August is here, and it’s about time to create some fall landscape and treescape. The colors are not here yet, but they’ll be everywhere before we know. Just as I wrote before, I get tired of green and I need something completely different. This post shows my most recent acrylic painting ” Golden view of early fall” on lots of textures in the background, or underneath the multiple layers of paint.
I started creating very textured paintings many years ago. Before modeling paste was available, I used plaster and plaster cloth, then cured it and, thus, got amazing textures. It’s hard to say which one is easier to use. Plaster takes more layers of primer before paint application, but modeling paste sometimes dries too quick. Nowadays, textured art is common, but it wasn’t when I started creating it some 15 years ago.
I asked my husband to take a few pictures with me working on this painting in order to present the size of it. Everything I post just as a cropped image of painting alone doesn’t allow seeing it in space and with dimensions. For a textured art and in order textures were more or less visible on a photo, it is important to get some angled views.
Just adding more layers to Golden eternity painting. The perspective of iPhone is quite terrible, but one can see the size at least
Golden eternity painting on the easel. It took me about 3 weeks to get it painted going over layer by layer and so for many times.
Textures and color, close-upand I hope you can see how textures push through the paint layers
The “Golden eternity” is 81 x 66 cm or 32 x 28 inches in size.
Textured paintings are very special, especially when you can see them in person. Colors slightly change with different light conditions. I usually have to ask not to touch such paintings. Well, they draw attention of a viewer and it’s hard to resist not to trace the visible lines of textured trees and leaves.
Have a great August and fun enjoying nature! Nature is an endless source of the best things on our Earth.
It’s amazing that I had no idea my art had been added to a local virtual marketplace. It was somewhat encouraging to see that my art was appreciated.
If I knew about that, I’d had kept working on new paintings instead of spending the last week in the backyard. I had intended to post images of the previously unpublished paintings also at least a week ago, but life just sometimes demands dealing with other things.
These are images of paintings which were sold, but I hadn’t actually gotten a chance to publish them anywhere.
I painted at least 4 versions of “Nostalgia, gardens of dreams”. This painting was sold about 10 years ago. It’s size was 22 x 28 inches or 56 x 71 cm, acrylic on canvas. I actually do commissions also which means one can order any size of my painting and in any colors they prefer. Variation of my own art certainly works the best.
The Spring orchard (20 x 16 in) was sold in 2016. One of my art students bought it. Since the pictures of paintings were taken briefly before their sale, I cannot get any better photos. This particular painting had a very nice play of colors in textures since trees and grasses are very suitable for that.
The still life I still have. It was hiding in the storage room. Pears and daisies, 12 x 16 inches or 30.5 x 41 cm; sunny still life in acrylic.
At that time which might be about 8-10 years ago, this painting was named “Flower hill”. We did it in acrylic painting classes and my painting was a demo. Its size was 16 x 20 inches or 41 x 51 cm acrylic on canvas.
Fits any style actually
A few weeks ago, I was simply playing around with placing pictures of my art in room settings. While many people would dare using only abstract art with their light, white or minimalist style, I think my paintings make each one of these rooms look great.
My art prints on Fine Art America:
Stay in touch and stay safe! I will have something new soon, especially for art students; now, that gardenworks are almost done.
This time, I’m presenting Summer place 1 which actually started the series. This painting should have been posted right after the Summer place 2 which is shown in the previous post, but I got done very little these days. That is especially true about posting pictures, but not creating paintings.
I wish I had some clear vision about all this situation and where it is heading, but it is quite difficult at the moment. I’ve run out of acrylic paints. I ordered some, and the waiting has been about a month so far. In normal conditions, I do not ever prefer online shopping, but it is the only option right now. I’m also waiting for some other things which are essential for me because the previous computer died and I lost good software which I cannot get back. The realization that I have left not that much good watercolor paper and I will be still missing some acrylic paints because I simply forgot to order them the first time, makes me feel not good.
To create good art, I use high quality art supplies, often the best available. I do not want to waste these good canvases and papers and paint on them with leftover paint. The shipping might be faster when ordering online in other countries, but it is quite slow in Ontario.
