Tango in La Boca

"Tango in La Boca"

Buenos Aires, Argentina

8" x 10" collage and mixed watermedia

Not much time last week for art. I am continuing to experiment. I love to dance and paint dancers. We saw many tango dancers in Buenos Aires in 2009, both in the San Telmo and La Boca neighborhoods. I selected this couple to paint. I decided I wanted the wall to look like it had been covered with posters that have been torn off or covered over with more fliers and posters. 

I used Arches 300 pound cold press as it takes collage well. I free hand drew the dancers onto the support. I used a fashion magazine as my source of papers and covered the wall and the dancers' clothing, using mat medium as my adhesive. I gessoed over the wall, allowing some of the print to show through. I  painted the dancers' clothing, as well as their skin and hair, which has no collage. Evaluation showed a lack of variation in values, so I painted over the gesso and paper on the red and grey sections with acrylic paint. 

My critique group saw this piece when it was partly finished and liked what was happening. They encouraged me to try it in a larger format. That is an option. Right now I am creating some small paintings as I would like to send three paintings to a juried show my Santa Clara Valley Watercolor Society is sponsoring. I may not have a prayer of being accepted, but I like the challenge. Charlotte Huntley is the juror. 

Two sessions of plein air painting

"Urban Farm"

Emma Prusch Farm Park

San Jose, CA

12" x 10" watercolor

"Sunlit Shapes"

Agnews Historic Park

Santa Clara, CA

Artist Anna Jacke paints

Roosters all around -- this guy enjoyed his personal water fountain

The Tower at Agnews Historic Park

Bob and I have been very preoccupied with other commitments, but I managed to paint with the Santa Clara Valley Watercolor Society Paintsites group. Today's event was at the Emma Prusch Farm Park practically situated under a very impressive flyway of two major interstates. I could have painted in the flyway behind the barn, but chose to omit it. One of our very fine artists, Michael Rogan, did a landscape that included it in the distance. Michael is very accomplished, so it looked superb.

I was an hour late, but I managed to sketch and quickly paint part of the barn before lunch a little over an hour later. Sometimes I am happiest with the results when I am rushed and don't belabor my work. The Park was filled with families and many children viewing the farm animals. Anna Jacke, another of our accomplished artists, was hard at work near the barn. I enjoy painting structures so I sat right down and began my drawing. The roosters and chickens roamed freely, and one cocky fellow helped himself to the Burnt Sienna from my palette. It must have been delicious because I had to discourage him from returning for more. Unlike my Vermont son's rooster Leo, these guys are very tame. No spurring my shins, thank heavens.

Last week we painted at Agnews Historic Park. This lovely campus was a facility for people with mental illness and later developmentally disabled children and adults. Like most such places, the state closed it and sold off the land to Sun, now owned by Oracle. The company uses the buildings and keep them in fine repair. The campus is lovely and I was especially taken with the sunlight on the trees and the way two palms grow next to a Norwegian Fir, a living oxymoron. I did this painting in 15 minutes after belaboring one of the tower and deeming it a failure. 

When we gather for our picnic lunches about 12:30, we share our work. Today, the artists had done some neat sketches and paintings. Michael showed us a large painting of the Niles Railroad Station that he did in his studio from the quarter-sheet he did on location and photos. He said that one of his recent award winners was done with our group and he thanked Syvia for the fine service she and Jenny, both volunteers, provide to us. Today we had lovely sunshine with a stiff, cool breeze. We sought a more sheltered picnic table for our lunch break. Another great day - retired, doing art, outside with friends -- what more could I ask.

Spring in Filoli Gardens

"Tulip time in Filoli Gardens"

7" x 10" Watercolor 

"Cherry Blossoms in Filoli Gardens"

11" x 12" Watercolor

Filoli  is a property owned by the National Trust for Historic Preservation. Their website states:

Filoli was built for Mr. and Mrs. William Bowers Bourn, prominent San Franciscans whose chief source of wealth was the Empire Mine, a hard-rock gold mine in Grass Valley, California. Mr. Bourn was also owner and president of the Spring Valley Water Company whose property comprised Crystal Springs Lake and the surrounding lands, areas that are now part of the San Francisco Water Department. He selected the southern end of Crystal Springs Lake as the site for his estate.

