Bride & Cardinal

Sometimes I get the most interesting requests.

Often those have to do with the loss of a loved one. It seems like it usually begins with "Could you do a portrait?" (In this case, "It's for the girl my nephew is marrying.  The wedding is in 10 days? Is that enough time?") That's followed by a lot of back and forth of what's wanted. Mostly they don't really know; they just want a remembrance, a symbol, an image to bring a smile.  My suggestion for the portrait is that they find a great photo and have that printed to frame.  Then we talk about the reminders or symbols.

"Her mother passed away a couple of years ago... She thinks of her or is comforted whenever she sees a cardinal... She also feels that when she sees a bee... Her fiancé always gives her long stemmed roses..." among other ideas.  

Let me see what I can do...

... start with a photo of her the day she said yes to the dress...

... sketch with colored pencils...

... get approval... (She loved it.)

... give it a try in a couple of ways...  

(She tells me the bride loved it.)

Original Acrylic Painting on 5"x 7" Canvas Board

Original Watercolor Painting on 7"x 9" Art Paper

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Cardinals at Sunrise

My Weekly-ish Challenge was to paint with only three primary colors and white. It's kind of amazing what can be created just with those colors.

I started by mixing them making a little color wheel.

It's just a tiny little painting, but it looks great all dressed up in a vintage frame.

(Ok... let's be honest about the definition of vintage... It doesn't sound very pleasant to say "junky old thing that you that's been in a box in a box at the back of the closet.")

So, anyhoo... I found a great vintage wood frame and gave it a fresh coat of paint, perfect to go around this sweet little painting.

Original Oil Painting on 5"x 7" Canvas Board, Framed.

Click Sunrise Cardinals if you'd like this lovely little painting.

Cardinal in Snow

Maybe not the image I'd expect to be painting on July 4th weekend, but why not! 

I Googled whether or not cardinals migrate.  They don't.  I think ours are pretty happy living here. Why would they want to leave!

Original Oil Painting on 8"x 8" Wrapped Canvas

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Winter Cardinal (Palette Knife)

 

I've been thinking about the beginning of Inspiration Collaboration and the closing of it at the end of this year. 

There was an idea... Sara wrote, "... it would challenge me to get out of my comfort zone... get my brain working in different ways."  I replied, "I've had a restless feeling that it's time for something new... different... challenging..." 

72 hours and countless e-mails later, our idea had a name, a blog, an Instagram account, a Pinterest board, and participants were invited. 

In the last 24 months, I have indeed been challenged to think and create outside my comfort zone.  I know I've grown as a painter, writer, and friend because of my work with Inspiration Collaboration.  

My first inspiration image was SnowCardinal.  Winter Cardinal brings me full-circle as my last inspiration image.

I was prompted to do this cardinal painting for my weekly-ish painting challenge with my art mentor/friend.  The topic was "Winter Scenes & Winter Things."

Thanks to Annie Troe for her very helpful YouTube lesson.

Palette Knife Painting on 8"x 8" Wrapped Canvas

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Cardinal Pair

I'm often asked, "How do you decide what to paint?" or "Where do you get your inspiration for paintings?" 

• Sometimes I just paint what someone commissions me to paint, and that's an okay answer. I can do that.
• When I choose an image, I look for the combination of elegance and simplicity.
• I want my paintings to tell a story.  If "a picture is worth a thousand words..."  then surely each of my paintings should bring a hundred or so to mind.
• I usually choose to paint what I know... what is a part of me and my little slice of the world.

Join me for a tour of a favorite little slice of my world...

Here it is... It's my favorite spot.  

What makes it so?  

Well, let's see... Let's begin with that chair in the middle.  There's a table on either side to put a drink or book or computer... convenient. There's a blue heating pad in the chair... just in case it's not quite warm enough outside.  There's a little blue stool in front of the chair... perfect for a 5 foot person who needs a few inches.  

And... there's a feeling of peace... 

It's quiet here, but there are lots of sounds... Depending on the time of day, there are birds of all kinds, peepers, crickets, frogs, and owls.  If there's a little wind, the chimes tinkle...

There's also the little scraping sound of the pieces of tin hanging from the tomato cages... Ha ha... a redneck attempt to keep deer away from the garden... 

Soon there will be flowers in the barrel, tomatoes and cucumbers in the cages around the edges (because deer don't like those), and okra, peppers, onions, and jalapenos inside.

If the sun is shining, maybe it would be better to sit on the little red bench beside the garden.  The hill behind it is actually the bank of the pond. It's got a path around the top and down to the water.

The row of daffodils, irises, tulips, lilies, hyacinth remind might remind you of where you grew up. That's why it's there.

A few other details to notice... 

There's a big pot where I grow herbs beside the bench. 

There's my little "It's been a pleasure reading and writing with you" granite block that my co-teachers gave me when I retired... sniff. 

Then there's our burn pit and a stick to guide the chickens toward their coop when it's time for them to be put up for the night.

Speaking of the girls... Did you know that they kind of purr when they're content?  Yes, they cackle when they lay an egg, but the purr is my favorite.

Welcome to the coops! Sylvia, Fancy, and Dolly sleep in the Sister House. Red Red and Other Red sleep in the Cousin House.

I asked for a birdbath for my birthday last week.... The deer think it was put there for them. 

I asked for a birdhouse for my birthday last year... The squirrels think it was put there for them.

And finally... the birds... the beautiful, beautiful cardinals...