There is one more important aspect to all of this: I love giving live art classes. They ended by the second half of February. I had to take off my art show halfway through, and without any physical showings, I just haven’t managed to sell anything either. I took off the “Buy now” buttons for a moment because I just would not be able to handle and cover the shipping right now, in particular, for large paintings which many of them are. In fact, I do not have tiny paintings. To somewhat facilitate my presence online, I intend to widen the social media circle and I updated my website nicely, too. More work will be done, but I’m not rushing it.
Springtime is usually spent in the garden; therefore, I can devote less hours to art. I always appreciate interest in art and people, who have bought it. This time is stressful for many people and bloggers. I would be probably wrong to expect somebody trying to buy art at the moment. Meanwhile, there is so much of it that lack of space is becoming a serious issue. We have moved almost every year for a while, and carrying around large numbers of sensitive paintings is very difficult. Sometimes art gets damaged, sometimes I’m struggling.
The Summer place 1 is an updated canvas. I had painted the fence during previous year, and it just never looked as a completed painting. I added more trees and drew in the building, and it came to life immediately. I do frequently travel in my thoughts and imagination, that includes time traveling. Summer place 1 looks like that adorable place where I spent my youth.
The white daisies were updated, too, because the previous version needed a facelift. I find that it is much easier to paint on textured or previously painted canvas. Acrylic is such paint: the more we add, the more layers we build, the better it looks. Any of my paintings take about a few days to a few weeks to paint. Photography unfortunately cannot capture the transparent layers or halftones, and that annoys me slightly.
Properties of our eyesight are very unique, indeed. There are no two persons, who see everything exactly the same way. We could say, the way we see is just as unique as our DNA, fingerprints, iris of the eye and similar extra fine things. Therefore, when we create something, some people will love it, some people will think it’s nothing special and some will either ignore or dislike it. That is normal. The thing we have created has still the same value for us personally, at least it should, because its objective value does not change depending on subjective likes or dislikes. It’s social media which either stamps some creation as success or disregards it.
High ranked mediocrity
I do sometimes wonder why a painting which is really good does not get that many likes as something rather average. Go figure. Partially, this is because of ranking. Let’s say, I post my image at the right time and it immediately gets 30 likes in the first 20 seconds. That’s it! It immediately moves up the ranks, and that is all we need. New likes follow, comments are posted and we’ve got the attention of the invisible viewer mass. Now, does the response always indicate that we are becoming a master in some area? Not really. We still need to have our self-criticism and apply our personal judgement.
Versatility
We should have options, always. The trends are out there and whether to comply and act on them is up to us. People sometimes suggest: you should paint more abstracts, you should do some black and white art, you should post more drawings and so on. I could do all of the above. The problem is, however, that I do create art which I am deeply in at any particular moment. I am not good with following trends and I actually do not care that much about them either. It is bad for marketing, no doubt about that. However, it is the only way to stay true to oneself and do more of my own realism.
Specific realism
I love realism. I need to clarify, it’s not any realism, but my personal enhanced realism. We could say, it’s high definition because I adore adding something still tasteful, but very detailed. Details are risky, but they also make a view very unique. I love specific colors and cannot stand some other particular colors. I do not like using black, in fact, I use it only for mixing up other colors. I love greens which are mixed up from black plus blue, plus yellow plus burnt sienna and white. Some grey shades require black. I really dislike black in watercolors. I never have used even 1 drop of black in any of my watercolors.
The choice of subject
We normally paint what resonates with us. I at least do. I have also many favorite subjects: still life, seasonal landscape, buildings, perspective and flowers. I think all young people want to paint portraits and figures. I did, too. Some stick to them and some move over to other subjects. I love painting and drawing from reality, and to paint face or figure, I’d need a model. That complicates things because it makes me dependent on somebody else. With my subjects, I choose time, place and medium.
Too many paintings
I’ve read how people complain they don’t have enough artworks in portfolio. I think it is also problematic to have too many artworks. I’m adding 2-3 a week in average. I have numerous paintings in different completion stages. Some are drafts, some half-done, some need change in color or more highlights. I get tired of one medium or subject quickly. Therefore, I switch from acrylic to watercolor and vice versa, I sometimes do just pencil drawing or pastel drawing. I love creating all kinds of drawing-based art because I’m very good at drawing from reality, and for that matter, drawing anything.
