tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21416915634207991642024-02-18T18:48:24.966-08:00News From the StudioBethanyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02324040002917344790noreply@blogger.comBlogger669125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2141691563420799164.post-37675916070316966052017-09-02T14:42:00.001-07:002017-09-02T14:42:48.802-07:00Texture<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
The description of my show for the Sheen Center says that I will be looking at what God's creation has to say about the city of man. Allow me to use the planter just completed to expound a bit on what I have found. </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Here is the planter. Notice that it consists essentially of a simple, smooth shape adorned with more bumpy designs made of intricate organic shapes. </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNsq7p9jSfqfjfYw-OB6fWipU7Jd63FNuayRGcHQsy_6ehnpFAyolLVguUh6PQqWzoc5iks_g9EHFnaR3gHGqg5c3IP2ZTOnjhJP6p0m7DDXzntoIP8uy8_H7TJx2LvWWIFxKS8Nfe270/s1600/fullsizeoutput_143d.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNsq7p9jSfqfjfYw-OB6fWipU7Jd63FNuayRGcHQsy_6ehnpFAyolLVguUh6PQqWzoc5iks_g9EHFnaR3gHGqg5c3IP2ZTOnjhJP6p0m7DDXzntoIP8uy8_H7TJx2LvWWIFxKS8Nfe270/s320/fullsizeoutput_143d.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Here is the painting I made today. Notice the contrast between the smooth, geometric form of the row houses and the mottled treetops. Anyone see a theme here?</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
One of the things I have learned - or perhaps just remembered - is that often times the visual communicated visually. Hm. Duh! So, what do I mean by that? I mean that in this case of my residency, I have asked a question by painting it and so my answer, or one of my answers is a visual one. I said to nature, "What do you say?" And, then I painted it. And nature said, "Texture!" And showed me some textures. </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
It's not deep, but it's an answer. </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjN0i-bZOngPazhTL0YphZ8HX9CNaXq0eiR0ShWMrVBMzhh0HXYH5neW_kThCe0VoMKk9Bny-M2xi0lEjAnUV-oTtQTx8LNOoiRS_9-60sqDnVbWb0XDG8qUIQ6QPDnJX2lrfs4Vx5M0lI/s1600/FullSizeRender.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="640" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjN0i-bZOngPazhTL0YphZ8HX9CNaXq0eiR0ShWMrVBMzhh0HXYH5neW_kThCe0VoMKk9Bny-M2xi0lEjAnUV-oTtQTx8LNOoiRS_9-60sqDnVbWb0XDG8qUIQ6QPDnJX2lrfs4Vx5M0lI/s320/FullSizeRender.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
Also, here's a sneak preview of my next sculpture progressing.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpiQEC43d6SMZ1UZBHJ0uWO4wAj8R0iF5y4ct1aUm3tYgNmaRiWGlSBnZSalmHX7cDYf0q8SAuo5lwR_wfrPE4X122eep4ESOK8NMM-mmryaqK01h4eUk75dFdqPsWrJ_pgyHoQXDUGoc/s1600/IMG_0676.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="640" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpiQEC43d6SMZ1UZBHJ0uWO4wAj8R0iF5y4ct1aUm3tYgNmaRiWGlSBnZSalmHX7cDYf0q8SAuo5lwR_wfrPE4X122eep4ESOK8NMM-mmryaqK01h4eUk75dFdqPsWrJ_pgyHoQXDUGoc/s320/IMG_0676.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
And, the sunflower continues to grow. It's got a bud on it!<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjONGcSwwkL5oF08o2uZHlZAeQ9dhgazwDPFN2u5QT_ZKv6_Sh2qK2rdVMWqpltSEn2GQIFyMkk5ciH0jW9BYOhXcgdf_SjG46Vcr0t-2ejMneafLUx6pkhyphenhyphenzSXtTsbmYEGfmCv9tfND34/s1600/IMG_0672.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjONGcSwwkL5oF08o2uZHlZAeQ9dhgazwDPFN2u5QT_ZKv6_Sh2qK2rdVMWqpltSEn2GQIFyMkk5ciH0jW9BYOhXcgdf_SjG46Vcr0t-2ejMneafLUx6pkhyphenhyphenzSXtTsbmYEGfmCv9tfND34/s320/IMG_0672.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<br />Bethanyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02324040002917344790noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2141691563420799164.post-74199349654511200142017-08-14T14:09:00.001-07:002017-08-14T14:09:41.691-07:00A Day in the Life...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
This is my day today. It represents a typical day of my residency.</div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8jXQMVJMa7DBGH-7jKi9IFQeGTDPiNFrvxGULEfjyjdOAA2qfS4O_4DibxDF9pgQJYqNbCBHArLp-uye51Q0N_YPJWcQkukYLE58kxuzZnSH81aWQBY_j1vnsxFN8m0y6Y8RlB83_kwU/s1600/IMG_0365.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8jXQMVJMa7DBGH-7jKi9IFQeGTDPiNFrvxGULEfjyjdOAA2qfS4O_4DibxDF9pgQJYqNbCBHArLp-uye51Q0N_YPJWcQkukYLE58kxuzZnSH81aWQBY_j1vnsxFN8m0y6Y8RlB83_kwU/s320/IMG_0365.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="text-align: left;">Early morning, leave home with a roller bag full of plein air painting supplies.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiL1J6IAxgRRI0V6J5tyr1VljfLVzZ_LYjL3cog4TMEMQfMMNd6MXf_G_ggMmnqj36n9xi5sDNWccq0O5fpHtwmdWtPw0obprICiqXXiZ4f0Fx-3QQN3FrvYOeDbXnaAxZ_CzB_B0fe0mQ/s1600/IMG_0377.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiL1J6IAxgRRI0V6J5tyr1VljfLVzZ_LYjL3cog4TMEMQfMMNd6MXf_G_ggMmnqj36n9xi5sDNWccq0O5fpHtwmdWtPw0obprICiqXXiZ4f0Fx-3QQN3FrvYOeDbXnaAxZ_CzB_B0fe0mQ/s320/IMG_0377.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="text-align: left;">Walk awhile, looking for a good place to paint and taking pictures of different scenes for future reference.</span></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdCSginFck1015nf3i-574pgGcTlZYNgW3TDM-FRqFYMkSKQViM0aqJa62hsMrz6FHWJTiJ7IHs5Bro47gKxCshcxaIT-r6iLET8nUkL7fCptFEqjEQw_eKuicHRDfPfiVPtEMEQxJnok/s1600/IMG_0405.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdCSginFck1015nf3i-574pgGcTlZYNgW3TDM-FRqFYMkSKQViM0aqJa62hsMrz6FHWJTiJ7IHs5Bro47gKxCshcxaIT-r6iLET8nUkL7fCptFEqjEQw_eKuicHRDfPfiVPtEMEQxJnok/s320/IMG_0405.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Settle on a good spot, set up my selling-stand and easel. Paint a cityscape and sell paintings.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIPI5LhgukeGUrBXI0gFkEDHB75RkaHccS27GM_40m9rL-qrNrL6TIhWc8ntjFtHeC6TWL4K1TQGzBj3oN5kDQVIyM9X6-pPpq-J_ND0c-2UyS33VfD9X4imf3cSCJ22hOPjqarVedkNE/s1600/IMG_0407.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIPI5LhgukeGUrBXI0gFkEDHB75RkaHccS27GM_40m9rL-qrNrL6TIhWc8ntjFtHeC6TWL4K1TQGzBj3oN5kDQVIyM9X6-pPpq-J_ND0c-2UyS33VfD9X4imf3cSCJ22hOPjqarVedkNE/s320/IMG_0407.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Finish a cityscape (or two), photograph it, pack up, and head home to clean up, restock, and pack up for the next day's painting adventure.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
And, that's my morning.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Afternoon...</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6E-5ww8nMaH9YqBXLcIimC5RofuI3OlAF-Ng_Ay6z0v2d_PFGwRtBN_Nb6ShUiGgyqE97xlUDFbIXYhM_6QJTNATEWR4OCUrpQdsRMLLrrrfs8Xjm15vK_BTq7RlUoBToQMNzCWEvp1o/s1600/IMG_0428.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6E-5ww8nMaH9YqBXLcIimC5RofuI3OlAF-Ng_Ay6z0v2d_PFGwRtBN_Nb6ShUiGgyqE97xlUDFbIXYhM_6QJTNATEWR4OCUrpQdsRMLLrrrfs8Xjm15vK_BTq7RlUoBToQMNzCWEvp1o/s320/IMG_0428.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Walk half a dozen blocks to the Con Artist Collective. </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhliyMMGNKBceAg4EBRSV9d_oibVO4k52F3Ep2nSV3gS3bIghgHalIuVV3p6VbxUsmd8ZsvAca5EFjlc1CZVWmN9WlwciA4jyHgHT6gOUpDpG9y_HWt_mPIXJplHGkHVtbrVGcpL5DoJgg/s1600/IMG_0429.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhliyMMGNKBceAg4EBRSV9d_oibVO4k52F3Ep2nSV3gS3bIghgHalIuVV3p6VbxUsmd8ZsvAca5EFjlc1CZVWmN9WlwciA4jyHgHT6gOUpDpG9y_HWt_mPIXJplHGkHVtbrVGcpL5DoJgg/s320/IMG_0429.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Hang out in the basement where all the messy people work. (There's a gallery and a clean work space upstairs.)</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivT8vE3joi1fgZ3oJCopp2vOTfUyQaOIUqH53-ffe1iffcYImycxvTPgTZtXSg0046oZRj3c3x65CzOsmXZ-syubuVUNh_3ywndtkrThyphenhyphenSYO1LOMD7DxCdoJfGbe-BsbMbcFpVW7HU_hs/s1600/IMG_0414.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivT8vE3joi1fgZ3oJCopp2vOTfUyQaOIUqH53-ffe1iffcYImycxvTPgTZtXSg0046oZRj3c3x65CzOsmXZ-syubuVUNh_3ywndtkrThyphenhyphenSYO1LOMD7DxCdoJfGbe-BsbMbcFpVW7HU_hs/s320/IMG_0414.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Today, I de-molded the first cast of the planter and then brainstormed the next project. Other days I spend modeling, mold-making, or casting.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZbwfYEQ1LFiZ79sFmRqkEXk31BoIgrWVpGxhouhO-LJCdH3uhv15RpoY8sOSMXG4C7GpGXIw7KtGpq6xJBQdJaG_R7n-kY12V6BjV1MLcbVcLE7_43m0OlDTEQ9Vxjtre9DybTIpAlyU/s1600/IMG_0431.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZbwfYEQ1LFiZ79sFmRqkEXk31BoIgrWVpGxhouhO-LJCdH3uhv15RpoY8sOSMXG4C7GpGXIw7KtGpq6xJBQdJaG_R7n-kY12V6BjV1MLcbVcLE7_43m0OlDTEQ9Vxjtre9DybTIpAlyU/s320/IMG_0431.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
When I'm done for the day, I go upstairs to the clean workspace and do stuff on the computer, for instance, posting on my blog. </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Evenings, I go home and take care of my sunflower, the mascot of my residency. He was planted when I first arrived on July 15th. Now he is this big:</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqR2yZKsl9OWbaVZx5EqEXkBh_YPRTEsY-fHt3F2hifssBnOtMR-S4vfG9o_XIo-J1-KPzq_BhPPjCDzxcZRk7OkxjOs7ZQqrwClGT9yySUImdpRaNP-QkipQTl1GBqHGYq6pqBJ_DTNs/s1600/IMG_0413.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqR2yZKsl9OWbaVZx5EqEXkBh_YPRTEsY-fHt3F2hifssBnOtMR-S4vfG9o_XIo-J1-KPzq_BhPPjCDzxcZRk7OkxjOs7ZQqrwClGT9yySUImdpRaNP-QkipQTl1GBqHGYq6pqBJ_DTNs/s320/IMG_0413.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
Bethanyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02324040002917344790noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2141691563420799164.post-75648743401888447222017-08-07T14:41:00.004-07:002017-08-07T14:45:14.118-07:00Garden SculpturesFriday, I painted a camel at a playground. It was a large camel sculpture, the kind kids can climb on. A young lady, maybe 12 or 13 years old stopped to watch and talked to me: "What are you doing? I like to paint. That's really good! Can I take a picture?" Then she followed me on Instagram. As much as she may have simply been interested in the fact of someone painting, I have to think it must have also been the camel. There was something compelling about the camel.<br />
Last week, I painted <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/BXEE2h1l31g/?taken-by=belfineart" target="_blank">a view of the Elizabeth Street Gardens</a>. There were some sculptures, a variety of architectural elements, and several planters. A garden is beautiful in itself. What does it add to people it with man-made objects? The attraction of the Elizabeth street gardens lies in large part in profusion of these objects. I don't know, but I am investigating the question by making something to go in a garden. It is a simple object, commonly found in gardens. It relates to plants and will incorporate some of the patterns that have emerged in my cityscape paintings. Here is the beginning of that object as well as a few of my cityscapes from last week.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAmVJ9uUYcq_Yp8WbNja0FUQ1iuBC-iLpww2rBcsD-xKGw2SORQsEU_qEPvDfPAQ1_Sn8MaoNOgMfEUD9MJSyVyqvZE2-sdvaWgot3UaklFG1pnvR7rvU0815Mh6F5kBZm27bd-2XMdIc/s1600/IMG_0257.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAmVJ9uUYcq_Yp8WbNja0FUQ1iuBC-iLpww2rBcsD-xKGw2SORQsEU_qEPvDfPAQ1_Sn8MaoNOgMfEUD9MJSyVyqvZE2-sdvaWgot3UaklFG1pnvR7rvU0815Mh6F5kBZm27bd-2XMdIc/s320/IMG_0257.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIqeuOAfAwhcLQT1wK2N4tAbbfpijLuku6sJgxHX0HdnoDGI3b2HTuGOTRUAartR4f_KjySHSjJFDCh1QFvBOz0dXx_bIQ7_yIxY3wH68jPza7fUQqso0TTO1ihfYnfGkcFgyC5sul7vA/s1600/fullsizeoutput_13b8.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1144" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIqeuOAfAwhcLQT1wK2N4tAbbfpijLuku6sJgxHX0HdnoDGI3b2HTuGOTRUAartR4f_KjySHSjJFDCh1QFvBOz0dXx_bIQ7_yIxY3wH68jPza7fUQqso0TTO1ihfYnfGkcFgyC5sul7vA/s320/fullsizeoutput_13b8.jpeg" width="228" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Camel, Sarah Roosevelt Park, 5"x7" Watercolor</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIqeuOAfAwhcLQT1wK2N4tAbbfpijLuku6sJgxHX0HdnoDGI3b2HTuGOTRUAartR4f_KjySHSjJFDCh1QFvBOz0dXx_bIQ7_yIxY3wH68jPza7fUQqso0TTO1ihfYnfGkcFgyC5sul7vA/s1600/fullsizeoutput_13b8.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx221N49ve4_dmBkJClM-hBTdfYhPHYwGzqkjk9LXKqLzbqGcVsONbgActl24Y-ZyzsR9ctwcsj5CXdEroCT-0SYlPxYbspxP_YpNyZdWoGjegtoBTgrjre5Pt0urmT04lhA3mNOR0epo/s1600/fullsizeoutput_13b6.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1143" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx221N49ve4_dmBkJClM-hBTdfYhPHYwGzqkjk9LXKqLzbqGcVsONbgActl24Y-ZyzsR9ctwcsj5CXdEroCT-0SYlPxYbspxP_YpNyZdWoGjegtoBTgrjre5Pt0urmT04lhA3mNOR0epo/s320/fullsizeoutput_13b6.jpeg" width="228" /></a></div>
<div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Entrance to Think Coffee, Bowery & Bleecker, 5"x7" Watercolor</div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgth2hyC5aBiKa3tqkWUr56jBw6R0iQDb0-FaEjbL1n5EiXIR142qjzdNRjtwKFHSCl77zdCd13JCnPehTmzv70aPJ_FtrWu2CvfISMLdQY78vY4EkzXJRkQ-7EANGu4zdJMJ68mY25_5w/s1600/fullsizeoutput_13ba.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1143" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgth2hyC5aBiKa3tqkWUr56jBw6R0iQDb0-FaEjbL1n5EiXIR142qjzdNRjtwKFHSCl77zdCd13JCnPehTmzv70aPJ_FtrWu2CvfISMLdQY78vY4EkzXJRkQ-7EANGu4zdJMJ68mY25_5w/s320/fullsizeoutput_13ba.jpeg" width="228" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
65 - 2nd Ave, 5"x7" Watercolor</div>
<br />
Also, my mascot, Sunflower is growing slowly and just fine:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGtVe24vJT_sr9eE8T4cM5avOdTrgau9HrnU68ijDnYnSXD1izKc0Lvg0o2wfySGhpp2Tr3w-6XB4v-Hq-HSykVZ9A4WbisqYPWXA47hVquGYlZv1a4jBtitluCIs3Riw5lLzVl0LxfoQ/s1600/IMG_0218.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGtVe24vJT_sr9eE8T4cM5avOdTrgau9HrnU68ijDnYnSXD1izKc0Lvg0o2wfySGhpp2Tr3w-6XB4v-Hq-HSykVZ9A4WbisqYPWXA47hVquGYlZv1a4jBtitluCIs3Riw5lLzVl0LxfoQ/s320/IMG_0218.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />Bethanyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02324040002917344790noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2141691563420799164.post-59731083089111302622017-07-31T06:55:00.002-07:002017-07-31T06:55:11.923-07:00Gooey Paste and the Kindness of Strangers<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="text-size-adjust: auto;">It’s Monday morning. I had intended to write this blog post on Saturday evening as a way to wrap up the week. However, sales at Union Square were going pretty well, so I stayed late.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span><br style="text-size-adjust: auto;" /><span style="text-size-adjust: auto;">I had always heard of the artists selling at Union Square. In fact, my first New York street peddling experience was across the street from Union Square on a chilly February day. I froze. Everyone ignored me. It was like baptism by ice. So, on Saturday, I decided to do it again. I went out early in the morning in search of the artists. A couple of artist vendors showed up, so I set up my easel near them.</span></span><br />
