the problem. I ended up calling the company for help. They were fantastic and tried several things that unfortunately didn't work. But they're sending me a replacement and Charlotte is letting borrow her tripod for the rest of the workshop.

Lauren

2010-10-02T20:56:00.016-05:00

I had a wonderful day at a workshop by Bill Kalwick today. Bill is a lot of fun, very knowledgable, and full of encouragement, especially to someone who hasn't painted in over a year. It feel so great to put brush to canvas, squinting and hoping to find the right values needed.

Our model Lauren is beautiful and poised. As happy as I am with the portrait, I wish it would have done her justice. It was such a rewarding day. It was lovely to see my paintinig friends again, just lovely. :-)

Reflection

2009-07-28T12:20:00.004-05:00

This painting was from a photograph I took in a workshop with Gladys Roldan de Moras. We worked on a pose (picture below) for a day but during the model breaks, Carla would roll onto her back, shut her eyes and rest. I asked if I could take a picture and she agreed.

The blanket was her family heirloom and was just gorgeous. The embroidery on it was delightfully complex. I repainted it several times trying to get the tones right. Definitely needed a photograph to keep me on track.

Carla was actually reading the book during the class pose which is why her resting pose struck me as poignant. When I read a book that affects me, I do that to... hug it to my chest, close my eyes and savior the words.

Mr. Blue Jeans

2009-07-27T14:07:00.004-05:00

This is another Different Strokes from Differnet Folks challange. This is a figuartive painting challenge; trying to get the "weight" of the figure correct, not a portrait. I am pleased with the way he turned out. The denim of the shirt and pants were a challenge being that they are about the same color and value but they turned out well. I bet you can tell from the title what is my favorite part. (Plus, it reminds me of Mr. Green Jeans from Capt. Kangaroo. I used to love that show and the magic drawing board.)

Hayden

2009-05-30T22:18:00.001-05:00

Oh baby Hayden! This adorable munchkin is a friend's baby. He's about 6 months old in this picture. When his mama was showing me his latest pictures, I tenatively asked if I could try to paint a portrait from the photo. She said "Sure!"

I had never painted a baby, a baby with yummy checks, a baby with an intent stare.... oh those EYES! They are really that blue. And his lashes are destined to entice any female that looks at him. I just love the way the painting turned out.

So did his mama :-)

Farm in Pennsylvania

2009-05-29T16:09:00.006-05:00

I am enjoying the latest challenge from Different Strokes from Different Folks. Provided was a black and photo of a farm scene and the challenge was to add color based on the values. What fun!! I had the afternoon off without work and decided to see what would happen. About 3 hours later I am happy with the results.

Steve Irwin

2009-05-28T16:58:00.000-05:00

My youngest has wanted to be like Steve Irwin since he was in first grade (he's finishing up 7th next week). When Steve tragically died, my youngest asked me to paint a portrait for him. After looking at a lot of photos, youngest chose the picture that was on the cover of People magazine. I finished this about a year ago but didn't have a blog to post then. My favorite part is his hair... I just loved the sun streaked blonde.

PS ~ My son still wants to be like him. What a great role model for kids.

Geranium

2009-04-26T21:48:00.005-05:00

I have a confession. I haven't painted in over 3 months. Yeah. I would look at my "studio" and just think "some day." Well, I had to chop part of my geranium plant and decide to paint the trimmings. Easy, right? Pink is notoriously hard to paint, glass is challenging because it's all tones and values, and the blue? Well, I just love the color manganese.

Here's a picture of my studio area...
(also know as the other half of the computer room). It was either paint or clean it up. Notice how the floor is not shown. Yep. I would rather paint.

A Companion of Diana

2009-04-26T21:01:00.006-05:00

This drawing was done from a photograph provided on the blog Different Strokes From Different Folks, where artists are encouraged to paint or draw their own interpretations.

It was a lot of fun spending time just drawing, picking up a pencil, putting it to paper and just draw. It soothed my soul to return to what I know best. Drawing, for me, is usually pretty effortless... it just happens. Not the case this time. I've been known not to use an eraser but I sure did this time. Still, I'm happy with the result. And am pleased that by the end my session, the pencil felt at one in my hand. Plus I finish off several shows on my DVR that I've been meaning to watch. Win-win!!

Jefferson Memorial

2009-01-20T14:27:00.005-06:00

I've been following a fantastic blog named Different Strokes from Different Folks. Karin Jurik is a wonderful artist and photographer who will post a picture for inspiration. Artist from all over paint their interpretation of it, send her a jpeg and the weeks results are posted. It is facinating to see the different takes on it.

This is the first time I've submitted a painting. I went into this with little expectations... dark, a monument, blah attiude. But I love it how it turned out. I had a lot of fun working darker than I usually do, the glowy lights, the misty atmosphere. The hardest part? Not looking at Karin's blog until I was finished so I wouldn't be influenced.

Graycie

2009-01-18T14:07:00.000-06:00

My cat is huge, a 15+ pounder. She adores cramming her body into small spaces such as this box. I love that. I have kitty beds all over the place and she chooses a box. She stayed in there all day.

Cherry Study no. 2

2008-12-25T23:02:00.007-06:00

This is a value study of a cherry that had the most lyrical of stems. The painting was completed in less then 15 minutes during a workshop with Carol Marine. As much as I enjoy the cherry itself, I just adore the twist of the stem... much like a graceful dancer.

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