The estate is about 45 miles north of my home and I was invited to go for the monthly artist access by friends. 

We enjoyed lunch in the very busy cafe, followed by a self-tour of the gardens and mansion. We checked in for our after-hours session about 3:15 and we would be allowed to stay on the closed property until 6:30. It was a chilly day -- my family in Vermont has exchanged weather with us, so we painted on a cool, windy afternoon while they enjoyed temps in the 80s. We had elected to end our session at 5:30. Friend Susan and I selected the walled garden as a shelter from the wind. I captured a few of the 60,000 tulips in bloom at the moment. We were told they have 18 full-time gardeners, some of whom live with their family on the property and enjoy the pool after hours. The cafe, tours, and garden shop are all staffed by volunteers who give many hours to help preserve this place and keep it open to all of us.

Later I captured some of the garden shapes and one of the lovely cherry trees. Unfortunately, in order to stay warm I did not have the prime view that is shown in the photo.

The front entry of the mansion 

 The back of the mansion

The walled garden

Show Takedown Today

California Paintings

World Travel Paintings

                                                                    Vermont Paintings

The show at the Forum hung for over a month. Today we dismantled the show. I took some photos. Enlarge these photos and you will likely recognize some of the art, all of which has appeared in this blog. (Excuse the camera distortion that makes some of the paintings appear lopsided.)  I will hang the paintings at my home/studio and invite collectors and friends to come to a weekend open house.

Small works

"Wedding Day"

10" x 12" Watercolor on Hot Pressed Paper

My Santa Clara Valley Watercolor Society is sponsoring a show in Palo Alto at the Pacific Art League's Norton Gallery. This is a juried show, unlike our other exhibits and our Members' Show. I am experimenting with pieces to enter. All framed pieces must not exceed 14" on any side. So I figure for the next few weeks I will concentrate on painting small.

I painted Bob's paternal grandmother, Bertina, once before. You can see the painting here and read about this adventurous spirit. The third post shows the finished piece.  I felt I had some drawing issues with that one and I wanted to try something a bit different. This time I included Bertina's pretty floral headpiece she wore on her wedding day. 

Ted Nuttall had us painting on hot press paper and I really like it. I can push the paint around and do many layers by letting each dry thoroughly. The result is painterly, which I like. In case you are wondering, I have not yet gone back to my collage that I have half completed. I will after I get some painting out of my system.

Sold and Shipped

"Fog over Monterey Peninsula"

20" x 16" Watercolor

If you have followed this blog for a while, you've already seen this painting. I posted it in September. The piece was painted on a foggy morning at Lover's Point in Pacific Grove, looking back at a jut of land on Monterey Bay. I just sold this piece as a result of the show at the Forum. The purchaser is giving it to her husband for his birthday. I shipped the painting to her on Friday. It's always such a pleasure to have someone want to own my art, and the person was so lovely to work with.

You can see the earlier post here. 

Another great day of plein air

"Old Niles Depot"

7" x 10" Watercolor

 My View

Photo by Bob Eltgroth

Today's destination was 30 miles north of the house at the historic Niles Depot. Niles is one of those charming old towns, with homes from the Victorian era and turn of the twentieth century, plus a quaint downtown that has managed to survive amidst the sprawl fueled by high tech. From miles away you can spot the name of the town on the steep California mountains that flank the town. When we arrived there were cattle grazing near the white "Niles"  and I marvelled at their ability to navigate their huge bodies over treacherous inclines. Bob joined Janice and me as he is a historic railroad buff. He roamed the town taking pictures.

Painting at the depot
Photo by Bob Eltgroth

I was very taken with an old wagon on display, but I did a very detailed rendition (sometimes I can't think how to simplify) and it's just not me. I recalled Maggie Siner in Provence saying about our detail, "That's just noise). Of course that is her style and it suits me, but not for everyone. Now I was down to my smallest watercolor block, 7" x 10". I moved the end of the building and painted the piece that you see at the top of this post. I see now I missed some opportunities for shadows on the roof. I will probably add them.