<span style="text-size-adjust: auto;"><span style="text-size-adjust: auto;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">All day, people walked by with their bags of vegetables from the nearby farmers market. There were tourists and loiterers too and even a drumming group and a crazy guy (maybe a performance artist or comedian?) running around in a Union Jack bathing suit, riding a tricyle, and shouting at people. Cars and trucks roared by - I was standing right at the curb. Lots of people stopped to talk and a few people purchased paintings. One man even bought me a some small weights for my easel after seeing it blow over while I was talking to a customer. (He was actually that customer.)<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="text-size-adjust: auto;"><span style="text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="Apple-converted-space"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Here are the two paintings from my Union Square day:</span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="text-size-adjust: auto;"><span style="text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="Apple-converted-space"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></span></span></span>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcovNrAA7JWKMMovAr8YlZzBnWkSgKljRG6tPqc_1k6QTS02jo9vxjpVgs5-PZaHzSFfr5viTZqxTNFoqmTzFDDKtO2YN2dHtVB4T6EEDHfZrWoHcfJqLwYX9-8E_aRSkzQcznGnHeB-8/s1600/fullsizeoutput_135c.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1144" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcovNrAA7JWKMMovAr8YlZzBnWkSgKljRG6tPqc_1k6QTS02jo9vxjpVgs5-PZaHzSFfr5viTZqxTNFoqmTzFDDKtO2YN2dHtVB4T6EEDHfZrWoHcfJqLwYX9-8E_aRSkzQcznGnHeB-8/s320/fullsizeoutput_135c.jpeg" width="228" /></span></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"> Union Square View from the South, 5"x7" Watercolor</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3JuxJgNLIoj5A7P5gSwWo0nmlfdNsZhPOIfWMVp5qoRzIECNlUMNtV1zAv27YXZsk6uHtekX1EPdCW3xPWBhdzAVEQj398xatXLFSSCU-hJfsVtypmJrGYc4zibjFhkcyelmPddBm9W4/s1600/IMG_0170.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3JuxJgNLIoj5A7P5gSwWo0nmlfdNsZhPOIfWMVp5qoRzIECNlUMNtV1zAv27YXZsk6uHtekX1EPdCW3xPWBhdzAVEQj398xatXLFSSCU-hJfsVtypmJrGYc4zibjFhkcyelmPddBm9W4/s320/IMG_0170.JPG" width="240" /></span></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="text-size-adjust: auto;"><span style="text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="Apple-converted-space"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Median Trees, 9"x12" Watercolor</span></span></span></span></div>
<span style="text-size-adjust: auto;"><span style="text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="Apple-converted-space"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></span></span></span>
<span style="text-size-adjust: auto;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">One of the other highlights from the week was painting at the Elizabeth Street Gardens. This is an enclosed, semi-private garden in Soho. It is run by volunteers and open to the public in the afternoons. It is crammed with the most interesting architectural artifacts, flowers and trees. People lounge around reading books or eating lunch.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></span><br />
<span style="text-size-adjust: auto;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span class="Apple-converted-space">Here is my Elizabeth Street Gardens painting as well as a painting of another enclosed garden nearby.</span></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVj7_9hbHU4K_q7Baj7l_JD31zrnX1b-wR9iVtjQ6Murcj__ly2sGFnW6SMmA0CBW1XmGB75URlM27VyMyCPH-0mHGW3H5_Ja6XtZg3HjWR3_TqOjsm2I535hh-7xGc99Fh_SYruPgjuY/s1600/fullsizeoutput_1354.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1143" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVj7_9hbHU4K_q7Baj7l_JD31zrnX1b-wR9iVtjQ6Murcj__ly2sGFnW6SMmA0CBW1XmGB75URlM27VyMyCPH-0mHGW3H5_Ja6XtZg3HjWR3_TqOjsm2I535hh-7xGc99Fh_SYruPgjuY/s320/fullsizeoutput_1354.jpeg" width="228" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Golden Swan Garden, Greenwich Village, 5"x7" Watercolor</div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtAr2vJ_uls1eS9HjVbrqkYR_pJ0qDc1c35pZYrEdlSR8gfQT5bscQvuf99QL6F4uz-dttf4mnvOtvxr4liVpdrgy5T_tsZfzKE-_dO35Ssjvmq7UlXuKGJ9N2KiKbBbdyYVmxsOhSI1o/s1600/FullSizeRender.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1584" data-original-width="1178" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtAr2vJ_uls1eS9HjVbrqkYR_pJ0qDc1c35pZYrEdlSR8gfQT5bscQvuf99QL6F4uz-dttf4mnvOtvxr4liVpdrgy5T_tsZfzKE-_dO35Ssjvmq7UlXuKGJ9N2KiKbBbdyYVmxsOhSI1o/s320/FullSizeRender.jpg" width="237" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="text-size-adjust: auto;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span class="Apple-converted-space">Elizabeth St. Gardens from the East, 9"x12" Watercolor</span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="text-size-adjust: auto;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span class="Apple-converted-space"><br /></span></span></span></div>
<span style="text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="Apple-converted-space"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">I also cast my first sculpture. It was messy. Very messy. Instead of my usual blanket mold, I did a 2-part mold, and instead of using concrete, I used Aqua Resin. So, of course, I didn’t know what I was doing and made a big mess. Imagine trying to make a plaster cast on the inside of a non-stick frying pan that is being held upside down. BUT, a finished 3-D piece did come out of the process. It has blemishes and deformations, but it is a finished piece. I call it Climbing Tree.</span></span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaAJ2HKWTjk6aeGVhfxxJ5VUvfp2hKDcttPs5DiRRUWnMm273UpDTJzWGige-fXMNNeNhrMOeRgO1cGDUBGi6g1obU06b9Emonn4AEQPAXnrWeAwH-Ad6B4rywsrbdRSefRRAQ4bANue8/s1600/IMG_0150.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaAJ2HKWTjk6aeGVhfxxJ5VUvfp2hKDcttPs5DiRRUWnMm273UpDTJzWGige-fXMNNeNhrMOeRgO1cGDUBGi6g1obU06b9Emonn4AEQPAXnrWeAwH-Ad6B4rywsrbdRSefRRAQ4bANue8/s320/IMG_0150.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Climbing Tree, 18" Aquaresin</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<span style="text-size-adjust: auto;"><span class="Apple-converted-space"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">For those of you who read my post last week, I was having problems deciding whether to go with abstraction or simplification in sculpting the human figure. I went with simplification. After experimenting with abstraction (and embellishment), I realized that the important thing in this piece is the overall gesture. It’s a figure climbing a tree with a certain gesture/movement. That is the image I want to make. It does not need a lot of detail. So I simplified it considerably and went on with the mold making.</span></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_yjL0xtHJI8TRFgPN-X1W3o6y2K9UUFanPnhOlEKf4Ndc2MiqO3Jk2kZQjWaW2WCkIPKSTjfITZEqwvoJV-iZhHmRX0uFs9jwD4kqce4yXCpLvkzPpBUv1ooobsWoUMA7HeyePMSLO5U/s1600/IMG_0026.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_yjL0xtHJI8TRFgPN-X1W3o6y2K9UUFanPnhOlEKf4Ndc2MiqO3Jk2kZQjWaW2WCkIPKSTjfITZEqwvoJV-iZhHmRX0uFs9jwD4kqce4yXCpLvkzPpBUv1ooobsWoUMA7HeyePMSLO5U/s320/IMG_0026.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Experimenting with Naturalism </div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDncJGBtXNCiILp8MGnD_BHy1svTubnRLeGTgkghC0AmcWSl_P2_F1LeTewuObEzFe8O-vA064WWjvB-IdhZiz1dfMxibu9tq103cG9jtvH_tiW1Lco0OnH0y_9Vy1pyOKjKX5v_hs7wI/s1600/IMG_0070.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDncJGBtXNCiILp8MGnD_BHy1svTubnRLeGTgkghC0AmcWSl_P2_F1LeTewuObEzFe8O-vA064WWjvB-IdhZiz1dfMxibu9tq103cG9jtvH_tiW1Lco0OnH0y_9Vy1pyOKjKX5v_hs7wI/s320/IMG_0070.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Experimenting with Abstraction/Embellishment </div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVDQhBFGMwAIbOEXPEzQhpZFu8TpFdyO2hxWDHsS0zLIARe845Q3Dqu6l7HXgIyGBw7gGQBSnZbh4HKZPcBirY1P0NIWaHZY53lw-7iTlnVkuUZRDqSNVbjE_MYKQFJm2MXPZ2ak7b0jI/s1600/IMG_0105.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVDQhBFGMwAIbOEXPEzQhpZFu8TpFdyO2hxWDHsS0zLIARe845Q3Dqu6l7HXgIyGBw7gGQBSnZbh4HKZPcBirY1P0NIWaHZY53lw-7iTlnVkuUZRDqSNVbjE_MYKQFJm2MXPZ2ak7b0jI/s320/IMG_0105.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Settling on Simplification</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">And, lastly, Sunflower, my Sheen Center Residency mascot is growing apace. Two of his brethren have been sacrificed for the good of the tribe.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjasGeOkIC3XdkJg6wGtYzyz0ic110NumvsIbvJfRF-GoCaIZE0S4bvQZ7roRUMy3vlhBiRFfw9W0QYX-8dyRcoY0UYjpxKYPepLENBfmmEIgQTX5xDviNGx7QOjoHrh_B8MsexlX3_PqQ/s1600/IMG_0175.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjasGeOkIC3XdkJg6wGtYzyz0ic110NumvsIbvJfRF-GoCaIZE0S4bvQZ7roRUMy3vlhBiRFfw9W0QYX-8dyRcoY0UYjpxKYPepLENBfmmEIgQTX5xDviNGx7QOjoHrh_B8MsexlX3_PqQ/s200/IMG_0175.JPG" width="200" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
Bethanyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02324040002917344790noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2141691563420799164.post-37865494801745335872017-07-24T17:51:00.001-07:002017-07-24T17:51:14.544-07:00The Sheen Center Artist ResidencyThis summer, from July 15 thru Sept. 30, I will be one of the <a href="https://sheencenter.org/about/submissions/artist-residency/bethany-lee/" target="_blank">artists in residence</a> at the <a href="http://www.sheencenter.org/" target="_blank">Sheen Center</a> in New York City. The work from my residency will be for a show in January (opening Jan. 18) called <a href="https://sheencenter.org/shows/growing-home/" target="_blank">Growing Home</a>. The show will be a series of plein air paintings and sculptural reflections on the paintings, all of which pose the question of what God's creation has to say about the city of man.<br />
As of now, I've been in the residency for a week. It's really neat to live here - the Sheen Center is in Soho. My days consist of plein air painting (and peddling) in the morning and sculpture (cast mediums) in the afternoon at a shared workspace called the <a href="https://conartistcollective.com/" target="_blank">Con Artist Collective</a>. At first, it was all overwhelming - being here, getting to make my own art all day long, having all of Manhattan and its social and cultural opportunities at my fingertips, having only 2-1/2 months to put together a solo show, and more. A couple of highlights from last week were selling a painting of St. Mark's place to a woman whose father grew up on that street and getting hired (while painting and peddling) to paint a menu board at Burger and Lobster in Times Square.<br />
By now, I'm a bit more settled in and in the grove. The model for my first cast sculpture is nearly ready for mold making, I've got some plein air paintings done as well as having made some sales.<br />
Since the theme of my show involves plants, I planted a little sunflower in a pot the day I started. This is Sunflower, my mascot.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDGJ0ePIfyyhNzNnAF3oQEEFU5uE9iJuXbG2rT-_XpGs96xD4rMMz7TVexr1_5CxNXDkn9niyAZ_1DeY9LFZ6AiBHv4SuafTtM4GqmaC8-4zBeYunYdrzK34CLByNPgA2jvCLzB2f0NPc/s1600/IMG_0034.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDGJ0ePIfyyhNzNnAF3oQEEFU5uE9iJuXbG2rT-_XpGs96xD4rMMz7TVexr1_5CxNXDkn9niyAZ_1DeY9LFZ6AiBHv4SuafTtM4GqmaC8-4zBeYunYdrzK34CLByNPgA2jvCLzB2f0NPc/s200/IMG_0034.JPG" width="200" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
And, here are a few of the paintings from my first week. Check out my <a href="https://www.instagram.com/belfineart/" target="_blank">instagram feed</a> for more.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMQ_d4nZy8WX-lB4T5pdnPcSvH5fOo-Jss8popDg01BKHJLmlJ1TEFau_PQvdRRq1-wpAssE4yOz-LqafEBVn1ks07knfcXhDeqcPvRZUbsxa_DGZ3XmRyixJeUhJXV3YjfKKtPezO8Is/s1600/fullsizeoutput_12c2.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1143" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMQ_d4nZy8WX-lB4T5pdnPcSvH5fOo-Jss8popDg01BKHJLmlJ1TEFau_PQvdRRq1-wpAssE4yOz-LqafEBVn1ks07knfcXhDeqcPvRZUbsxa_DGZ3XmRyixJeUhJXV3YjfKKtPezO8Is/s320/fullsizeoutput_12c2.jpeg" width="228" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
St. Mark's Place, 9"x12" Watercolor</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOJ4kxZ1RD8eC3Cml2wcq70zmsUQnJT-LUIKARvQcILdFFM_p5PTbJqWtZ0nfnW4cPmP6G_UrC2-Zfd8ZxoH42r3CNySqDtOKawq53CuBBDEbHs-Xh5GJ3T3osm4cV48K0MtD_lKVoNKs/s1600/fullsizeoutput_131c.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOJ4kxZ1RD8eC3Cml2wcq70zmsUQnJT-LUIKARvQcILdFFM_p5PTbJqWtZ0nfnW4cPmP6G_UrC2-Zfd8ZxoH42r3CNySqDtOKawq53CuBBDEbHs-Xh5GJ3T3osm4cV48K0MtD_lKVoNKs/s320/fullsizeoutput_131c.jpeg" width="240" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Rooftop Garden Near Cooper Sq., 9"x12" Watercolo</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZstpLT9iKMsWZFK3gN7sIFP3l4zYWiqgykKc3mvnHu3UX2lAlulLpI6PGn6DZywWhZI4XXF8e9TBkDXtOiQinibRdiG6TFBmZ1CKH2MkFnQ5ZkxdtSYbIYuui3E6IlrjX8AxAviAGg6c/s1600/IMG_2875.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZstpLT9iKMsWZFK3gN7sIFP3l4zYWiqgykKc3mvnHu3UX2lAlulLpI6PGn6DZywWhZI4XXF8e9TBkDXtOiQinibRdiG6TFBmZ1CKH2MkFnQ5ZkxdtSYbIYuui3E6IlrjX8AxAviAGg6c/s320/IMG_2875.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
The Bean Coffee Shop with Sidewalk Tree on 2nd Ave, 9"x12" Watercolor</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Having had a week to work on this project, I have come crashing into two barriers. The first is that the them of nature in the city is a theme that has been done. At the same time, it is a rich topic and one that touches many people. It is also very broad. So, I think the question for me involves digging into what is particular to the artistic vision granted to me. For instance, I was pondering this as I was looking for a spot to paint this morning. What stuck me was the shape formed by the orange-tinted rain clouds against distant buildings. That is a very particular observation. And, it's beautiful and worth observing. I may be the only person who stops at the moment to see it, and that is a sight worth communicating. Here is the painting from this morning. Incidentally, it was raining hard. I did the whole thing under an umbrella.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8egD-qM7Ua1UMix5UJr69hvgLHu9HbWXHNmfJ15B9dULjJkKjfnnYb8JiZvrMz46Sg0o1gOExKAk7uuLUMgqiNt0ro3w1N3NYEfF0ld9x1-5QIqUVglR5RwLm5KyD4Mfu8qof79ZcNhs/s1600/fullsizeoutput_132f.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8egD-qM7Ua1UMix5UJr69hvgLHu9HbWXHNmfJ15B9dULjJkKjfnnYb8JiZvrMz46Sg0o1gOExKAk7uuLUMgqiNt0ro3w1N3NYEfF0ld9x1-5QIqUVglR5RwLm5KyD4Mfu8qof79ZcNhs/s320/fullsizeoutput_132f.jpeg" width="240" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Looking up 3rd Ave by Cooper Sq., 9"x12" Watercolor</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