Now back to the view from my chair... and... that scraggly tree right in the center of the view... Ahh... There's a story there!  The builders of our house asked if we wanted them to take it down, but we decided to keep it. And guess what we learned that next spring... and every spring since... It's a dogwood! Next week it will be gorgeous!

If you're ever near, I'd love to have you join me... in my favorite little slice of the world.

Original Oil Painting on 12"x 12" Wrapped Canvas

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Cardinal in Winter

Did you just make that up?

I don't usually make things up in my paintings.  I pretty much paint what I see.  Whenever I start making things up, it usually leads to trouble - shadows don't match, proportions are off, colors don't agree... I'm rarely successful  with painting from my mind.

I finished this little bird once.  It looked just like the photograph... and it looked awful, just wrong... as if I'd made something up.

The snow on the branch was so thick that it looked fake.  The blank space around the little cardinal looked unfinished.  The angle of the limb didn't make any sense. The little guy had his eyes closed. His back feathers looked drab. So... I took a completely finished and dry painting and started making things up.  
- I gave him a little slit of an eye.
- I grew a few little background twigs in front of and behind him.
- I scraped off a couple of inches of show.
- I skinnied up the main branch.
- I added some purple to his dark feathers on top.

Then I signed my name.

It's been a harsh winter here in Northwest Arkansas.  We've had some beautiful snows.

Click "Cardinal in Winter" to purchase this little painting.

Mr. & Mrs. Cardinal

How long does it take to get rusty?

I haven't been able to paint for a while; sometimes life just gets in the way. Once things slowed down, I found myself putting off getting back to it.  When I finally sat down in front of a canvas, it was hard... hard to get it right.

I suppose painting is no different than any other skill; you have to practice to stay in shape.

We have the most wonderful cardinals that splash their red color onto the dreary, wintry landscape behind our house.  They flit and play and watch closely for me to come around with my camera so that they can quickly fly away!  

One day I was determined to be still long enough to capture them in a few photos.  I really wanted to get the male and female together - preferably on a pretty branch posed perfectly, but this was a close as they would get to that.   

I'd originally thought it would be neat to paint them on a tall thin canvas like they actually were, but it looked odd.  Also I decided to use my license, my artistic license, to give a little more color and a little less twigs to their background.  

Bluebird on a Twig

How does one become a bird watcher?

I'd like to watch my birds, but they are the most aggravating things!  They will not be still!
Don't misunderstand; I love my birds.  I love their tweets and chirps and caws and whistles.  I love their flashes of color in the trees.
But, I would love them even more if they'd just be still and let me take their picture every once in a while.  
I have a hummingbird feeder - well, those guys don't even count, they never be still for anyone.  I also hung three bird feeders in the trees around my back deck.  The seeds disappear, so I know they're coming around.  I even see them sitting there having a snack - but just for a second.  If I pick up my camera, they're off within seconds.  And, if heaven forbid, I open the door to come out...!  You'd think I'm mean to them or something!  
Anyway, here are a few of my flighty little neighbors.

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Cardinal on a Cedar Branch

Do birds have facial expressions?

I wouldn't think so... 
They don't have lips so they can't smile or frown.  They don't have eyebrows so they can't scowl.
So...
Why does this little cardinal look so angry?

After painting three other cardinals, this guy came together pretty fast, but he looks so mad!  

I bought two bird feeders just so I could lure him (an his friends) to within camera range.  It worked.  They love the birdseed; however, they can tell when I get the camera out.  I think they're actually angry when they hear the click.  

Hmmmm... maybe the picture is right!

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Sunflower Swallowtail

Where do you get your painting inspiration?

I love to paint what I love, and I love what I see around my own home.  I grew a row of sunflowers at the back of my garden last year.  They were gorgeous.  One day this little butterfly danced, flitted, and posed as long as I was willing to take pictures.  So, I had 30 photos... all nearly the same... to choose from.  I loved this one because the little butterfly opened up and showed off his beautiful wings.

So what will be next?

This is what I saw from my porch yesterday...

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Winter Cardinal

What sight makes you stop and take a moment to enjoy?

... a rainbow...
... a clear night sky filled with stars...
... the orange sky as the sun sets...
... a full moon...
... red cardinal on a winter day...

Enjoy an Etsy treasury (collection of related art pieces) that celebrates all kinds of birds.  Click Birdsong.

[SOLD]

Snow Cardinal II

Shouldn't things be easier the second time around?


That wasn't the case for me and this painting.  I'd actually painted this little guy before, (Click "Snow Cardinal" to see the first version.)  but it sold.  Usually I'm thrilled when paintings sell, but I really missed this one.  I decided I'd whip out another one just like the first; however, I ran into all kinds of frustrations - problems with the colors in the background, issues with the snow on the branches, headaches with the balls hanging from the tree... one thing after another.  I had to put it aside and almost gave up several times.  I was about ready to scrape the whole thing off when I received my Tip of the Week video from Daniel Edmondson: the title was "Don't Scrape Off Your Paintings."  Perfect timing... As it turns out, the whole thing wasn't a mess, just a few parts.  I'm not sure he's perfect, but I'm glad to have him back on the wall - at least until someone buys him for their own wall.  

 
This little bird and his wife teased me during a snow day last winter.  Right outside my window they'd flit and fly.  They'd rest on a perch; then off they'd go.  Finally, just once, he sat still long enough for me to snap his picture!


Also visit a lovely Etsy treasury (collection of related art pieces)  celebrating winter called Winter Wonderland where this little cardinal got to be a part of the collection.