Grazing on Niles

7" x 10" Watercolor

Next I turned slightly and sketched the hillside, recalling the cattle that were grazing earlier. I mixed the color on the paper and lightly indicated the fence that traversed the hillside. I would like to have included the cattle, but I haven't mastered suggesting large animals at a distance.

About 1 p.m. we gathered for our picnic lunch. Bob's daughter Deborah gave him an old Lionel lunchbox one Christmas, so he carried some of our lunch in it. I love whimsy! I had brought him a Guiness courier bag from Dublin, Ireland, last summer, so he used that as well. When we got home, he photographed both and his Facebook friends are "liking" the photo.

Bob's Lionel lunchbox and Guiness Tote from Ireland

You can see some of the charming old buildings in Niles. We always have a mini showing of  art and it's great fun to see everyone's interpretation of the area.

Dave, Leslie, and Bob in charming Niles

My 2 paintings and others

I believe this lovely painting is by Janice Faulstich.

Check out herb blog.

More gems.

Michael Rogan's handsome piece on the left.

The middle painting is my failed attempt at the wagon.

A few of our SCVWS Plein Air group after the mini show

Here I am with Scotland's missing link

Phase II: Collage on Wrapped Canvas

"A Mexican Beauty"

9" x 12" collage on wrapped canvas

Two posts in one day. I am recovering from a cold so I am confined and doing art. Can you believe I spent a couple more hours on this piece. I see some things that need modification (I am not happy with the green shadow on the right side). Much more work to do all over this piece. 

I've finally figured out that there has to be a process to this, such as sorting papers ahead of time. I did find a method for cutting small pieces to fit in a space. Borrowing from my sewing experience, I placed tracing paper over the space that I wanted to create, traced a pattern, placed it on the paper and cut the shape.

Tonight I have the Southside Art Club at my house, so back to traditional painting for me. Tomorrow and Saturday are filled, so likely I won't get to this until Sunday or later.

Phase I: Collage on Wrapped Canvas

"A Mexican Beauty"

9" x 12" Collage on Wrapped Canvas

My source photo provided by my neighbor

Taken on a Mexican cruise

Hanging the large show at the forum gave me a sense of completion. Suddenly I was free to explore in new directions. As I mentioned in the previous post, Santa Clara Valley Watercolor Society will present a workshop by a young artist, Derek Gores, from Melbourne, FL. I just love his work and am signing up for the workshop, which we expect to fill very quickly. First I tried a mixed media piece that I posted yesterday.  That was fun and fairly straightforward to complete. Then I went for a small collage. 

My source image was taken by my neighbor during a cruise to Mexico that  he took a couple years ago with his wife, and Jim gave me permission to use it for my art (I am always careful about copyrights).  I painted this piece a while back and was lukewarm about my results. I should paint it again. I was inspired by a beautiful huge piece by Derek Gores. Go here and look at the fourth painting down on the right. There is no direct link to it.

I did a freehand drawing using vine charcoal on the wrapped canvas. Then as directed by his workshop materials, I used a fashion magazine as the source of my papers because they are done on higher quality glossy paper. I am getting Marie Claire at the moment, and I probably would prefer to use Vogue, which may have higher quality paper in it. I was intrigued by the artist's use of paper with pictures, drawings, and text, which adds a whole new dimension. You will notice some chairs on his woman's clothing. Yet, the piece reads so beautifully. He advises to use acrylic gel gloss medium to adhere the paper. 

What a challenge and of course, this is the first time I've attempted this type of collage, so I would expect to get faster. I've already spent about 3 hours just getting to this point and I do not consider any areas complete. I find myself thinking about his recommendation  to use 36" square wrapped canvas in the workshop. Will I want to abandon the workshop before I finish? I am liking the results, though. Stay tuned for Phase II. Oh yes, if you try this at home -- large sheets of plastic on the floor, old clothes and cover ups, and lengthy cleaning sessions when you are done for the moment.

I love the work of friend Belinda Lima, a member of my critique group who sells her art in a Los Gatos gallery. Check out her collage work. She says that they take so many hours, and now I have new respect for what she accomplishes! She is planning to attend the workshop as are some other very accomplished artists.