The second barrier I've run into is that the sculpture I am working on right now - a sculpture inspired by my paintings - is impossible for me to finish at a decent level of quality within the time alotted. Mold making and casting is an entirely different process than watercolor painting. For one thing, it's quite expensive. But, once the mold is made, I can cast multiple sculpture. This means that the model needs to be something really worth the money and time necessary to made a mold. My goal is to complete at least 5 sculptures during the residency. This means I need to finish a sculpture every two weeks. My current model is not currently up to par. Eek. I chose to make a composition involving a stylized human figure. The problem with the figure - even a stylized, simplified figure - is that inaccurate proportions and anatomy can be very distracting. The distortion can become the focus of the piece rather than the whatever the focus is intended to be. As far as I can see, there are two solutions to this problem: either simplify the figure to the level at which it is possible to be accurate at whatever my current skill level is or abstract the figure to a degree that it is obvious to the viewer that no naturalism is intended. Simplifying the figure can make it boring, however, and abstracting it can render it absurd. So, I'm stuck. </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Well, I plan on blogging every week or two, so hopefully I'll have some pictures of said sculpture that illustrate how I solved this problem. Until then, it's a surprise.</div>
<br />
<br />Bethanyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02324040002917344790noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2141691563420799164.post-76236639739605326622017-06-24T09:43:00.000-07:002017-06-24T09:47:28.906-07:00Last Projects of My First YearHere are the last two projects of my first year at the Florence Academy. I entered the drawing and painting program at the Florence Academy because I wanted to delve into the western tradition of representational drawing. I'd say, definitely, mission accomplished. It's been a great year, and God willing, I'll be back in the fall to continue the 3 year program.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiv64WGP8s5gPip2efcwXM-nrd46OWFAuKTQf2433ZAf7AZhgo17bFmOw0tqkJZGM9kgBW-5jceXLst1ZR0rfCaCj1wZKkvQR8reeg1yej4N222i8Y7ifBxGRM_APqImW2sC_F_p-MW0ns/s1600/fullsizeoutput_10b8.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1150" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiv64WGP8s5gPip2efcwXM-nrd46OWFAuKTQf2433ZAf7AZhgo17bFmOw0tqkJZGM9kgBW-5jceXLst1ZR0rfCaCj1wZKkvQR8reeg1yej4N222i8Y7ifBxGRM_APqImW2sC_F_p-MW0ns/s320/fullsizeoutput_10b8.jpeg" width="229" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Desi, Charcoal on Paper, 18"x26"</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjg19PMlVemI5JGFdt2bKceuARM3xOTefcx1bxkt9D3RShR4yVqtJsf5ZM9LRScqo46qAu-8Ueu0WMezZgSBLSVSXX4pTidhw-bg5_BVG-Hu7d7AlpvR51EoPsl50jDkMA_BXosWkS78Y/s1600/fullsizeoutput_10b9.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1274" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjg19PMlVemI5JGFdt2bKceuARM3xOTefcx1bxkt9D3RShR4yVqtJsf5ZM9LRScqo46qAu-8Ueu0WMezZgSBLSVSXX4pTidhw-bg5_BVG-Hu7d7AlpvR51EoPsl50jDkMA_BXosWkS78Y/s320/fullsizeoutput_10b9.jpeg" width="254" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Death Mask of Giacomo Leopardi, Charcoal on Paper, 12"x16"</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
The death mask pictured above is the 2nd of my cast drawings. Giacomo Leopardi was an Italian poet who died in the mid 1800's. A cast drawing is exactly what it sounds like - a drawing of a cast. Here is my set-up.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg283SZ65iQZoRzZZ_KOQQlyqB4LKPnnWik5FJfT5Z7x3ZELpoL_t854f0i7lNXu4i0BjCg9kgelmqxFI_OhgTumLAh1btjXCYmJihI8NOM7Ztrlqy0E2ZBR8p7E-lZyefOdIiDmOKgT0c/s1600/IMG_1167.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg283SZ65iQZoRzZZ_KOQQlyqB4LKPnnWik5FJfT5Z7x3ZELpoL_t854f0i7lNXu4i0BjCg9kgelmqxFI_OhgTumLAh1btjXCYmJihI8NOM7Ztrlqy0E2ZBR8p7E-lZyefOdIiDmOKgT0c/s320/IMG_1167.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
The plaster cast of the death mask is on the left and my drawing on the right. I draw the cast at exactly the same size as I see it. </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Drawing a plaster cast allows me to learn to draw from life (as opposed to copying other drawing) without the added complication of color. This lets me explore values (black, white, and everything in between) as they communicate 3-dimensional form to the eye. Light effect, hard and soft edges, contours, changing planes, different kinds of shadows - these are all things contribute to the appearance of the mask and require different techniques and perspectives to render. </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
What I particularly learned from this cast drawing project was how much information can be communicated by large, simple shapes. However, the subtle details of these shapes must be rendered with precision. Very small changes in shapes and values can make a big different in visual impression - especially when dealing with the human face.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
The figure drawing of Desi was a five week pose. This pose with the light hitting the figure from the side allowed me to investigate the play of light along the anatomy of the back. Stephen, my anatomy instructor, says that one of the reasons we study the human figure as artists is that the shapes made by the anatomy of the human body as it interacts with light and shadow are so beautiful. Here is one of the anatomical drawings I made during the year that illustrates the idea of shapes created by anatomy.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicbzs_gBzwvbziKqf8WepQTdcD5DTterhhroCbi02Mf3dFSIuagSNKM4nzImW77GIT1Lc5zlZI3k6yYSIO4Z3GzQA6XAO6oxIivi8WsUafmzcQQeWOiRBBv-G0ITWSGzTV9ts7TUJzHm4/s1600/IMG_0983.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicbzs_gBzwvbziKqf8WepQTdcD5DTterhhroCbi02Mf3dFSIuagSNKM4nzImW77GIT1Lc5zlZI3k6yYSIO4Z3GzQA6XAO6oxIivi8WsUafmzcQQeWOiRBBv-G0ITWSGzTV9ts7TUJzHm4/s320/IMG_0983.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
Bethanyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02324040002917344790noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2141691563420799164.post-85850205938550063302017-04-23T12:20:00.003-07:002017-04-23T12:20:50.649-07:00Back to Plein Air Watercolor SketchingAfter taking a break from plein air painting this winter, the watercolors and easel are back out! Here are my first two watercolor sketches for the spring - urban park scenes. They both depict how man-made things and growing things (as in, plants) combine to create beauty in the city. I like to think of the city as a big garden instead of a wasteland. In places, it is. <div>
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIncmgkG37KoVB-qx6dCIT1kZyrnI2HeUnbjbcixp4_2PP5ueL80vbOnLx-FQlPv-ObF4tP6r6ED95jY-m7gBZ8c8sTuwJdENXphafRPQTxHRe5sdgCdSKU4BFDt0EpUt58r_xfBDvRW4/s1600/fullsizeoutput_fcb.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIncmgkG37KoVB-qx6dCIT1kZyrnI2HeUnbjbcixp4_2PP5ueL80vbOnLx-FQlPv-ObF4tP6r6ED95jY-m7gBZ8c8sTuwJdENXphafRPQTxHRe5sdgCdSKU4BFDt0EpUt58r_xfBDvRW4/s320/fullsizeoutput_fcb.jpeg" width="216" /></a></div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
Lincoln Park, Jersey City, NJ, 5"x7" Watercolor & Colored Pencil</div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMj0yIQc2Injm2tJB91o5yfFpuIzEzRVgsqwvFiYxz-LTRpmdUiRJlFsGkb2yVmXBMmyYfHeK7Zof76GjTeWUZM5XbUmzq3eBh8P4XMbcCIbVORC6mpqBKCDPnA4daG4bLTxHE6mIATPU/s1600/FullSizeRender.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMj0yIQc2Injm2tJB91o5yfFpuIzEzRVgsqwvFiYxz-LTRpmdUiRJlFsGkb2yVmXBMmyYfHeK7Zof76GjTeWUZM5XbUmzq3eBh8P4XMbcCIbVORC6mpqBKCDPnA4daG4bLTxHE6mIATPU/s320/FullSizeRender.jpg" width="220" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Madison Square Park, Manhattan, 5"x7" Watercolor & Colored Pencil<br />
<div>
<br /></div>
</div>
Bethanyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02324040002917344790noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2141691563420799164.post-57322958864205324692017-03-25T08:54:00.003-07:002017-03-25T08:54:55.140-07:00Santiago<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Every trimester, students at the Florence Academy complete two long pose figure drawings. This means that a model comes in every day for three hours and holds the same pose over a period of five weeks for each drawing. These figure drawings are essentially "game time" for students. The copying exercises, the 2-hour pencil figure drawings, the anatomy classes all prepare us for the model room long pose. </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
This is my second long pose for the trimester. My first pose for the trimester, <a href="http://newsfromthestudio-bethanylee.blogspot.com/2017/02/susannah.html" target="_blank">Susannah</a>, a pose seen from the back, involved depicting the form through the shape of a large shadow and the way that shadow interacted with a thin sliver of light seen on the edge. This pose was seen in full light. This means that the form is communicated more through the shape of the contour and how the contour relates to small variations in value along the planes of the body as they face in different directions. </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHkM45Uykq4aAhVtFfpuPaKNGifA5cf79UIVK1_BEvDnOD6YEZAOtn1lFeaHjWde6Yc9XwB9bIILyzlTCQP_ipzuKKmDhCibxxYsOeDTlLgVZH7oIQNdglC0DDIChz-G-6KSF4k5OG5To/s1600/fullsizeoutput_f7f.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHkM45Uykq4aAhVtFfpuPaKNGifA5cf79UIVK1_BEvDnOD6YEZAOtn1lFeaHjWde6Yc9XwB9bIILyzlTCQP_ipzuKKmDhCibxxYsOeDTlLgVZH7oIQNdglC0DDIChz-G-6KSF4k5OG5To/s640/fullsizeoutput_f7f.jpeg" width="324" /></a></div>
<br />Bethanyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02324040002917344790noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2141691563420799164.post-48226110101684122122017-03-18T15:46:00.001-07:002017-03-18T16:01:34.064-07:00Belvedere Torso<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
The third and final <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Bargue" target="_blank">Bargue Drawing</a> for students at the Florence Academy is one of two different views of the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Belvedere_Torso" target="_blank">Belvedere Torso</a>. A well known fragment of an unidentified sculpture from antiquity, the Belvedere torso copying exercise is infamous in its own right at the Florence Academy. Completing the torso requires mastery of a variety of conceptual and technical tools used in drawing. Observe, for instance, the variety of shadows involved in the torso: cast shadow, form turning away from the light, planes in a variety of relationships to the light source, reflections within larger shadow shapes, and combinations of all of the above. Each type of shadow requires a different kind of description and different types of charcoal handling. So, here's to this rite of passage! Now I get to move on to cast drawings... coming up soon.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1ye9O8HiYzI7NFmnR0jBQBkfPnustM5GIDTLdxQ6Toz-tau2rktnhzpRnYVk5lfGYso7PYmefVzlbT0Gg8cvI2jykZZVGsZqEUX4RBnjbfrmXWqFMbie47LWdQpEYiYPVbLJgVyav4qQ/s1600/fullsizeoutput_f58.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1ye9O8HiYzI7NFmnR0jBQBkfPnustM5GIDTLdxQ6Toz-tau2rktnhzpRnYVk5lfGYso7PYmefVzlbT0Gg8cvI2jykZZVGsZqEUX4RBnjbfrmXWqFMbie47LWdQpEYiYPVbLJgVyav4qQ/s400/fullsizeoutput_f58.jpeg" width="285" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
18"x26" Charcoal on Roma Paper, Copy from Original Cast Drawing by Charles Bargue</div>
Bethanyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02324040002917344790noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2141691563420799164.post-62948513899579159962017-02-22T18:06:00.001-08:002017-02-22T18:06:15.206-08:00Susannah<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Here is the latest 5-week pose from figure drawing class at the Florence Academy of Art. </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
When we begin a pose, there is a pecking order for choosing easel positions. Since I am one of the newer students, I got stuck with a back view. It turned out to be a good thing, though. The way the light falls on the model, I ended up with a composition that focuses on the strip of light sandwhiched between the shadow of the back and the shadow of the background. It made for a seemingly simple design but with a lot of complexity in the light shape. I enjoyed it very much.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEih5G-xv136Q_oXpAIn9i4eDfdnOAhn6XFU54WvrdYlD7Pv91HTWyTsdNriNXdTX64RDoTc2rHOpOfPLna-ae4Uzcc37mZY6Pqq11Ls6hbv5NudwW367MXJM_xtKGSpIHK4YgfFQddNtK0/s1600/fullsizeoutput_f27.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEih5G-xv136Q_oXpAIn9i4eDfdnOAhn6XFU54WvrdYlD7Pv91HTWyTsdNriNXdTX64RDoTc2rHOpOfPLna-ae4Uzcc37mZY6Pqq11Ls6hbv5NudwW367MXJM_xtKGSpIHK4YgfFQddNtK0/s400/fullsizeoutput_f27.jpeg" width="285" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
Bethanyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02324040002917344790noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2141691563420799164.post-62533217127039769832017-01-28T11:02:00.002-08:002017-01-28T11:02:39.924-08:00Black and WhiteCharcoal is my life. There is black dust everywhere. "Drawing and painting" program evokes thoughts of color. But, my life is all in black and white. I'm not complaining, though. The more limited the means of expression, the more opportunity for the mind to focus on different aspects of expression.<br />
Here is a picture of my most recent Bargue drawing. Charcoal on paper.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOMJPmVrKLlar9oW8r9pDGijabqknZ88_0OQK_k78ObFSm38-acH03kGTM7RT7AafUFHd9VhuTm8Vatk8YBf6RJZb9YusABuNvuSAMvHArXpCLt1xck9K_shZvB_oE66xDUoUeYms2FyE/s1600/fullsizeoutput_ee3.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOMJPmVrKLlar9oW8r9pDGijabqknZ88_0OQK_k78ObFSm38-acH03kGTM7RT7AafUFHd9VhuTm8Vatk8YBf6RJZb9YusABuNvuSAMvHArXpCLt1xck9K_shZvB_oE66xDUoUeYms2FyE/s320/fullsizeoutput_ee3.jpeg" width="261" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<br />Bethanyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02324040002917344790noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2141691563420799164.post-32826602054181067702016-12-04T09:42:00.000-08:002016-12-04T09:42:05.859-08:00Some Beauty to Give<div>