Preferences
My preferences are very noticeable when it comes to art. I love clean colors. I never use paint straight from tube, but the mix must be clean. It is easy to create any color from 3 primary colors, plus black and white in acrylic. I add burnt sienna, burnt umber, ocher and many shades of blue. That way, my palette is complete. I’m not a big fan of Ultramarine. Instead, I use Prussian blue and brilliant blue. Seasons have huge effect on me. I basically paint spring in winter or early spring, summer in spring, and fall in summer. Does that mean I cannot wait until the actual season arrives? Yes, it does.
Enhanced and personalized realism in art; Summer place 2, I love how it came out, acrylic painting on canvas 18 x 24 inches or 46 x 61 cm
Summer place 2 and Breezy daisy field
I would love to post just one painting in every article, but there are so many lined up. I will limit myself to just two this time. Summer place 2 is the second one in Summer place series. Breezy daisy field is also continuing the flower field series. As usually, I started them for demo purposes at art classes. The summer place 2 took about 2 weeks and daisy field about a full week to complete. My paintings consist of many layers and under-layers. It is best to paint any acrylic painting on color-coated canvas. They both are the same size: 18 x 24 inches or 46 x 61 cm. One is horizontal, the other is vertical. I’m very sure, the internet display will make one look larger and the other smaller.
Breezy daisy field, it got a lot of attention on Facebook, acrylic painting on canvas 18 x 24 inches or 46 x 61 cm
Grey of spring and lush green of summer
It is still cold outdoors. This April came with such a nice promise of spring starting early. What a disappointment! It is almost May and we have freezing temperatures every night. That is why I am a lot in very strong and very rich green color. I’m not trying to overdo, but it feels so nice to surround myself with this color at the moment. My love relationship with green will pass, too, but it’s so pleasant to look at such art and be around it.
This year will be marked by COVID-19 pandemic forever. This time is a very specific one, and so are our experiences. One can spend more hours on simply reminiscing about the moments which were captured on photos last year, the year before that and many years ago. This time also shows us how wrong we were about many things and how little we appreciated the freedom to move around and to go places whenever we felt like.
Art creation requires to be alone
However, for someone like me, there is no much change. I am not excited about Ontario winter which extends into spring, and in April as this year again. We had snowflakes dancing around daffodil buds for a few days now. Regretfully, it has been cold, and spring didn’t keep its promise about plenty of sunshine which it arrived with.
Missing and hoping
So, I was scrolling through pictures from previous years not only because I didn’t have anything better to do, but also because I needed to reinstall everything onto another computer after the old one crashed. The pictures from earlier years cause wide range of emotions. I am so proud of having painted numerous outstanding quality paintings, I miss the live art classes, I want to be in the blossoming spring backyard sooner. I start feeling older and I look at my own life as a train running away. I actually stopped making big plans many years ago after the accident in 1992. It would be interesting to know what my life would have turned out without going through that awful time. However, due to aftereffects of that accident I came to Canada.
Museum quality art
The attached images are of large watercolor paintings which I painted between 2008 and 2011. I honestly regret I cannot show you the actual paintings in their actual size. The image size is 23 x 30 inches or 58 x 76 cm. I am excited myself to explore the flow of lines, the perfection of detail, the soft and unexpected transitions of color which photos unfortunately cannot capture. Most of these paintings are put away and preserved in large folders. The ones in frames are under glass and neither pictures, nor videos would show them without a glare.
Mastering the medium
All of these paintings realistically show mastery in paint application and composition. I usually spend at least a few weeks to a few months on just one painting. They have been accepted in juried shows and exhibited in all kinds of galleries. After I broke the large museum grade glass on one painting, I stopped taking them out. These paintings are excellent value, and they should be treated like such.
Affordability of art supplies
It doesn’t even seem that long ago, just a decade or a bit longer, but art materials, especially watercolor paper was so affordable! I used very heavy duty and very thick Arches paper for anything, even sketches and quick drafts. The same paper costs a lot more money today because 1 sheet is $25-$35 in Canada. Is this only my imagination, or quality also does not feel the same? Any paint quality has definitely decreased big time over the past 10 years while prices are 3-4 times higher.
