Disappointment

This would have been a nice teapot, except that the spout twisted and
I accidentally blocked the strainer holes. What a shame, since the lid
fits really well. My next try will be better.

Coming soon... Snake Jar!

Emily in Progress

Been working on this painting of Emily for the past two days. Almost done!

In Progress...

Almost finished. At this point, I want to let it dry for a while before I add the final touches.

Messy Pallet!

What a bummer - it's so pretty!

On a side note, I'm thoroughly disappointed at these new "Van Gogh" brand oil paints I bought to try. They were a lot cheaper than my customary Wisor Newtons, and like a fool, I fell for them. They simply do not have the heft and pigment level to complete with my thicker Newtons, and get completely lost when I use them together. Its a shame, since I do love that orange.

I have to say that the prussian blue is actually ok, but maybe only because those blues are usually dominating anyway.






Check back in a bit to see the painting totally finished!

Emily

Today I'm working on a small oil painting. I did the under-drawing a few months ago and it got put on the back burner. I'm happy to get back to it! The image is of a friend (herself an incredible illustrator and designer) who graciously agreed to let me paint her portrait.

Since many of the colors in my reference photo are in the cooler spectrum, I gave the drawing a wash of a warmer color - acrylic yellow ochre paint. As a result, my cool colors on the warm base will be much stronger than if I started on white. I used acrylic, which is a plastic based paint, because it dries very fast and oil works well on top of it. You can always paint with oil over acrylic, but not the other way around!

I will probably begin on her face, mostly because I think that's the most interesting part. I'll keep you posted on progress, so be sure to check back!

Greenware

Wheel-thrown and assembled teapot and coffeepot. These were made with brown clay, and will have an earthy look. I'll probably apply iron oxide and a glazed dot pattern to them. Think fish or reptile scales!

Toad-ily green

My inspiration, from a hike on Mt. Nittany near Penn State University.
The sugar bowl's interior glaze will be "green tweed."
Coming soon: fish bowls!

Vulpes Vulpes - or Red Fox!

Today's Sketch... I think this is a case of "I liked the drawing better before I painted it". Oh well...

 

Might cut it out and use it somewhere else later.

It's easy to go overboard with ladybugs

I've been working on a dinnerware set that features fragile little creatures hiding in the undergrowth. I enjoy the surprise of finding fish among pond weeds, a frog in the grass, a toad on a wet sidewalk. These are animals you could catch and cup in your hands if you're quick and careful. I want people to think about these things and have these kinds of experiences when they handle my tableware.

I thought some bits of red would nicely set off a pair of American toads on a sugar bowl... So I panted some ladybugs and immediately regretted it. They were way too cute. Would stinkbugs be better?

This fellow visited my sister's bathroom counter top last month. He and his friends have been making nuisances of themselves indoors, but they have handsome rust-colored spots around the edges of their carapaces and interesting striped antennae.

Do toads eat stinkbugs? According to wiki.answers: "Yes." But frogs will not. Picky.