This post does not recount a particular incident in my life at the Florence Academy but represents the fruit of a lot of different experiences. So, while it does not reference school, it relates.</div>
<div>
Awhile ago, I had a particular heartache. What that thing was does not matter, but in the midst of this thing, I was sitting on a train, and I remembered a trip to Costa Rica from a few years ago, and I remembered the hills there, on the coast, green in the sun and lush like nothing in the northern lands. And as I gazed on this with the eyes of my soul, there was something inside of me that melted and mended and I was made whole again. It was all very straightforward and rather shocking to me. I was in pain. I saw a vision of beauty remembered. The beauty was balm to my wounds. "So," I said to myself, "beauty heals." </div>
<div>
Yes, yes it does. Since then, I had noticed this phenomenon a lot. My morning walk to school, for instance.. It is (thanks to daylight savings time) always as the sun is rising. Even the pigeons, in flocks, silhouetted against the pale, pink sky make my heart rise. And, whatever is on my mind or weighing me down, it lifts, and something inside of me rises to meet the morning. </div>
<div>
I need beauty. It is not just a perk. Without it, life would be a lot worse than just boring. I think this is true for everyone. Maybe everyone does not realize it, but I think this a universal need. (I won't back that up with any argument. This post would get way too long.) </div>
<div>
But, everyone perceives beauty differently. What moves me may not speak to you. Then again, there may be a handful of people in the world who see what I see and draw life from it. So, then, to those handful of people, I, as an artist, have a responsibility. Because, artists, as I think I have written before, help people to see. </div>
<div>
So, to the people who need the beauty I have to give, whoever you are, I am working on it. Sometimes I get discouraged because what inspires me is so far above anything I can make, and sometimes I wonder if I am even seeing the right thing or digging deep enough to see, but I am working on it. </div>
<div>
On that note, I will leave you with one of my favorite T.S. Eliot quotes. This is from the Four Quartets, Stanza V of East Coker:</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
So here I am, in the middle way, having had twenty years-</div>
<div>
Twenty years largely wasted, the years of l'entre deux guerres</div>
<div>
Trying to learn to use words, and every attempt</div>
<div>
Is a wholly new start, and a different kind of failure</div>
<div>
Because one has only learnt to get the better of words</div>
<div>
For the thing one no longer has to say, or the way in which </div>
<div>
One is no longer disposed to say it. And so each venture</div>
<div>
Is a new beginning, a raid of the inarticulate</div>
<div>
With shabby equipment always deteriorating</div>
<div>
In the general mess of imprecision of feeling,</div>
<div>
Undisciplined squads of emotion. And what there is to conquer</div>
<div>
By strength and submission, has already been discovered</div>
<div>
Once or twice, or several times, by men whom one cannot hope</div>
<div>
To emulate - but there is no competition -</div>
<div>
There is only the fight to recover what has been lost</div>
<div>
And found and lost again and again: and now, under conditions</div>
<div>
That seem unpropitious. But perhaps neither gain nor loss.</div>
<div>
For us, there is only the the trying. The rest is not our business.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
And, here are my two landscapes from this week, searching for beauty in the city:</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDc9EdnuSZx_w5JBjTR5EvtS7RJS-iEzKmB2KMyQL5LQp5BOgT1a27XE9ivI6DLWidRkMF2SId1xkQ3zOAx2SLFrFY0yrAWBNMCLLF_mnGCl4C2-XFvsKDcGbbtFCoyB9X465h7s_3jbw/s1600/fullsizeoutput_c7a.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDc9EdnuSZx_w5JBjTR5EvtS7RJS-iEzKmB2KMyQL5LQp5BOgT1a27XE9ivI6DLWidRkMF2SId1xkQ3zOAx2SLFrFY0yrAWBNMCLLF_mnGCl4C2-XFvsKDcGbbtFCoyB9X465h7s_3jbw/s320/fullsizeoutput_c7a.jpeg" width="240" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Water Tower over Green and Prince, Watercolor, 5"x7"</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGLA7dTRwq1IXSCC6yGXbT-Z5L-9djaKFhenVn8YPj80aPyatPkbZ8VFUXw8mSia0so4B_It0y_auoM7cfN5XzJiKymAXRsIB__0C80nKwlKawl6kcfdijCpIx9KYCb6hj-p9uaDrsWeg/s1600/fullsizeoutput_c5c.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGLA7dTRwq1IXSCC6yGXbT-Z5L-9djaKFhenVn8YPj80aPyatPkbZ8VFUXw8mSia0so4B_It0y_auoM7cfN5XzJiKymAXRsIB__0C80nKwlKawl6kcfdijCpIx9KYCb6hj-p9uaDrsWeg/s1600/fullsizeoutput_c5c.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGLA7dTRwq1IXSCC6yGXbT-Z5L-9djaKFhenVn8YPj80aPyatPkbZ8VFUXw8mSia0so4B_It0y_auoM7cfN5XzJiKymAXRsIB__0C80nKwlKawl6kcfdijCpIx9KYCb6hj-p9uaDrsWeg/s1600/fullsizeoutput_c5c.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGLA7dTRwq1IXSCC6yGXbT-Z5L-9djaKFhenVn8YPj80aPyatPkbZ8VFUXw8mSia0so4B_It0y_auoM7cfN5XzJiKymAXRsIB__0C80nKwlKawl6kcfdijCpIx9KYCb6hj-p9uaDrsWeg/s1600/fullsizeoutput_c5c.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGLA7dTRwq1IXSCC6yGXbT-Z5L-9djaKFhenVn8YPj80aPyatPkbZ8VFUXw8mSia0so4B_It0y_auoM7cfN5XzJiKymAXRsIB__0C80nKwlKawl6kcfdijCpIx9KYCb6hj-p9uaDrsWeg/s1600/fullsizeoutput_c5c.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGLA7dTRwq1IXSCC6yGXbT-Z5L-9djaKFhenVn8YPj80aPyatPkbZ8VFUXw8mSia0so4B_It0y_auoM7cfN5XzJiKymAXRsIB__0C80nKwlKawl6kcfdijCpIx9KYCb6hj-p9uaDrsWeg/s1600/fullsizeoutput_c5c.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGLA7dTRwq1IXSCC6yGXbT-Z5L-9djaKFhenVn8YPj80aPyatPkbZ8VFUXw8mSia0so4B_It0y_auoM7cfN5XzJiKymAXRsIB__0C80nKwlKawl6kcfdijCpIx9KYCb6hj-p9uaDrsWeg/s1600/fullsizeoutput_c5c.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGLA7dTRwq1IXSCC6yGXbT-Z5L-9djaKFhenVn8YPj80aPyatPkbZ8VFUXw8mSia0so4B_It0y_auoM7cfN5XzJiKymAXRsIB__0C80nKwlKawl6kcfdijCpIx9KYCb6hj-p9uaDrsWeg/s1600/fullsizeoutput_c5c.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGLA7dTRwq1IXSCC6yGXbT-Z5L-9djaKFhenVn8YPj80aPyatPkbZ8VFUXw8mSia0so4B_It0y_auoM7cfN5XzJiKymAXRsIB__0C80nKwlKawl6kcfdijCpIx9KYCb6hj-p9uaDrsWeg/s1600/fullsizeoutput_c5c.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /></a><div style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKv5qNadHTGQ8f4U3Q2lIJrKVmHb0-pTlJEPpVaHMk9ZCBONQ6ZnqgH5ZpC85I0xYkHYcYYL8230h9QqEt4GAuLnKAutqZnHWoM59y7_ByPsZwHgq4gnQ05YNMObEWpW1KYSW8cPysFjs/s1600/fullsizeoutput_c79.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKv5qNadHTGQ8f4U3Q2lIJrKVmHb0-pTlJEPpVaHMk9ZCBONQ6ZnqgH5ZpC85I0xYkHYcYYL8230h9QqEt4GAuLnKAutqZnHWoM59y7_ByPsZwHgq4gnQ05YNMObEWpW1KYSW8cPysFjs/s320/fullsizeoutput_c79.jpeg" width="240" /></a></div>
<div style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;">
The Watchers (Quick Nighttime Sketch), Watercolor, 5"x7"</div>
<br />
<br />
<br />
<div>
<br /><div>
<br /></div>
</div>
Bethanyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02324040002917344790noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2141691563420799164.post-15461764337893465272016-11-25T18:02:00.002-08:002016-11-25T18:02:24.882-08:00The Model Room<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Students spend 3 hours in the model room every day of class. The model room is a large space with concrete floors, neutral colored walls, and natural light from north-facing windows. We work in silence with breaks every 20 minutes for the model. </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Each of the images below represent the work of one day. These drawings were preparatory drawings for a long (5 week) drawing in charcoal. </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Day 1:<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibLk7fsi7WnuLSVMUfCLr_HeI6o6qsqbulQG_DEBcZu4cOPfTsJWfq347haKinS1Df121uzlX14k9J2GbeorDyZJ6bS9JUcw4Biyqce7azskRlub_stEfmx8jblur35JeSxxKge-w0GJU/s1600/fullsizeoutput_c43.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibLk7fsi7WnuLSVMUfCLr_HeI6o6qsqbulQG_DEBcZu4cOPfTsJWfq347haKinS1Df121uzlX14k9J2GbeorDyZJ6bS9JUcw4Biyqce7azskRlub_stEfmx8jblur35JeSxxKge-w0GJU/s320/fullsizeoutput_c43.jpeg" width="120" /></a> Day 2:<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbwTSf9puSXj7db1YfiOmFrufO8lVhfJbK52z8iwfdpdlGf753UUSvf6i9UquyoVKYCyRCaKheqE5RmYXVmQsDiB1Lggm2dcv99te9fs5tR-FEfoREz3MfIqGXiZ759PQYQ4v9gyTFdjs/s1600/fullsizeoutput_c45.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbwTSf9puSXj7db1YfiOmFrufO8lVhfJbK52z8iwfdpdlGf753UUSvf6i9UquyoVKYCyRCaKheqE5RmYXVmQsDiB1Lggm2dcv99te9fs5tR-FEfoREz3MfIqGXiZ759PQYQ4v9gyTFdjs/s320/fullsizeoutput_c45.jpeg" width="120" /></a> Day 3:<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4DUbTkpui3sT2FnZPKEROzLIPmLt8sCh_lNbgnxa3hnM5Dl2IMtiymZgCRh_wiQPUXCXdNC-AtViac6-sZ1d21V4JOfFr1qoyEp9HVtVDl5nR7Rhk_4Ib8urdzlOYp7_AfOXz5csVd6I/s1600/fullsizeoutput_c46.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4DUbTkpui3sT2FnZPKEROzLIPmLt8sCh_lNbgnxa3hnM5Dl2IMtiymZgCRh_wiQPUXCXdNC-AtViac6-sZ1d21V4JOfFr1qoyEp9HVtVDl5nR7Rhk_4Ib8urdzlOYp7_AfOXz5csVd6I/s320/fullsizeoutput_c46.jpeg" width="120" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
These drawings show the development of visual understanding of the pose. The first drawing is stiffer and more general in comparison with the third which is more expressive and specific. Each day of drawing is a kind of visual exploration. </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
I enjoy this kind of work because it helps me to see more, and that process of seeing more is by nature contemplative. By contemplative, I mean receptive of what is present. Period. In one sense, art is about making things - transforming existing materials into new things. It is an active activity. In another sense, art is about receiving what is present without trying to change it. It is about going deeper, going beneath the surface of things, or going beyond the first impression. </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Most people have two arms and two legs, a head, and a torso. These are ordinary, horribly ordinary things. But, I once heard a teacher refer to the "drama" of a particular intersection in the body, and when she said it, I could see it. Light and dark and tension and resolution and harmony and unity - all the things that make up drama. And this, all this, is usually hidden under our clothes. Seriously, what a metaphor! If we could see for real all the time, it would blow our minds. </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<br />Bethanyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02324040002917344790noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2141691563420799164.post-61779917779900928142016-11-18T17:19:00.002-08:002016-11-18T17:19:48.508-08:00The Arm of Moses as Seen by My Little Girl<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Don't tell my classmates, but I kind of like Bargues (copying exercises). Back to animal shapes: I wrote about this a few weeks ago, but I've got more to say. So, one way of breaking down an image and understanding it visually is to find shapes within it - kind of like finding shapes in clouds. "This one looks like an elephant... that one looks like a baby..." This week, I was working on my new Bargue drawing, Mose's Arm from Michelango's famous Moses on Julius II's tomb. I was working my way down the arm, blocking things in using the "seeing shapes" technique. Actually, I was seeing animals. And, I had a flashback. I remembered the downstairs bathroom floor in my childhood home. When I was a little girl, I used to sit there and look and the linoleum and see shapes and creatures and animals. They all had stories. There was the guy with the club. There was Our Lady. I couldn't look at that floor without seeing all kinds of things in it. I thought that was pretty cool - connecting with young part of me and being able to bring it into this new process that I'm learning as an adult. </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgn6Nrs8f3IXcSmBVHlLhCctXzo89dzUR8KN8ABYMU-I9eesqax695puDm60ckhle9L_p_cwCkMcFEgGxS3CVa8zNwwZk5FHZCRaGbWlmsMG-xdYewDEcoVqLnlKo5vYL2k19viMOEn9CI/s1600/fullsizeoutput_c18.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgn6Nrs8f3IXcSmBVHlLhCctXzo89dzUR8KN8ABYMU-I9eesqax695puDm60ckhle9L_p_cwCkMcFEgGxS3CVa8zNwwZk5FHZCRaGbWlmsMG-xdYewDEcoVqLnlKo5vYL2k19viMOEn9CI/s400/fullsizeoutput_c18.jpeg" width="300" /></a></div>
<br />Bethanyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02324040002917344790noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2141691563420799164.post-76033429275270434132016-11-12T05:02:00.004-08:002016-11-12T05:02:45.529-08:00Copy of a Copy of a Copy. But, why?This past week, I finished my first Bargue. A Bargue drawing is an exercise that involves making an as-exact-as-possible pencil copy of one of a series of drawings by a guy named Charles Bargue who lived back in the 1800's. Bargue did a series of drawings of casts of parts of famous sculptures. So, right now, I am working on a Bargue of Mose's arm from Michelangelo's Moses. My recently completed Bargue is of a hand holding a whetstone, but I can't figure out what the original sculpture was.<br />
So, what is the point of this copy of copy of a copy? (Original, cast, Bargue copy, my copy). You've heard the saying, "Its not about the destination, it's about the journey."? Well, it is. It's about the journey. There is a whole process to making the copy that is designed to help an artist learn to see. And see what? Contour lines, shapes of shadows, form turning in space, shapes of half-tones (the grey areas), overlaps, relationships between all of the above, and the list goes on. All of the things I learn while making the Bargue, I then take with me into the model room where I apply them to human figure drawing. And, human figure drawing is also a didactic exercise, the lessons from which I can then apply to future artwork.<br />
Lots of exercises. It's all preparation. Funny thing is that it is easy to get lost in the exercise - and not in a bad way. Even if the main purpose of the copying exercise is to teach me to draw, that does not mean that the product is not also beautiful in a particular way. I have a great affection for my Bargue. I could sculpt the form in space of the 2-dimensional image I drew, and I would know every curve. I have to say that I am much more at peace now than I used to be about things being both exercise and end in themselves. I remember my mother saying that in college she thought that a person gets an education to do something and then they finish the education and then they go off and do it. End of story. But, now she knows that the learning part really goes on forever. (Something like that. Sorry, Mom, if I messed up your words.) So, one of the things that I've learned from doing my first Bargue is that I *really like* representational drawing. It's fascinating and challenging and fun. So, that tells me something about the direction I might want to go, and since fleshing out that direction is part of the point of this blog, I'd say that's a good thing.<br />