Art supplies matter
The truth is: great watercolor paper makes up for at least 25% of watercolor art quality. It is physically impossible to create good washes and flow of pigment on paper which does not absorb paint and water. Looking at these pictures makes me sad, too. I wish all art materials were available without any hassles again! I am waiting currently for some acrylic paints to arrive. I also hope watercolor paper became less expensive. Actually, the highest prices for any art materials are in Canada.
Should I even paint something more?
Most likely, I should sell more, not paint more. It is a matter of space and storage, as well. Yet, once somebody is hooked on creating art, it becomes like addiction. I’ve been in art for 50 years, and I don’t think I am going to ever discontinue painting. When I look at the art scene of today, I must say, I feel disappointed. Most images are computer generated, vector images, digitally enhanced or digitally painted images.
Good quality hand made art
Good quality hand made art is becoming quite rare. I would emphasize: good quality. The reason might be that most people do not want to spend time learning how to draw. It is way easier to trace or copy or print off and then paint over. While one has outline, they also need a lot more: understanding what values are, how contrast, light, direction of light and composition, as well as perspective contribute to any painting. These aspects are the ones which are missing in big part of today’s art.
The thorough painting process
I usually create full-size hand drawing for each of these paintings. Most of drawings show also the scale of values. Therefore, I do not need any other reference if the still life or landscape setup and view is not available any longer. I set up or looked at a scene and then drew it. Here is one example setup which was the base reference for my garden painting.
I transferred the drawing (I used a large window for that as a lightbox) onto watercolor paper and kept working every day when the weather allowed.
The garden painting: so much great time spent with it, painted in 2011. This painting is 23 x 30 inches or 58 x 76 cm.
I cannot recall the year, but I think it was 2008 when I painted this road. It is also full-sheet watercolor painting on Arches. Some of my paintings have never been published, this is one of them
The forest road watercolor from 2008, This painting is 23 x 30 inches or 58 x 76 cm.
The birch path painting refers to a Latvian forest path. When it comes to painting, I am always subconsciously referencing my memory which stores Latvian landscapes, views and scenery. I have added Canadian landscapes to my memory in the recent years, but Latvia still prevails.
The picture comes from 2010 and might have more contrast. It was photographed through glass back then. However, the actual painting still looks very impressive and asks one to walk this path. This painting is 23 x 30 inches or 58 x 76 cm.
The spring creek was half imaginary, half photo-referenced. It took about a month to paint it. Image shows it more yellow, but it’s rather crisp light green and the blue is very attractive.
Spring creek, full-sheet or 23 x 30 inches (58 x 76 cm). spring watercolor painting
And finally, so far never published watercolor from 2010. It is also 23 x 30 inches or 58 x 76 cm
Along the summer stream, full-sheet watercolor on Arches
The difficult photo managing experience
Back then just as today, I was struggling with getting good photos of my paintings. It’s more struggle now thanks to Windows 10 photos app which seems to be incompatible with iPhone 11 Pro Max. Every time when I am trying to download pictures, one or another side doesn’t want to cooperate. Windows 10 photo app not only does not allow me to set my own parameters for download, they mess up everything and I have to manually copy over and delete lots of pictures. Sometimes this app wants to download all photos from phone, sometimes does not recognize any.
Simple editing tools
I was still using the great Microsoft Digital Image Editor 2006 up to the moment when my previous computer crashed. That was all I need for adjustment of my pictures. It was simple, fast, extremely efficient. One can find numerous photo manipulation apps now, but there is none for keeping the image as is, just fixing exposure, light and contrast. Most pictures displayed here were taken up to 2011. They are practically unedited, except, I added frames.
Blogging, pleasantries and some annoying habits
I have intended to post more of previous paintings since I also haven’t seen them for a while, that means for at least a few years. I know how people are busy. It’s just so that if you do not look at the actual post and the actual images, you most likely have no idea what I am talking about. I have noticed some bloggers click on “like” under 20 posts, but they certainly haven’t seen or read any of them. I am trying to always respond to all comments timely and I do appreciate your comments a lot. However, I never put blogging before the actual life, therefore, I will like back posts which deserve that and comment back in case I have something to say about your article when I have time.
My paintings on Fine Art America, large collection of art prints:
