Explore series

It's August already! There is something special to me about August and to celebrate I have something special to share with you. (To find out what that is read to the end of this post.)  July was a busy month for me in my studio. I am still adjusting to the new routine of having private students one day a week. It is so inspiring to be teaching again, especially such bright and eager learners! And while I have been working out the details of teaching art I have also been exploring working methods for myself, as the process of creating is never stagnant. One solution only leads to more questions, a curiosity that I never seem to satisfy.

I felt I needed to step back from larger works and works on canvas and spend some time in exploration of process. For me that involved working on paper with various mixed water media along with acrylic paint.  ​With each painting I tried a little something different, whether materials or simply the application, I changed something with each one.  

I did paint one canvas along with the paper series, however I kept my inspiration the same throughout. My paintings are responses to these Blue Ridge Mountains, the changing color of the undulating landscape, it's foliage, including, of course, the Christmas tree farms dotting the hillsides. 

Changes in weather are also an influence on my painting, creating variations in light and color in the landscape. 

I experimented with mark making and pattern, using my favorite motifs.

I discovered that I really like using that warm khaki green as a neutral to play against all the blues of the mountain shapes.

And underpainting with bright intense contrasting hues also appealed to my color senses.  So now I'm looking forward to translating some of these methods to larger works. Although the learning process will never end.  

And what's so special about August? This August in particular marks ten years that I have been blogging about my art. For most of those years my blog lived here.  My art has changed, evolved, reverted back and moved forward in those ten years. I studied various media and adapted how I worked to fit my life at the time. To celebrate those ten years of sharing art online I have a special discount coupon good for 10% off anything and everything in my Etsy shop through the month of August. You can only get it here! Use this link or click on any image in this post and use coupon code TEN2007.