Signing off for another week. Thanks for reading. Go out there and see Beauty today.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5qR3auVFiQFXolUY-Xq4xYgKL4ZT5yKPnKbPShMzZlneuD_bttn8bOh48llfwovjycO5oJEoYRULB0QA_F2RlEf3ZPG__iLsx_A157BM4ukVLWde-d3d1RZQKbtgxgAhi-1TjqryXnss/s1600/fullsizeoutput_bea.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5qR3auVFiQFXolUY-Xq4xYgKL4ZT5yKPnKbPShMzZlneuD_bttn8bOh48llfwovjycO5oJEoYRULB0QA_F2RlEf3ZPG__iLsx_A157BM4ukVLWde-d3d1RZQKbtgxgAhi-1TjqryXnss/s400/fullsizeoutput_bea.jpeg" width="298" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Hand with Whetstone, Copy of a Cast Drawing by Charles Bargue</div>
Bethanyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02324040002917344790noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2141691563420799164.post-55679914350190599212016-11-05T04:36:00.001-07:002016-11-05T04:36:32.577-07:00Mucking Around with WatercolorsWeek five of the first trimester at the Florence Academy of Art is done, and I'm tired. This is a lot of drawing. So, Thursday night, I cut loose a bit and took advantage of the fact that full-time students are allowed to attend part-time figure class and pretty much do whatever we want.<br />
So, here's my recreation: watercolor sketches. It's my attempt to bring some of my own heart in to the stuff I've been learning. In this case, my "heart" is pretty much represented by the fact that I enjoy watercolor. Heck, I enjoy color, period. Down with pencils!<br />
OK, rant done. Bring on week six.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgNLWdVwpo-_IsLSj2qhSPu0ARe9KmxTwLJBaLctquGNq_uHTp6AVS2MHRHxTGq5Zif3Hw86MiOPbhn5tqITstpzLiqE76uVDziS-fxpqwalq5ixWBS3_kqWW6n3JM7Wrinpa9NpPUASA/s1600/IMG_3289.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgNLWdVwpo-_IsLSj2qhSPu0ARe9KmxTwLJBaLctquGNq_uHTp6AVS2MHRHxTGq5Zif3Hw86MiOPbhn5tqITstpzLiqE76uVDziS-fxpqwalq5ixWBS3_kqWW6n3JM7Wrinpa9NpPUASA/s320/IMG_3289.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
<br />Bethanyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02324040002917344790noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2141691563420799164.post-30788852652719735022016-10-28T18:28:00.001-07:002016-10-28T18:35:05.544-07:00Fantastic Paintings by Cornelia and StephenToday at the Florence Academy of art was our Friday lecture. It was a real treat because it consisted of a presentation by Cornelia and Stephen, two of our instructors, about their show that is opening at the academy on Sunday.<br /><br />See the Facebook invitation here:<br /><br /><a href="https://www.blogger.com/%3Ciframe%20src=%22https://www.facebook.com/plugins/post.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Ffaausbranch%2Fposts%2F1793532184243678%3A0&width=500%22%20width=%22500%22%20height=%22487%22%20style=%22border:none;overflow:hidden%22%20scrolling=%22no%22%20frameborder=%220%22%20allowTransparency=%22true%22%3E%3C/iframe%3E">Bauman and Hernes: Selected Works</a><br /><br />Both of them graduated from the Florence Academy at about the same time and have been making paintings ever since. It struck me how different their work is from each other as well as how their talks differed. Stephen opened with a quote from Frankie Valli that goes like this:<br /><br /><i>They ask you "what was the high point?" Hall of Fame, selling all those records, pulling Sherry out of the hat, it was all great. But four guys under a street lamp, when it was all still ahead of us, the first time we made that sound, our sound. When everything dropped away and all there was was the music. That was the best.</i><div>
<br />Stephen then went on to describe how he has followed that "sound" which is his in his painting career. And, he showed slides to illustrate that process. <br />Cornelia, on the other hand also showed us a number of slides, but they were grouped into genre, and she went into quite a bit of detail about the composition and process of painting each one. <br />Both talks were fascinating, and the work is really beautiful.<br />The thing that impresses me is that both Stephen and Cornelia were trained at the same school, in the same discipline, and both focus on the human figure as their subject matter. And yet, within this narrow focus, the range of emotions and ideas they communicate in their paintings are very different. Each of them has a unique artistic vision which is transmitted the classical realism of their paintings. <br />I think that the thing I take away from this is to not be afraid to engage in the styles of mediums that attract me simply because other people already use them and because they may have connotations which with I do not want to be associated. Even though I am being trained in a very particular method, the method is only a vehicle. It is my responsibility to make it my own.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div>
Bethanyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02324040002917344790noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2141691563420799164.post-9823831909620077882016-10-21T19:54:00.001-07:002016-10-21T19:54:11.743-07:00Gesture and RhythmDone with week three of my first trimester at the Florence Academy of Art. We just finished up our first 2-week long pose in the model room. This means that for 3 hours a day, every day for 2 weeks, the model stands in the same pose and we draw that same pose on the same sheet of paper for those 2 weeks. The point is not to have a finished drawing in the end. It's an exercise. It involved lots and lots of tweaking. Draw a line, check it, move it. Move the drawing forward, more checking and moving. Once a day, the teacher comes by and give an in-depth critique. <div>
This week, I received a paradigm-shifting critique from Jordan, one of the teachers and the director of the school. He told me to focus on rhythm and gesture, that my figure looked stiff and dead. Now, this is not the first time someone has told me to, in essence, "loosen up." I remember my high-school violin teacher telling me this over and over again, and I wanted to clock her. </div>
<div>
I felt like clocking Jordan too, but I asked him a question instead. I said, "Jordan, I understand the concept you are telling me, but I do not understand what is means in terms of the marks I make." And, Jordan told me something very interesting. He said that how we look determines what we notice. So, if I am doing a rough diagram of a figure and looking for major points to mark out the big shapes of the body, I am going to be moving my eyes from side to side on the figure and looking for general distances between unconnected points. However, if I am looking for the gesture of a line as it runs down the body, I am going to move my eyes down the line. So, if I want the gesture to be accurate, I have to look for gesture. The difference between a line made my connection accurately marked points and a line made by imitating a gesture can be very subtle, but it is also the difference between a living and a dead thing.</div>
<div>
Indeed, Jordan pointed out that this sort of very small variation in elements of a drawing can make a very big difference in the final perception. This comment made me think of an experience I had in college when I sang with a polyphony choir. It was an intense choir. We each had private voice lessons - not so that we individually could be awesome singers, but so that we would sing correctly together. We practiced in sections and in full choir, and we went over the words of the songs so that we could pray them. And, the result was that when singing with this choir it was necessary to deliberately shut off my emotions because otherwise I would be a quivering puddle on the floor. It was powerful stuff, and when we sang for mass once a month, the church was packed. </div>
<div>
I've sung in other choirs since, and they were all fine choirs, and none of them were nearly as obsessive about the quality of the music as my college polyphony choir. Both choirs sang (in many cases) the exact same songs, and both pretty much were on-key and sang the notes right. But, oh, one of them transported you into the realms of God and the other was mostly accompaniment. So, as an artist, one of the things I crave is that kind of perfection. That's why I'm at a school like the Florence Academy. Not sure *what* exactly I'm going to make, but, man, it's going to be good!</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnyVsi6O9rxJlKmorXvyQz1hK_rH2GX8RjNSI_RKu9TZUMLRloGIHNYFAwj8xEKMUfpptr0d-A82Hwlt2A0j-Guwll5PkqmDYrj_sjhvNrwEZJoyeBYI8RN4IqJaS-1T2jTgIuVVSei2Q/s1600/IMG_3228.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnyVsi6O9rxJlKmorXvyQz1hK_rH2GX8RjNSI_RKu9TZUMLRloGIHNYFAwj8xEKMUfpptr0d-A82Hwlt2A0j-Guwll5PkqmDYrj_sjhvNrwEZJoyeBYI8RN4IqJaS-1T2jTgIuVVSei2Q/s320/IMG_3228.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Part way through the figure drawing, trying to find the gesture.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
Bethanyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02324040002917344790noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2141691563420799164.post-41046150556989298752016-10-14T16:43:00.001-07:002016-10-14T16:43:39.932-07:00Imaginary AnimalsAnd, it's the end of week two at the Florence Academy. I'm still working entirely in pencil, copying Bargue drawings or anatomy drawings, and drawing the human figure from life.<br />
This week, the thing that excited me the most was seeing a dog in my drawing.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4I4BXmUy0OL28JIEJLwOmsysYXwkz3gb4y1-fQYqaOWdsBpqFXlq5iHKkGOR69nBEpruxgQKRRe1rrfonFMxiii95H6H1N1x_L0P3AiBPx0wtqk_iRKHJUi2QXqTW9T3Q6QMOo8piU3s/s1600/IMG_3206.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="175" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4I4BXmUy0OL28JIEJLwOmsysYXwkz3gb4y1-fQYqaOWdsBpqFXlq5iHKkGOR69nBEpruxgQKRRe1rrfonFMxiii95H6H1N1x_L0P3AiBPx0wtqk_iRKHJUi2QXqTW9T3Q6QMOo8piU3s/s200/IMG_3206.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
See it? He's got an open mouth with his tongue sticking out, facing to the right.<br />
I know, this sounds silly, but bear with me. Cornelia, one of the instructors was explaining using one's imagination by seeing shapes (like animals) in a drawing can help to see the drawing in a fresh way. Drawing involves seeing relationships - relationships of length, volume, value, etc. In order for me to draw, for instance, a hand, I need to be able to visually deconstruct all the visual relationships and see the hand in terms of visual realities. The "animal" trip is one trick that helps with visual deconstruction.<br />
It's funny, I think people think of artist as creative. Sometimes, I'm not even sure was that word means. I'm not particularly good at "coming up with things." I found myself staring at my drawing for quite awhile, trying to see some kind of animal. When the dog jumped out at me, I actually burst out laughing. It was really a surprise, and it delighted me.<br />
Maybe this is significant because, especially in areas in which I may consider myself knowledgable, I have a hard time seeing things in new ways. And, I do think that is part of what art does. It gives a view of something *according to someone.* And, maybe, I see a dog and a spaceship, and a pigeon where other people see a hand - and that means I can represent it more fully and accurately.<br />
So, I'm going to try to see some more dogs this week and be surprised at what jumps out at me.Bethanyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02324040002917344790noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2141691563420799164.post-11690402004796546142016-10-08T17:14:00.001-07:002016-10-08T17:14:34.458-07:00Week 1 at the FAAWe started Bargue drawings and human figure drawing sessions this week. No evening classes. Here are images of a Bargue drawing and a figure drawing. A Bargue drawing is basically an exercise that involves copying from a 2-D original. A human figure drawing is basically an exercise that involves drawing a 3-D model from life (so, not entirely stationary.)<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
Human Figure Drawing</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvmmRIoS-8pp2Qo1N-hdMJwxQSubtVOVfGdNJVHCtu4rxtcv8UrZJzLBrx_Ma9HahXZ-ZQj1b5d-Sd2tnKEMd19uh0p0o9GEyTnDOn1zEYSvzo8CC3JemQrwnUhFKlGaIhe2PG5J7mjcg/s1600/IMG_3155.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvmmRIoS-8pp2Qo1N-hdMJwxQSubtVOVfGdNJVHCtu4rxtcv8UrZJzLBrx_Ma9HahXZ-ZQj1b5d-Sd2tnKEMd19uh0p0o9GEyTnDOn1zEYSvzo8CC3JemQrwnUhFKlGaIhe2PG5J7mjcg/s320/IMG_3155.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Bargue Drawing Original</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHML0y_MwV84-jo7GXHgQQwiLeMW0nSohLiEzR7VmG72ZSUPSOeB_t9tSGqCyNBowlOS51q5QGJ_H6EDM2eTk5fmraooNp_3j0QoZDYhORB1YmPHu1xA3Bp8R-lflW4X-vQP23hHSdIbs/s1600/IMG_3147.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHML0y_MwV84-jo7GXHgQQwiLeMW0nSohLiEzR7VmG72ZSUPSOeB_t9tSGqCyNBowlOS51q5QGJ_H6EDM2eTk5fmraooNp_3j0QoZDYhORB1YmPHu1xA3Bp8R-lflW4X-vQP23hHSdIbs/s320/IMG_3147.jpg" width="191" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Bargue Drawing Copy in Progress</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdKZ0M8O4iAwmU1pAsSIgSPswYxb6DamBgm-OvAoJuReHmLYoREc3uZ5W7gyo_A3N3E5U9v44qNmZRBeq4T0zNgAzNsP6ztAz8TcoHU0yqewmV3zyPgyLLt4ZLLT0TouNm2t0d7nKX8DU/s1600/IMG_3162.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdKZ0M8O4iAwmU1pAsSIgSPswYxb6DamBgm-OvAoJuReHmLYoREc3uZ5W7gyo_A3N3E5U9v44qNmZRBeq4T0zNgAzNsP6ztAz8TcoHU0yqewmV3zyPgyLLt4ZLLT0TouNm2t0d7nKX8DU/s320/IMG_3162.jpg" width="189" /></a></div>
<br />
The thing which strikes me the most about my first week of class is the sheer quantity of time spent in front of the easel doing essentially the same thing over and over again. Making lines, checking the placement of the lines using a plumb line or skewer, moving the lines, checking them again, looking at the lines in different ways using a mirror or standing back, and on and on. In a certain sense, this work is engrossing. In another, it is terribly boring. The human figure is both a subject and a didactic tool. It is a complex form, and so, I think the idea is that if you can represent the figure, you can represent anything. The standing in one spot is boring. So is the medium - I'm not such a fan of pencil, really. It's all very tedious. On the other hand, it is truly amazing how the relationship between the pattern of lines that make up one side of the human body (when visually simplified) and the pattern of lines on the other side is never the same from person to person, pose to pose, or viewing angle to viewing angle. And, getting those lines right and watching them click and give life to what were previously dead angles, that is nothing short of marvelous. As in, "marvel." I marvel. And then there is no time. <br />