Edgy

"Redhead"

8" x 10" Mixed Media

Every now and then, I need to take a dive into something different and push myself beyond my comfort zone. The Santa Clara Valley Watercolor Society is sponsoring a collage workshop in August by Derek Gores. I plan to sign up for it and as leader of the society, I can go for half price, the idea being that I get a chance to know more artists in our society. I spent some time looking at this young man's work and I just love his collages and his mixed media work. The collages are done entirely of paper, no painting. The mixed media looks like there is gesso involved and line work, and very little color.

So yesterday I bought myself some very heavy gesso and covered over a failed painting on 300 lb. Arches paper. I went back through my life drawings and found some I had done of a favorite model, Christine. She was actually nude in my life drawing, but I preferred a simple dress. After the gesso dried, I painted the background with acrylic paint and liquid gesso. I then did a free-hand drawing on this surface using vine charcoal. It was nice knowing I could paint over the lines if necessary. I stuck with the white, grey, and black palette, with red being the featured color of her hair and lips. I used a dab of blue on Christine's eyes.

Plein Air at the Santa Clara Depot

"Down at the Depot"

South Bay Historical Railroad Society Museum

Santa Clara, CA

14" x 10" Watercolor

Another great day painting in the sunshine. We are having an early spring after a non-rain winter. Our paintsites group gathered in Santa Clara at the transit center. Morning commuter Caltrains thundered in and out, picking up and disgorging passengers traveling to and from San Francisco or the Peninsula. Buses came and went, a construction crew in hardhats worked nearby, and our artists tackled perspective. Leaders Jenny and Sylvia offered a wonderful concise lesson with handouts. I even received a nice plexiglass viewfinder for attending. This painting truly was a perspective challenge.

The train depot turned museum is set in the historic Santa Clara Depot that was built between 1863 and 1877. Beside it are modern commuter style ticket kiosks and passenger platforms. See the real deal here.

My title obscurely references a very humorous story from a classic "Bert and I" CD with tales of Maine. One of the locals won a trip to NYC, and when he returned the mayor asked him what he thought of the city. He answered, "There was so much goin' on at the depot that I never got to see the village" in a Classic Down East accent.

"Art and Place" Show at the Forum Gallery

Vermont art

California art

On Wed. we hung the show at the Forum, a beautiful senior community of about 400 people at Rancho San Antonio Park.  The Forum is one of the finest in the Bay area and at the reception I met architects, doctors, the woman who started the docent program at Filoli, Stanford University professors, and  research scientists. Many people formerly lived in nearby Palo Alto and other areas of Silicon Valley and helped shape the technology industry.

The hanging was a challenge for the gallery manager and her crew. Judie had to order more hooks and complete the hanging with her maintenance crew. I was so pleased with the beautiful job they did. Yesterday Bob and I arrived a bit early and posted the art cards beside the paintings. I find that people linger to read the cards and view the paintings, a suggestion by the manager of University Arts who also is a prolific artist.  One woman told me how much she enjoyed my writing, which pleased me because I love to write. Here is an example of an art card.  The number is cross-referenced to my spreadsheet that includes pricing.

“Winter in the Garden" #33

North Danville, Vermont

14" x 11" Watercolor

In summer the stylish scarecrow protected the prolific plants

from hungry birds. The crops have been harvested and eaten, 

canned, or frozen. The garden was put to bed a few months 

ago. Ms. Scarecrow continues her cheerful watch in the 

Northeast Kingdom of Vermont on a subzero day.

Mary Paquet calpaquet@aol.com

http://mary-artadventures.blogspot.com/ 408-629-7325

Judie displayed my artist statement and show description and I brought a dozen extra copies of each, which soon ran out. I shall send her additional. My business cards are available, too. I forgot my camera so used a cell phone, which affected the quality of the photos.

I selected the theme "Art and Place" because my inspiration comes through my personal experiences and  travels, both local and worldwide.  I featured the landscape, architecture, and people of California (my current home), Vermont (where I grew up), and the world. I had people tell me how much they enjoyed the Vermont paintings as many here came from the East. The snow scenes were especially popular. 

The reception was top drawer and well attended. The room had large round tables with linens, a bounteous buffet of appetizers, and a bartender serving a selection of wine, champagne, and non-alcoholic drinks. I was asked to speak, along with Helga, a resident who displayed her beautifully knit crafts in cabinets. The head of the welcoming committee introduced people who recently moved to the Forum.

