Allegro original butterfly painting

Allegro original butterfly painting. Available for purchase here: www.christydekoning.etsy.com

Have I mentioned lately how much I'm enjoying working on canvas? I can manipulate the paint in any direction, lay it on thick, or dilute it by (literally) taking the shower head to it.

It withstands scrubbing, scraping, and all-round abuse. And if you don't like the way a painting is going, throw it in the shower with a scrubber (I like the little plastic surgical nail brushes) and start all over again. A wonderful platform for releasing one's artistic frustrations!

"Allegro" is a mixed media painting on 12x12 inch canvas, composed of watercolour, gouache, and a whole lot of movement (pushing and pulling the paint, dripping, and playing with light)

allegro |əˈlegrō| Music
"A direction to play lively and fast"

ORIGIN Italian, literally ‘lively, gay.’

Road Trip to Cooperstown (or a long way to drive for the love of John Singer Sargent)

"Lady Agnew" - watercolour study by Christy DeKoning
of John Singer Sargent's work in oil: "Lady Agnew of Lochnaw"

I'm going on a road trip today - to Cooperstown, New York.

Not for the Baseball Hall of Fame, either.

So the question everyone asks is: why go there, if not for the love of the game?

My answer is short and sweet: John Singer Sargent

He was best known for his amazing oil portraits of prominent women at the turn of the century (last century, that is!) 

I'll include a few of his watercolours here, because, after all, that is what you're here for, right?

His most famous (infamous) painting was of Madame Gautreau

 - often referred to as "Madame X" - (you can google it) - 

but I love this reference sketch, painted in watercolour:

Portrait of Madame Gautreau - 1883 John Singer SargentWatercolor on paper 35.5 x 25.2 cm

The Garden Wall John Singer Sargent -- 1910Transparent and opaque watercolor over graphite, with wax resist, on paper40 x 52.7 cm (15 3/4 x 20 3/4 in.)

The Green Dress John Singer Sargent -- 1912 Watercolor on paper 42 x 32 cm (16 1/2 x 12 5/8 in.)

And here are some of my favourites in oil. The moody and perfect "Repose":

(oh, how I love his use of blue)

Repose (Nonchaloire)John Singer Sargent -- 1911 Oil on canvas 63.8 x 76.2 cm (25 1/8 x 30 in.)  The model is Sargent's  niece, Rose-Marie Ormond Michel.  

and of course, the intriguing, mysterious Lady Agnew:

Lady Agnew of Lochnaw John Singer Sargent -- 1892-93  
Oil on canvas
124.5 x 99.7 cm  (49 x 39 1/4 in.) 

I'll be back on Monday, with photos and an account of our trip.
Till then, enjoy your own travels in watercolour!

Miniature canvas painting three ways

I've had a miniature canvas primed in orange and ready for painting for, oh, about 2 years.

In moving into my new studio, I picked it up (unfinished) for the last time - this was NOT going to be put away again.

So I started with blue at the top, and worked my way down to a lavender softness, ending with a warm punch of terracotta.  Then I put it aside to see what I can create from the chaos.  I see a wave formation in the top left, as if we are looking at the sea from a little higher up on a dune, maybe. I could finish this off with a bit of Titanium White or gouache for the whitecaps of the waves, and some tall grass or flowers in the foreground.  

By the way, if you're wondering, the base coat on this miniature canvas is acrylic and I'm painting directly over the acrylic with watercolour - which means I must use opaque white.  It also means I'll use an acrylic sealer to finish it off and make the colours pop again.

But before I put this aside, I rotated the photos a couple times.  I kind of like it on a vertical plane.

... and doesn't it look great flipped upside down? 

Now it's a gorgeous sky over the ocean. 

Or a cityscape painting (with more details added)

Oh the choices!

What do you see when you look at these? This is a great exercise for those of you who are trying to loosen up with your painting. Don't try to "make" something right away. Just let the colours mix, and then do some "cloud-watching" as I like to call it.  

And you can pick up these cool miniature canvases at Blick Art Materials (just enter "mini canvas" in the search box) along with little easels to hold them!

A new studio for Christy!

Here it is - my new studio! 

I haven't finished moving in, but it's enough to get back to work.

In no order whatsoever, here is a list of improvements:

I can people-watch.

I can print IN THE SAME ROOM.

Loads of natural light.

I can people-watch.

I can cut mats IN THE SAME ROOM.

I have a corner devoted entirely to portrait sittings, 

with enough privacy for nude work.

(or, I can have a little nap)

Did I mention I can people-watch?

I can pack up orders and prepare shipments IN THE SAME ROOM.

I can close the door.

I can make as big of a mess as I want to (because I can close the door).

...and I can people-watch!

I used to be in the back of my house, where I couldn't even hear people knocking at the door.

Now, I can lean over and decide whether the person at the door is worth going downstairs for

 (yes, I'm talking about YOU, Mr. "I-can-lower-your-electricity-bill" guy)

The photos don't really show the depth of colour in the blue I've chosen, but you should get the picture.

The "sitting" area (once I put everything away)

The "shipping" area over on the right, and the "mat cutting" station right in the foreground.
And fuzzy yellow socks for when my feet get cold. 

I'm not hanging art just yet, as we might be putting our house up for sale next year. 

So the less holes in the plaster walls, the better.

But in the meantime, this new studio is a huge improvement for me. 

And one last added bonus - we'll get our dining room back :-)