So, what I take from this week is to commit to putting in the time necessary to mastering this process and also to enjoy it. To let myself marvel at the lines.Bethanyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02324040002917344790noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2141691563420799164.post-56290524893932219632016-10-08T16:48:00.001-07:002016-10-08T16:48:13.085-07:00Back to SchoolThis past week, I started the drawing and painting program at the Florence Academy of Art. A day at the academy consists of 3 hours standing at an easel in my studio and 3 hours standing at an easel in the model (human figure) room. Three times a week, there is a supplemental 2 hour class either on anatomy, figure drawing, or other topics relevant to the kind of art we are making. The drawing and painting program lasts for 3 years. There are three trimeters, and I will have summers off. Given the time commitment, it is likely that I will be much less productive as far as my own personal work goes.<br />
Lately, that personal work has been watercolor landscapes and decorative, concrete paving stones. Both of these types of art are not what I would consider purely "fine art." They are decorative objects. There is nothing wrong with that fact. It is simply worth acknowledging that I make them because they are at some level practical. They serve a function and/or aesthetic need.<br />
At the heart of it, though, art making is a liberal art. (For more on the definition of liberal art, read Josef Pieper's book <i>Leisure, the Basis of Culture.</i>) This means, in part, that in order for me to sustain creative activity, I need to be connected to that source in me that delights in creating for no other reason than because it delights in creating.<br />
This time at the Florence Academy of Art is likely to be a time of intense focus on technical development. I am going to learn *how* to represent things visually in a few specific mediums. At the same time, I hope it will also be a time of deepening my understand of what I, as an unrepeatable person with a unique perspective, must/desire to make. I indent to continue to do my <i>plein air </i>and sell them because, hey, being about to sustain myself financially is a really important part of being free to make those great things I'm going to learn to make. But, again, there's more beyond the landscapes. I can feel it, and I want to dig.<br />
So, what I'm going to try is this: at the end of each week, I'm going to post a reflection on what went on at the academy that week and what that has to do with the big picture of what to make and why. Maybe I'll go beyond that, but I don't know.<br />
Anyways, for an exercise like this, it helps to have an audience. Then I know I am "talking" to someone. So, enjoy...Bethanyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02324040002917344790noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2141691563420799164.post-51986799342735178052016-09-13T12:04:00.004-07:002016-09-13T12:37:26.450-07:00Landcape Painting Road Trip: Across the USA in 13 Fields<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">The story of how this road trip originated is a bit convoluted. Suffice it to say that I had many reasons to go to both Minnesota and California in August and September. As I currently reside on the East Coast, it seemed like the perfect opportunity to take a landscape painting road trip. How many times in my life would I get to see the landscape of my country, in an unbroken succession of images, from one end to the other? As a theme, I chose to focus on painting fields, and as beginning and end, I chose the Chesapeake Bay and San Fransisco Bay.</span></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">This is a log of that trip.</span><br />
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">____________________________________________________________________________</span></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">A few days before actually leaving on my road trip, I do my easternmost painting: This series begins with the Chesapeake Bay.</span></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitD6IY2hEPcefiS9JEKlQ4dU1V_wCduYCuLYcOC0TxpB2FXge_ckflxbYlR5OU7lb0ZJQgG6OqD8DKDXOIa6JJRwXetk_OgA30-wVT215FKLSnJq-X2WZERQ-Fw_zju-Dhdymt9RHANcQ/s1600/IMG_1898.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitD6IY2hEPcefiS9JEKlQ4dU1V_wCduYCuLYcOC0TxpB2FXge_ckflxbYlR5OU7lb0ZJQgG6OqD8DKDXOIa6JJRwXetk_OgA30-wVT215FKLSnJq-X2WZERQ-Fw_zju-Dhdymt9RHANcQ/s400/IMG_1898.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Wild Rice Field, Lothian, MD, 16"x12" Watercolor</div>
<div class="p1">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="s1"><a href="http://fineartamerica.com/featured/wild-rice-field-bethany-lee.html">http://fineartamerica.com/featured/wild-rice-field-bethany-lee.html</a></span></div>
</div>
<div class="p2">
<span class="s1"></span><br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">Day 1, Jug Bay Wetlands Sanctuary, Lothian, Maryland</span></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">It is midmorning when I pull into the parking area at Jug Bay Wetlands sanctuary. The sanctuary lies on the Patuxent River in Maryland, near where the river empties into the Chesapeake Bay. It is a humid day and the bugs are singing loudly. I walk about a half an hour into the woods by the parking lot and then turn off the path and onto a boardwalk into a wide marsh. I am surrounded by wild rice. Their feathery heads rustle around me like waves in a sea of yellow. This is my first field painting: a field of wild rice. </span></div>
<div class="p2">
<span class="s1"></span><br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">The first day of my actual road trip, I start driving from Washington, DC and head northwest into Maryland.</span></div>
<div class="p2">
<span class="s1"></span><br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjR9vz8Pl1S-PIj3L-cW3zrw8ABGDGg_LOSPvCvhgD1keiVH1Zr_s1DpI8FJIp_cVX_zMTntRvn1cweheR2igBWM8InbzKWLxo7DpkUosjqMU06DsY6rOxEoTFNqz0dk44c2JhqZCzjBXg/s1600/IMG_1894.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjR9vz8Pl1S-PIj3L-cW3zrw8ABGDGg_LOSPvCvhgD1keiVH1Zr_s1DpI8FJIp_cVX_zMTntRvn1cweheR2igBWM8InbzKWLxo7DpkUosjqMU06DsY6rOxEoTFNqz0dk44c2JhqZCzjBXg/s400/IMG_1894.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Tuberose Field, Gaithersburg, MD, 16"x12" Watercolor</div>
<div class="p2">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://fineartamerica.com/featured/tuberose-field-bethany-lee.html">http://fineartamerica.com/featured/tuberose-field-bethany-lee.html</a></div>
</div>
<div class="p2">
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">Day 2, Plantmasters Flower Farm, Gaithersburg, MD</span></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">At the farmers market in DC where I often sell my paintings, there is a flower stand filled with bunches and bunches of glorious, colorful flowers. They are all grown on just a few acres in Maryland. Leon, the proprietor, has allowed me to come out to the farm and painted some of the fields. Plantmasters, the farm, is about an hour’s drive from Washington, DC. The farm looks like a normal suburban house from the front, but if you walk around to the back of the house, and you will see flowering plants growing lots of different ways: in rows, beds, greenhouses, pots, and inside fences. When I arrive, Leon is tying up tuberoses - bunches and bunches. The Tuberoses are the flower most visibly in bloom, so these are the flowers I choose to paint. They are next to garlic chive flowers and out-of-season peony bushes. Both the tuber roses and the garlic chive flowers are white, so, I end up with a nearly monochromatic palette. The light stems of the tuber roses against the shadows of bushes behind them ended up being the particular beauty of the place that struck me. </span></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">To learn more about Plantmasters, click on their Facebook page:</span></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/plantmasters-117662351577416/">https://www.facebook.com/plantmasters-117662351577416/</a></span></div>
<div class="p2">
<span class="s1"></span><br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">It is a fairly slow drive through rural Maryland, over the wooded Alleghenies and onto the plains of Ohio. I spend the night just north of Pittsburg.</span></div>
<div class="p2">
<span class="s1"></span><br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZtllPwi6FLOAuolhPLKUoKPEr_P7473cc2FXHkJGOAmgyOgu1bZlKUYd5WaOOUHzWBx9hADwZIoQ-wf7RnBp1kcsOEKul_WwzoDa9O4m_fFZrn0D7AwSffZlaFiW5nH3gy3YInPzJpAs/s1600/IMG_1909.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZtllPwi6FLOAuolhPLKUoKPEr_P7473cc2FXHkJGOAmgyOgu1bZlKUYd5WaOOUHzWBx9hADwZIoQ-wf7RnBp1kcsOEKul_WwzoDa9O4m_fFZrn0D7AwSffZlaFiW5nH3gy3YInPzJpAs/s400/IMG_1909.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Goldenrod Field, Middleton, OH, 16"x12" Watercolor</div>
<div class="p2">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://fineartamerica.com/featured/goldenrod-field-bethany-lee.html">http://fineartamerica.com/featured/goldenrod-field-bethany-lee.html</a></div>
</div>
<div class="p2">
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">Day 3, Chicagami Park of Geauga County, Middlefield, OH. </span></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">Today I attempt to paint a family farm field in Middlefield, OH. I had contacted a farm cooperative to ask for permission; however, as the farmers involved in the co-op happen to be Amish, the only way for me to do the asking is to simply show up and knock. Well, I show up, and no one is home.</span></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">So, I drive down the road from the farm, contemplating alternatives. Seeing a sign for Chicagami Park, I turn in the drive. The parking lot looks over a wide meadow of yellow and purple flowers - goldenrod and asian milfoil, I think. Hm…allergies and invasive species. Well, it’s pretty and has dramatic, contrasting colors, so why not? </span></div>
<div class="p2">
<span class="s1"></span><br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">The afternoon is spent driving through miles of flat land and farms then crawling through Detroit traffic. My very hospitable aunt in Detroit puts me up for the night and provides me with coffee in the morning. When I ask her for recommendations of fields to paint, she recommends the shores of Lake Michigan.</span></div>
<div class="p2">
<span class="s1"></span><br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwfg4uFcqF_VI4_ryvIjApOQVHX6frk_K4GneQd-KRmXEjasodncwpWY-0NuIskc2z15ctNUX8ymuqH2WMjqLY3nBEUrX79HspefBvFExP24ip1DfNBeTSm51spAHM2-UrRhM2Nctkx10/s1600/IMG_1969.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwfg4uFcqF_VI4_ryvIjApOQVHX6frk_K4GneQd-KRmXEjasodncwpWY-0NuIskc2z15ctNUX8ymuqH2WMjqLY3nBEUrX79HspefBvFExP24ip1DfNBeTSm51spAHM2-UrRhM2Nctkx10/s400/IMG_1969.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Dune Grass, Sagatuck, MI, 16"x12" Watercolor</div>
<div class="p2">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://fineartamerica.com/featured/dune-grass-field-bethany-lee.html">http://fineartamerica.com/featured/dune-grass-field-bethany-lee.html</a></div>
</div>
<div class="p2">
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">Day 4, Sagatuck Dunes State Park, Sagatuck, MI</span></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">Sagatuck Dunes State Park right on Lake Michigan, the whole eastern shore of which is piled with sand dunes. It is a cloudy, windy day, and it is raining on and off. I park in the apparently deserted lot and walk into the woods looking for the lake. I can hear the waves, but it takes me a long time to find the shore.</span></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">Today’s painting portrays “fields” in a few different ways. The proliferation of dune grass over the whole area constitutes a field of grass. Insofar as the painting shows a grouping of dunes over a large area, this is a painting of a field of dunes. In addition, observing the waves, there are multiples waves over a large area of water. So, any seascape is a kind of portrayal of a “field” of waves. </span></div>
<div class="p2">
<span class="s1"></span><br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">Leaving Lake Michigan, I head south and drive under Chicago and into Illinois. There are more corn fields and less traffic than I expected. Oddly enough, I never paint a corn field on this trip. Somehow, it just never seems to be the right time or place to do so.</span></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">After spending the night west of Chicago, I head north. Flat land and corn fields give way to rolling hills and more varied farmland of central Wisconsin.</span></div>
<div class="p2">
<span class="s1"></span><br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVRFWCXE0Lr9kV6WdDJgY7-SAt8QrCDSd6kzgkShDOOv8deSgAb5ZToGSGCxzVgUwMfUItVy7JPj4mbX2l4N24zq5ZqG1AU6gZRP1f93cD7OAiSTGdGhznZP5vS6TlRMdyhPhlOv8xcRA/s1600/IMG_1975.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVRFWCXE0Lr9kV6WdDJgY7-SAt8QrCDSd6kzgkShDOOv8deSgAb5ZToGSGCxzVgUwMfUItVy7JPj4mbX2l4N24zq5ZqG1AU6gZRP1f93cD7OAiSTGdGhznZP5vS6TlRMdyhPhlOv8xcRA/s400/IMG_1975.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Pumpkin Field, Wisconsin Dells, 16"x12" Watercolor</div>
<div class="p2">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://fineartamerica.com/featured/pumpkin-field-bethany-lee.html">http://fineartamerica.com/featured/pumpkin-field-bethany-lee.html</a></div>
</div>
<div class="p2">
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">Day Five, Wisconsin Dells, Thurs. Aug 25</span></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">There is an open-to-the-public farm a short drive off the main freeway that passes through the Dells. It features a corn maze, childrens’ play area, a produce store, flower gardens, and big, big fields of pumpkins. The owners let me walk far back away from their storefront, into the fields - which is where I discover this view. Pumpkins hiding under their leaves. </span></div>
<div class="p2">