We then joined Helga, our friend Libby (who asked me to do this show), and Judie for dinner in the restaurant.  Everyone dresses up for dinner and I felt like I was in a fine resort. Off to one side people were enjoying live music. Helga invited us to see her home with a breathtaking view of the mountains and park from high on a ridge. 

Plein Air at Campbell Heritage Theater

"Floating Glass" 

7" x 10" Watercolor

Campbell Heritage Theater

10" x 14" Watercolor

The Real Deal

Today's Santa Clara Valley Watercolor Society plein air group met in Campbell, a distinct small town surrounded by San Jose's 179.8 square miles and 17 miles from my home. Campbell has a very charming downtown and on the West side is their Community Center with the Campbell Heritage Theater, formerly a high school auditorium.

I had just two hours to paint. I was intrigued by the glass balls lit from below in the reflecting pools, which had a Dale Chihuly look to them, colorful stationary balls that look like they are floating. I found I couldn't rush the painting as each section needed to dry so the paint wouldn't bleed. Thus I began a second larger piece of part of the beautiful 1930s theater. I almost finished each piece before leaving the site. Tonight my South Side Art Club had to cancel Thursday night painting session, so I went up to my studio and put the finishing touches on the two pieces.

"Floating Glass" is whimsical and probably doesn't make much sense as a standalone piece. I felt the ball needed the contrasting purple to stand out, so that is what became of the grey cement. Though "California Heritage Theater looks more golden than the building in the photo, it's pretty close to how it appeared in the sunshine. I don't know why the photo looks so pure white, not being much of a photographer. There was a little artistic license applied to remove a wing and another building and somewhat relocate the cypress trees to enhance my design.

In a few days I will write about my show at The Forum and the reception.

Yes, But Is It Art?

Monday drawing "Wood Plane"

16" x 20" Pastel

In Process

The still life

Those of you who have followed this blog for quite some time know that I go to a drawing class every Monday morning. Robert Semans is a much honored artist, having won the People's Choice Award from the Portrait Society of America and painted the official governor's portrait for the state of California. I keep pinching myself that I can actually learn to draw from such a fine artist. Bob believes in drawing from life, so we work from still life setups. Those of us who have attended multiple years use pastels with our drawings. 

This week Bob, an enthusiastic woodworker,  set up a still life with blocks of wood, a plane, a box, and some gloves. Because we have less than 3 hours to work on the piece, I chose to eliminate the box and gloves, probably the most interesting parts of the still life. However, I had all I could do to accurately render the wood and plane. You can see I am about half done with the pastel phase. Note that parts of the plane remain drawn in vine charcoal. We all found the perspective issues for the various shapes very demanding. We called for critique about 20 minutes before the end of class.

At least six of us had worked on this still life. Bob actually expressed amazement at how well we had all done. That's not to say he didn't point out some things we could improve, but he told us our work was far better than some  he had seen in a recent competition. I firmly believe that good drawing skills are the foundation of art, so I spend time working on developing them. 

Final Painting for My Solo Show

"Tulare Hills at Sunrise"

14" x 21" Watercolor

San Jose, CA

I had one last image in my head for my solo show at the Forum. My 49th framed work presented itself a few weeks ago on my way home from the gym. The sun was rising behind the Tulare Hills that cross the Santa Clara Valley just southeast of my house and continue west into the Santa Teresa Foothills of the Santa Cruz Mountains. The gap on the right is where Santa Teresa Boulevard climbs 6 percent (from my bike computer) and drops back into the valley headed towards Morgan Hill. We live in the last development before the hills and open fields in San Jose. The city line is about three miles south of us.

I like the fact that though I live with a million other people in one of the nation's largest cities, I have a sense of rural California. From my front windows I see Tulare Hills and Santa Teresa County Park to my right. At the base of the park is a large golf course. A lot of electricity is required for a million people, so huge power towers march along the hills to the top of Coyote Peak in the park and beyond. Watching men working from helicopters on those power lines is quite a sight.

I created this painting with my South Side Art Club that meets every Thursday evening. The hills are very dry in the summer and green in winter, except this winter when we have had almost no rain. I like the simplicity of the piece.