<span class="s1"></span><br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">The hills of southwestern Wisconsin give way to bluffs near the Mississippi River and this is where I spend the night. </span></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizmCO0-GJCiYkJ3nnlCb72A218RrGqLPsrI5yH3Z1mytY87IutTGt6fSUzRqrUnkNFZAxKd0GY0ulKg4ZyWt9YrsxShuNAkZa9d3SDFkMHcyh7qQh-SuBkdcdZL4HmV5uv-sDp0Cb7gzE/s1600/IMG_1921.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizmCO0-GJCiYkJ3nnlCb72A218RrGqLPsrI5yH3Z1mytY87IutTGt6fSUzRqrUnkNFZAxKd0GY0ulKg4ZyWt9YrsxShuNAkZa9d3SDFkMHcyh7qQh-SuBkdcdZL4HmV5uv-sDp0Cb7gzE/s400/IMG_1921.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Queen Anne's Lave Field, La Crosse, WI, 16"x12" Watercolor</div>
<div class="p1">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="s1"><a href="http://fineartamerica.com/featured/queen-annes-lace-field-bethany-lee.html">http://fineartamerica.com/featured/queen-annes-lace-field-bethany-lee.html</a></span></div>
</div>
<div class="p2">
<span class="s1"></span><br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">Day Six, Near La Crosse, WI, Fri. Aug 26</span></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">Actually, this is still day five. I arrive at my lodgings in the evening and get all excited about the field of Queen Anne’s lace nearby and paint it right away - no thanks to the goats who kick me out of the first field I try to paint and into an adjacent field. Fortunately, there is Queen Anne’s Lace there too. </span></div>
<div class="p2">
<span class="s1"></span><br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">The next day, I cross the river and drive up onto the flatlands of southern Minnesota. More and more cornfields.</span></div>
<div class="p2">
<span class="s1"></span><br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">I stay in MN for a week, visiting my family. While there, I drive a bit north of the Twin Cities to find field #7.</span></div>
<div class="p2">
<span class="s1"></span><br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEih80GDJwFAVbKEvvAcZu5c9WllzDKZ6dXI2qLI5Nx_Low5-SfM17hlFrdVZDGjfCf-5JhA68i93kCcFEfvMw3oqaAfCNxugeXZsSh2YU6u27wck2lyIhLn4hr4ofwtFXUg3_zBtgoVB8E/s1600/IMG_2003.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEih80GDJwFAVbKEvvAcZu5c9WllzDKZ6dXI2qLI5Nx_Low5-SfM17hlFrdVZDGjfCf-5JhA68i93kCcFEfvMw3oqaAfCNxugeXZsSh2YU6u27wck2lyIhLn4hr4ofwtFXUg3_zBtgoVB8E/s400/IMG_2003.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Prairie Grass Field, Pacem in Terris, St. Francis, MN, 16"x12" Watercolor</div>
<div class="p2">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://fineartamerica.com/featured/prairie-grass-field-bethany-lee.html">http://fineartamerica.com/featured/prairie-grass-field-bethany-lee.html</a></div>
</div>
<div class="p2">
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">Day 7, Pacem in Terris Retreat Center, St. Francis, MN, </span></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">There is a prairie at the retreat center. The staff takes very good care of it. At the proper times, they burn it. At the time of year in which I arrived (mid August), most of the wildflower blooms have passed. The dominant feature of “the meadow” - as they call it - is the dried grasses. They stand up, straight and fine, with heads of grain. They are a reddish-brown color. I paint on the edge of the woods, in the cool of its shadow.</span></div>
<div class="p2">
<span class="s1"></span><br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">After a few more days in Minnesota, I head west again. My grandmother joins me for this leg of the trip. Our first stop is Iowa City, but we start our travels in the evening, and so there is no light by which to paint. After visiting some friends the next day in Lincoln, NE, we spent the night in North Platte, NE. In the morning, Grandma finds me a good place to paint.</span></div>
<div class="p2">
<span class="s1"></span><br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgL8H4rdVZ-RVbGIzOWl-wqGDvfgepkeciuh-3R5ILHAY4m35fRFQjXCZt-b0oEdhzWtk1kPLmEor28us8IaL3Z38-govGQZTk53BAzUuoheuavdBDzG4wxtLiKtUkOrWc8aiHiGUU0kHI/s1600/IMG_2020.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgL8H4rdVZ-RVbGIzOWl-wqGDvfgepkeciuh-3R5ILHAY4m35fRFQjXCZt-b0oEdhzWtk1kPLmEor28us8IaL3Z38-govGQZTk53BAzUuoheuavdBDzG4wxtLiKtUkOrWc8aiHiGUU0kHI/s400/IMG_2020.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Hay and Trains, Bailey Yard, North Platte, NE, 16"x12" Watercolor</div>
<div class="p2">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://fineartamerica.com/featured/hay-and-trains-field-bethany-lee.html">http://fineartamerica.com/featured/hay-and-trains-field-bethany-lee.html</a></div>
</div>
<div class="p2">
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">Day 8: Golden Spike Visitor’s Center and Observation Tower, North Platte, NE</span></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">Bailey Yard is the largest train classification yard in the world. The Golden Spike Observation Tower allows visitors to look over the yard and watch its operations. I sit in the open-air deck and paint the part of the yard containing the diesel repair shop. Next to it lies a field of newly baled, small, square hay bales. So, this painting shows a field of square hay next to a “field” of trains.</span></div>
<div class="p2">
<span class="s1"></span><br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">The next stop is Denver where we say hello to my cousin and his fiancé over local beer and a game of cards. After a good night’s sleep, we take a little foray into the Rockies.</span></div>
<div class="p2">
<span class="s1"></span><br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8tkCebUwpAiy_RV0YzK105avBwjs7IqG34t2PkP8ehnUnn0TWiG-B2VVcEzeruMhoOO546rRYoQKD4IUZ5miRd9wZz69QbStNJ_xSfJ-FaHy1bI385VyNsjXnVkNzwEHyLAkabDKKt2Y/s1600/IMG_2025.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8tkCebUwpAiy_RV0YzK105avBwjs7IqG34t2PkP8ehnUnn0TWiG-B2VVcEzeruMhoOO546rRYoQKD4IUZ5miRd9wZz69QbStNJ_xSfJ-FaHy1bI385VyNsjXnVkNzwEHyLAkabDKKt2Y/s400/IMG_2025.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Mountain Meadow, Estes, CO, 16"x12" Watercolor</div>
<div class="p2">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://fineartamerica.com/featured/mountain-meadow-bethany-lee.html">http://fineartamerica.com/featured/mountain-meadow-bethany-lee.html</a></div>
</div>
<div class="p2">
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">Day 9: Behind the Starbucks, Estes, CO</span></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">The town of Estes is the gateway to Rocky Mountain National Park. It is set up in the mountains high enough so that the arid foothills around Denver and Boulder give way to evergreen forests. Because we do not have time to actually go into the park, we make do with searching the main street of town for a good field to paint. We were well rewarded. There is a beautiful, little brook that runs through town, just behind all the tourist and outdoors shops. I sit on the rocks on the bank and paint the sun slanting through dried grasses under the evergreens on the opposite bank of the river. </span></div>
<div class="p2">
<span class="s1"></span><br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">After Estes, we drive down through Thompson Canyon to Fort Collins to visit an old Minnesota friend. She feeds us well and sends us on our way over rolling hills to the little town of Rawlins, Wyoming.</span></div>
<div class="p2">
<span class="s1"></span><br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_HgWH1q0j8pZf1GkYYOzcRaqRJ6wcffMkgq_C66mV2xkwbzgLRv0pBjzvUL5g6DWOEK0udRm42p3Dt06pIaJgKmgf8o4ZC4sPzqEyKrAwE2IcY7mArGESZc9xrq_ob2QoZqSwti3KGVc/s1600/IMG_2041.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_HgWH1q0j8pZf1GkYYOzcRaqRJ6wcffMkgq_C66mV2xkwbzgLRv0pBjzvUL5g6DWOEK0udRm42p3Dt06pIaJgKmgf8o4ZC4sPzqEyKrAwE2IcY7mArGESZc9xrq_ob2QoZqSwti3KGVc/s400/IMG_2041.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Sage Brush Hills, Rawlins, WY, 16"x12" Watercolor</div>
<div class="p2">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://fineartamerica.com/featured/sage-brush-field-bethany-lee.html">http://fineartamerica.com/featured/sage-brush-field-bethany-lee.html</a></div>
</div>
<div class="p2">
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">Day 10, Behind the Depot, Rawlins, WY. </span></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">Incidentally, after discovering Bailey Yard, we find ourselves paralleling train tracks for the rest of our trip west. Indeed, as far as I can tell, I-80 (the road we took) follows roughly the same path as the original trans-continental railroad. So, in Rawlins, it seems appropriate that the best view I can find of the sagebrush covered hills is from the steps of the train depot. Midway through the painting a large train pulls up and blocks my view entirely for about half an hour, so some of this painting is completed while peering through the space between box cars.</span></div>
<div class="p2">
<span class="s1"></span><br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">Continuing west over more and more rolling hills, we finally descended into Salt Lake City.</span></div>
<div class="p2">
<span class="s1"></span><br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJLD9Mq74T9iJTnxS1u4OnUiu9AQROz_NVkUhx7drSaRp39QHYe2QEtEtTgpIrzs5rCSHbUONoIVuglQmrycJoWynjmmepdoxamilp6irkrMs8_nK6V_CCKLF2_rhy8UWkOl0dZr5pbLs/s1600/IMG_2088.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJLD9Mq74T9iJTnxS1u4OnUiu9AQROz_NVkUhx7drSaRp39QHYe2QEtEtTgpIrzs5rCSHbUONoIVuglQmrycJoWynjmmepdoxamilp6irkrMs8_nK6V_CCKLF2_rhy8UWkOl0dZr5pbLs/s400/IMG_2088.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Pampas Grass, Salt Lake City, UT, 16"x12" Watercolor</div>
<div class="p2">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://fineartamerica.com/featured/pampas-grass-bethany-lee.html">http://fineartamerica.com/featured/pampas-grass-bethany-lee.html</a></div>
</div>
<div class="p2">
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">Day 11, By the Super 8, Salt Lake City, UT</span></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">Originally, I had thought about painting the salt flats. They would have been a “field” of salt. However, the view from our hotel is so striking that I paint that instead. It even includes a train. Yes, trains are a theme on this trip. The field between that train and the hotel parking lot is a field of what is called (as far as I can tell) pampas grass. It has large, wheat-like heads that are slightly purple. The other grass in the field is straight and wispy. I paint as the sun is rising.</span></div>
<div class="p2">
<span class="s1"></span><br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">We then cross the salt desert and proceed onto the high desert of Nevada. </span></div>
<div class="p2">
<span class="s1"></span><br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkj1t0j7ycdW0wTCxnQCmOw5eU7bYBmbwagsC9669tiJjIrClvVsUDGY0uBr14McOj1AbCPp8chIHs-c_tRmx_sWHu4lwx0_D5FOa9kA-J63MsR6MzdlmmoQ20aHdY0QwY-F8RgUQVYh0/s1600/IMG_2086.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkj1t0j7ycdW0wTCxnQCmOw5eU7bYBmbwagsC9669tiJjIrClvVsUDGY0uBr14McOj1AbCPp8chIHs-c_tRmx_sWHu4lwx0_D5FOa9kA-J63MsR6MzdlmmoQ20aHdY0QwY-F8RgUQVYh0/s400/IMG_2086.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Mown Hay, Lovelock, NV, 16"x12" Watercolor</div>
<div class="p2">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://fineartamerica.com/featured/mown-hay-bethany-lee.html">http://fineartamerica.com/featured/mown-hay-bethany-lee.html</a></div>
</div>
<div class="p2">
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">Day 12, Lovelock, NV</span></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">Driving west on I-80, Nevada appears to consist of a series of barely green valleys ringed by very dry mountains. One of these valleys, about 100 miles east of Reno, contains the town of Lovelock. It has a diner, a few hotels, a coffee shop and a car wash - all the comforts of home! At the edge of town is a field of recently mown hay edged by a windbreak of trees. Having so much enjoyed painting at dawn the day before, I decide to try it again. So, this painting also is a bit golden colored. </span></div>
<div class="p2">
<span class="s1"></span><br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">After washing the bugs off our car, we continue west, through Reno, up our highest mountain passes yet, and down, down, down, a long slope into Sacramento and finally to San Fransisco where I drop off my Grandma at my aunt’s in the suburbs and continue on to my brother’s apartment in the city.</span></div>
<div class="p2">
<span class="s1"></span><br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJIAjDmzWfyR4KxhGpTIXoKNVUta1BTX1-S3yipV9aal5Np5gPBXauyl8j25VNBuMzHxuP4kNKV3qiK9gP_4d0edFw9zremESYKUgXv1HgoopQ81XOM-xuQUH7BRLtREhp_i9JhyphenhyphenzbIzo/s1600/IMG_2077.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJIAjDmzWfyR4KxhGpTIXoKNVUta1BTX1-S3yipV9aal5Np5gPBXauyl8j25VNBuMzHxuP4kNKV3qiK9gP_4d0edFw9zremESYKUgXv1HgoopQ81XOM-xuQUH7BRLtREhp_i9JhyphenhyphenzbIzo/s400/IMG_2077.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Salt Fields, San Fransisco Bay, 16"x12" Watercolor</div>
<div class="p2">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://fineartamerica.com/featured/salt-fields-bethany-lee.html">http://fineartamerica.com/featured/salt-fields-bethany-lee.html</a></div>
</div>
<div class="p2">
<br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">Day 13, San Fransisco, CA</span></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">I have reached my destination: San Fransisco Bay. On the recommendation of my brother, I choose for my “field” to paint the salt evaporation ponds on the south end of the bay. Next to the ponds is the Don Edwards Wildlife Refuge, and it is from a hill in this refuge that I paint this “field.” Like the painting of Bailey Yard, this painting contains two “fields.” The marsh in the foreground is a field of various salt marsh plants with a slough snaking through it. The ponds in the background form a “field” of many slightly different colored pools. </span></div>
<div class="p2">
<span class="s1"></span><br /></div>
<br />
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">Looking at all the different paintings of fields, the viewer can see that I have approached the concept of fields as a way to see large areas containing many of the same object - fields of grass, fields of dunes, fields of flowers, fields of trains (to push the definition a little). All of these, taken together and seen under various lights, form a variety of beautiful patterns. Thank you for reading about my trip and looking at the paintings. I hope you have enjoyed my patterns and and that you will see many more of your own today.</span></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1"><br /></span>
<span class="s1">Prints of any of these images can be ordered by clicking the link below the painting.</span><br />
<span class="s1"><br /></span>
<span class="s1">A big thank you to all the people who helped, lodged, or fed us on our trip: the Carriers, Aunt Marcille (& Bruce in absentia), </span>Teresa, my parents, the Villas, Spenser, Kelsey, Mary, the Chows, and Andrew.<br />
<span class="s1"><br /></span></div>
<div style="background-color: #333333; color: #cccccc; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13.2px; line-height: 18.48px;">
Bethany Lee</div>
<div style="background-color: #333333; color: #cccccc; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13.2px; line-height: 18.48px;">
<a href="http://www.bethanyleefineart.com/" style="color: #cc6600; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">www.bethanyleefineart.com</a></div>
<div style="background-color: #333333; color: #cccccc; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13.2px; line-height: 18.48px;">
<a href="http://facebook.com/BethanyLeeFineArt" style="color: #cc6600; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">facebook.com/BethanyLeeFineArt</a></div>
<div style="background-color: #333333; color: #cccccc; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13.2px; line-height: 18.48px;">
<a href="http://twitter.com/bethanyleeart" style="color: #cc6600; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">twitter.com/bethanyleeart</a></div>
<div style="background-color: #333333; color: #cccccc; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13.2px; line-height: 18.48px;">
<a href="http://instagram.com/bethanyleefineart" style="color: #cc6600; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">instagram.com/bethanyleefineart</a></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1"></span></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1"></span></div>
<div style="background-color: #333333; color: #cccccc; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13.2px; line-height: 18.48px;">
Purchase Prints at <a href="http://fineartamerica.com/profiles/2-bethany-lee.html" style="color: #cc6600; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://fineartamerica.com/profiles/2-bethany-lee.html</a></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1"><br /></span></div>
<div style="background-color: #333333; color: #cccccc; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13.2px; line-height: 18.48px;">
<br /></div>
Bethanyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02324040002917344790noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2141691563420799164.post-4214289192435291112016-08-09T12:48:00.001-07:002016-08-09T12:48:38.004-07:00For several months, I've been focusing on small, 5"x7" landscapes. In preparation for a project (More to come on that, soon!) I'm starting to do some larger pieces. Here is this morning's, painted at a spot to which I keep returning. The bridge/trees/shoreline make a beautiful, layered composition.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiagBdAV_Lg-Z_nmgdTgkgtFvPHgo74byXlht2rz5UlK4l3Cbq0M9ERvgog6sgo0JqvzivQsdmhq6LU4sRjLKUsois-AUG-znsvV0COVCaIxeMI17S64c73LCFkL3lliVs5mMYzpYsf5KM/s1600/IMG_2598.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="242" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiagBdAV_Lg-Z_nmgdTgkgtFvPHgo74byXlht2rz5UlK4l3Cbq0M9ERvgog6sgo0JqvzivQsdmhq6LU4sRjLKUsois-AUG-znsvV0COVCaIxeMI17S64c73LCFkL3lliVs5mMYzpYsf5KM/s320/IMG_2598.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Rock Creek Bridge 4, 12"x16" Watercolor, Rock Creek Park, Washington, DC</div>
Bethanyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02324040002917344790noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2141691563420799164.post-27316160314608683852016-07-30T07:20:00.002-07:002016-07-30T07:22:19.669-07:00Figure Painting Workshop<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
A couple of blog posts ago, I wrote about the 2-week figure drawing workshop I attended at the Florence Academy of Art in Jersey City. Here is a progression of images from the follow-up 2-week workshop at the same school - Figure Painting. </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
I have omitted most of the preparatory drawing phase and started the images with the finished preparatory drawing. As with the drawing workshop, the goal was accurate representation; however, the instructor emphasized integrating understanding of form. What I mean is this: Let's say I am painting a head by first drawing an accurate outline of the form and then putting down paint to match the patterns of light and dark as they appear on the head. In this scenario, I do not need to know that what I am painting is a head in order to paint this way. I do not even need to know that what I am drawing is a form in space. All I am doing is copying an outline and areas of light and dark. This is the was I operated in the first workshop, and this way of working is all fine and good, but this method has limitations. For one thing, as my instructor of the painting workshop stated, the product of this method tends to be stiff and lifeless and less believable. (what I understood her to be saying but in my own words.) </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
So, what she taught us was to also understand the form of what we are drawing and use that information as well. Here is what I mean by that: Let's say again that I am drawing a head. I know that the head is more or less spherical, so I can draw the general outline of a circle. And for values (the light and dark), I know there will be a shadow line running up the head where the side of the sphere turns completely away from the light. All this information I know from my understanding of the 3-dimensional form in space. </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Trying to combine both of these methods pretty much made my head explode. But, I think that means the workshop was a success, because I did go there to learn something. </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Plus, there was the whole "handling paint" thing. Yeah. I'm a sculptor, thank you very much. (Well, most of my formal training is in sculpture.) And color? Whatever. Once we got into the different values and hues of flesh tones and how those related to turning form and location on the body (legs are a different color than shoulders, for instance). The last four days of the workshop pretty much consisted of me mixing paint the entire time. </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Which is why I'm going back in the fall for the full-time drawing and painting program =). </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
But, no, in all seriousness, it was a great workshop. It made me see so much that I never would have been able to see on my own and I am so ready to dive into more. It was frustrating, but it was also fascinating. </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
More to come...</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg67gb-xLe_JTW38Miu2uzVxsKjXfd8yp8UQkdS3odf38wKALUXxJGT-qz-qQvSmli9DLzrZxEbtkfFvWycpu1pUzOK8HObtGOl9AAGg_16gGMU0BZ0pg84mhOLM2Y81raMidq19I9nSTk/s1600/IMG_2476.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg67gb-xLe_JTW38Miu2uzVxsKjXfd8yp8UQkdS3odf38wKALUXxJGT-qz-qQvSmli9DLzrZxEbtkfFvWycpu1pUzOK8HObtGOl9AAGg_16gGMU0BZ0pg84mhOLM2Y81raMidq19I9nSTk/s320/IMG_2476.jpg" width="158" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMEsACUUKMj-3OIx_S0lm8FdsQtkth8hO1ZGYbLQXqisTibXX0bJ4Tl2cvVsRKMwupyQA-9ydHnQdhWe2hqrIkArHgYfCPWy4kfu5AI7rKDA4rwXk7HQ-nykK6pP8yd_yBnGRSiwCwsTU/s1600/IMG_2491.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMEsACUUKMj-3OIx_S0lm8FdsQtkth8hO1ZGYbLQXqisTibXX0bJ4Tl2cvVsRKMwupyQA-9ydHnQdhWe2hqrIkArHgYfCPWy4kfu5AI7rKDA4rwXk7HQ-nykK6pP8yd_yBnGRSiwCwsTU/s320/IMG_2491.jpg" width="163" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2PJ6RDS1FnJyajjxcX24-M3tN4xl1XJcctcVt43h2P6Q76_Dyic-LGWlRNf7-3p-TotPVT94Jk8Cz3FLe2cNYivsg99MY9FiOFw-tYWCPslM4VTB2syFHcB3nnth74_niLrc7bu3L_jg/s1600/IMG_2525.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2PJ6RDS1FnJyajjxcX24-M3tN4xl1XJcctcVt43h2P6Q76_Dyic-LGWlRNf7-3p-TotPVT94Jk8Cz3FLe2cNYivsg99MY9FiOFw-tYWCPslM4VTB2syFHcB3nnth74_niLrc7bu3L_jg/s320/IMG_2525.jpg" width="158" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9-URvvwxhVs38kfH0d6t8eQccN4AstgkKh5HfYiJti-ff0CnhPPyuSFKvS1Mh246dJFSgRanole7sdZePddOzF_sK9aaiXd97uQ4RAxlPMbSqa_ckTXWT6LEScHMnoeS1rvGkK70DW2s/s1600/IMG_2530.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9-URvvwxhVs38kfH0d6t8eQccN4AstgkKh5HfYiJti-ff0CnhPPyuSFKvS1Mh246dJFSgRanole7sdZePddOzF_sK9aaiXd97uQ4RAxlPMbSqa_ckTXWT6LEScHMnoeS1rvGkK70DW2s/s320/IMG_2530.jpg" width="158" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0iwWldrGm9APxzybDnvXGKg0Q-XYv87PLmhWCBNT9IxFdohcPmiM3lFQGB4ULpQK6VzB7ucTBJXuVQcsv7aa9_PPHt7avDqYap1g5MMkNdMg8Ev7DWwcazxa8cFx1TIQff5KRXuOphiA/s1600/IMG_2531.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0iwWldrGm9APxzybDnvXGKg0Q-XYv87PLmhWCBNT9IxFdohcPmiM3lFQGB4ULpQK6VzB7ucTBJXuVQcsv7aa9_PPHt7avDqYap1g5MMkNdMg8Ev7DWwcazxa8cFx1TIQff5KRXuOphiA/s320/IMG_2531.jpg" width="161" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnIIWLPcuMyBTsRPVhooCRt-2QdrZe64j7Lx-pc1zGL1mshAv1Q2WMAEnjmWx98UxgkHeLVG9GJkEHaXv77w9Fra6h0A3H5bREo0kAMJB2vDC94Hm6t3OrkuBa-Cu6qrkxB8nBRvO6htg/s1600/IMG_2544.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnIIWLPcuMyBTsRPVhooCRt-2QdrZe64j7Lx-pc1zGL1mshAv1Q2WMAEnjmWx98UxgkHeLVG9GJkEHaXv77w9Fra6h0A3H5bREo0kAMJB2vDC94Hm6t3OrkuBa-Cu6qrkxB8nBRvO6htg/s320/IMG_2544.jpg" width="156" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOvVr5VFBN4hef2Ysixb5E4GT3uECF2WGPSx0VJpQBIV9GhP99UU8CrHeLnkMgQvxjewy-mTnj80FbGZy-E-clfmpfjpBjo4R4t8er0AQSZdCskS6fQeiEaLm5G5j38OfxE7WYo0ydaBE/s1600/IMG_2548.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOvVr5VFBN4hef2Ysixb5E4GT3uECF2WGPSx0VJpQBIV9GhP99UU8CrHeLnkMgQvxjewy-mTnj80FbGZy-E-clfmpfjpBjo4R4t8er0AQSZdCskS6fQeiEaLm5G5j38OfxE7WYo0ydaBE/s320/IMG_2548.jpg" width="162" /></a></div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
Bethany Lee</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<a href="http://www.bethanyleefineart.com/" target="_blank">www.bethanyleefineart.com</a></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<a href="http://facebook.com/BethanyLeeFineArt" target="_blank">facebook.com/BethanyLeeFineArt</a></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<a href="http://twitter.com/bethanyleeart" target="_blank">twitter.com/bethanyleeart</a></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<a href="http://instagram.com/bethanyleefineart" target="_blank">instagram.com/bethanyleefineart</a></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Purchase Prints at <a href="http://fineartamerica.com/profiles/2-bethany-lee.html" target="_blank">http://fineartamerica.com/profiles/2-bethany-lee.html</a></div>
Bethanyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02324040002917344790noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2141691563420799164.post-53113743099149662812016-07-27T17:42:00.004-07:002016-07-30T07:21:00.375-07:00Recent NYC CityscapesHere are some of my recent plein air cityscapes of Manhattan. They are all plein air, 5"x7" watercolor and colored pencil pieces. Prints can be purchased at <a href="http://fineartamerica.com/profiles/2-bethany-lee.html." target="_blank">http://fineartamerica.com/profiles/2-bethany-lee.html.</a><br />
<div>
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglIvJ6u7EfROAbvy-yIhjvPnWnTYQllOWoB2sYJo-KCoigF8l_Juil9iBIt-YYZ6-yKrlRm_Lszj-8Et0OwpItb-4MXgUOG8a6xFTgA0MqACUfLCWT6uth5A7vK79cNUMRrd6pCz8LX9Y/s1600/IMG_1705.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglIvJ6u7EfROAbvy-yIhjvPnWnTYQllOWoB2sYJo-KCoigF8l_Juil9iBIt-YYZ6-yKrlRm_Lszj-8Et0OwpItb-4MXgUOG8a6xFTgA0MqACUfLCWT6uth5A7vK79cNUMRrd6pCz8LX9Y/s320/IMG_1705.jpg" width="223" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Christopher St. & 7th Ave W</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicZ7AZ_ZPaQLGMyovPQvTGGZs09tEU0AGbiG3uxTlUr3YU82BLimB7bTOExH-yVjrkS3bMbckIXSdz3Hz5etJSXlxzLZRSL3xQ7-fkoj7M-4gLYAg8Vex59zAWEhZB7PoSrElvwev3ra0/s1600/IMG_1712.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicZ7AZ_ZPaQLGMyovPQvTGGZs09tEU0AGbiG3uxTlUr3YU82BLimB7bTOExH-yVjrkS3bMbckIXSdz3Hz5etJSXlxzLZRSL3xQ7-fkoj7M-4gLYAg8Vex59zAWEhZB7PoSrElvwev3ra0/s320/IMG_1712.jpg" width="227" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
The Riviera Cafe, Greenwich Village</div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXeANYQLV0gj_avlF6yEWEru-FUZhCVclA2gcPZ-0ZmdjxK6zWWc1OJ-JPEErU-42AiPe4waqf5mDCs2dZhw4L3AfrBuL6nJWS_Y4_C1_UqFc6WIeOYbSwsjy7NXFYhrKFZPH2lJkcoKU/s1600/IMG_1721.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXeANYQLV0gj_avlF6yEWEru-FUZhCVclA2gcPZ-0ZmdjxK6zWWc1OJ-JPEErU-42AiPe4waqf5mDCs2dZhw4L3AfrBuL6nJWS_Y4_C1_UqFc6WIeOYbSwsjy7NXFYhrKFZPH2lJkcoKU/s320/IMG_1721.jpg" width="229" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Subway Station at Prince and Broadway</div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-JOaJF-QX3gTTu1MwC_9qsMOMsa8_OSyorOHJOPFOPMqnP8vCLFhig_Vs4b_p6Sp1FtguJ4XPrMloyz4n3Y_qd8eCeS5jH6X25dYMV0qu7p5NZU5230KMNdEMY2LKdDtIwwwirjzywG8/s1600/IMG_1735.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-JOaJF-QX3gTTu1MwC_9qsMOMsa8_OSyorOHJOPFOPMqnP8vCLFhig_Vs4b_p6Sp1FtguJ4XPrMloyz4n3Y_qd8eCeS5jH6X25dYMV0qu7p5NZU5230KMNdEMY2LKdDtIwwwirjzywG8/s320/IMG_1735.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
A Tree Grows in Midtown Manhattan</div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0qj0DIqrFe1Ib66tmDlQ6msY1i-wNdgXS6tKaTu4SAKbKZjUkIFuudTy6Pppipmq8McnSJFw73t-8CrwhRqyD3gjxCXPaDmC-07SDZOFn60v8fUoWtLubOBKzbZTOL6Q5dL9bu90avFk/s1600/IMG_1756.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0qj0DIqrFe1Ib66tmDlQ6msY1i-wNdgXS6tKaTu4SAKbKZjUkIFuudTy6Pppipmq8McnSJFw73t-8CrwhRqyD3gjxCXPaDmC-07SDZOFn60v8fUoWtLubOBKzbZTOL6Q5dL9bu90avFk/s320/IMG_1756.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Getting a Little Looser... Sheridan Park in Greenwich Village<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
Bethany Lee</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<a href="http://www.bethanyleefineart.com/" target="_blank">www.bethanyleefineart.com</a></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<a href="http://facebook.com/BethanyLeeFineArt" target="_blank">facebook.com/BethanyLeeFineArt</a></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<a href="http://twitter.com/bethanyleeart" target="_blank">twitter.com/bethanyleeart</a></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<a href="http://instagram.com/bethanyleefineart" target="_blank">instagram.com/bethanyleefineart</a></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Purchase Prints at <a href="http://fineartamerica.com/profiles/2-bethany-lee.html" target="_blank">http://fineartamerica.com/profiles/2-bethany-lee.html</a></div>
</div>
Bethanyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02324040002917344790noreply@blogger.com0