30x30 Day 3: back to Yupo

abstracted figure painting acrylic on yupo

Last month, I really enjoyed virtually walking the streets of Bratislava, the location of December 2012 Virtual Paintout. I took quite a few reference screenshots, and one of them was one of some tourists pointing their cameras back at the Google Earth vehicle taking pictures of them. This painting was based on that screenshot.

In the spirit of being creative and adventurous and all, I tried a new resist technique on the figures: contact shelf liner. The process is actually remarkably close to what I used to do when airbrushing architectural presentations in Ukraine. You cover the whole surface with the liner, draw the design on the liner, and then cut out your shapes with an X-acto knife. Leave the liner on the shapes you want to stay protected, take it off everywhere else. In this case, I left the liner on the figures for the first wash.

30x30 Day 2 - care for some acrylics?

green pear acrylic painting On Day 2, I was obviously still feeling adventurous :). As a matter of fact, I think I will be adventurous the whole first week! I gave acrylics another chance yesterday, and it didn't turn out as horrible as my last attempt. This time, one of my main objectives was to not overmix the paint once I put it down on the board. It...kind of worked..sometimes. The pear itself has at least two layers of paint on it :).

At this point, painting in heavy body acrylics feels a bit laborious, definitely requiring more effort than watercolor. I know that it's not because acrylics are hard but because I don't have much experience with them. I never took a class or had somebody show me how to do it, so it's just part of figuring it out.

I also finally got to use my new  Masterson Super Pro Palette. It definitely makes a difference - the paint stays wet. I don't think I will ever use styrofoam plates for that purpose again :). This is what the palette looks like:

 

Masterson Super Pro Palette

 

The basic idea is a wet sponge on the bottom and special moisture-conducting paper on top. You put your paint on the paper and it stays wet because of this constant supply of moisture. The palette also comes with a lid which can be used as a watercolor palette. I kind of wish it was just a lid, maybe it would make the whole thing a bit lighter. It is pretty heavy for a plastic palette.

Anyway, I intend to do some more acrylic painting in the next 28 days. Maybe I'll try to keep it really smooth next time, or vice versa, use a painting knife. Any tips, comments, suggestions?

30x30 Day 1!

watercolor collage Welcome to my 30 Paintings in 30 Days! I stayed up late last night working on this and I'm happy to be on track (I know, I know, there are 29 more days to go, but I've always had issues with deadlines, so I'm proud of myself for starting the New Year on time!). I considered several themes for this 30x30 project but in the end, decided to just go with whatever I feel like doing that day. Last night, I felt like making a collage. I have been collecting failed paintings and scraps just for that purpose for a while :). Collage as a form of art is a new medium to me, so I am very much open to critique, comments and suggestions. It doesn't currently have a title either, so feel free to comment on that as well!

 

My best 12 of 2012

January...was actually something of a recuperation period for me, after all the rush and burnout of Christmas-time commissions and sales. No masterpieces that month. February turned out a little better. In addition to working on more commissions and teaching, I got to play with my paints and went to see a great watercolor show in Fallbrook. My husband, meanwhile, was working on this very website! He really deserves a lot of credit for my success as an artist. Thank you dear :)

watercolor painting on Aquabord orange quarters

 

March was pretty productive...especially taking into consideration my very much pregnant state at that point!

custom child portrait from photo

 

In April, I had my baby girl! Hands down, my best piece yet :)

newborn baby girl

 

May was a bit short on the painting and sleeping side and very generous on the feeding/changing/being overwhelmed side. I did start a full sheet painting of a girl with a sea shell that is still in progress. The ambition!

watercolor sketch of a baby face

 

June brought me a workshop at the Burning House Art Studio (which was fun!) and a "featured artist" pat on the back from Blick.

sunflowers watercolor painting

 

July. Teaching and commissions. One of them was this:

rainy street couple under umbrella watercolor painting

 

August was busy. More commissions, more classes, and getting ready for the solo show in September! The painting below was actually a class demo:

red sunflower original painting for sale

 

The big event in September was FACES, my solo portrait show. A lot of work (especially by my above-mentioned husband, who made almost all the frames from scratch).  Once the show opened, I was able to relax a bit and eventually, paint a few pieces :)

sunset sky watercolor painting for sale

 

In October, I participated in the one and only outdoor event this year, our local Silver Lakes Arts&Crafts fair. I also managed to do a Virtual Paintout painting, among several other small pieces.

european town street painting

 

In November, I had the super-awesome Gratitude Giveaway (most of which happened on my Facebook fan page). It felt good giving back to the people who keep giving me their support and encouragement! I also got quite a few 6x6" paintings done for the 20x20 Small Works show at the Eclipse. I am picking up what's left of them today and will be listing them for sale soon.

fishing at the pier ocean sea watercolor painting

 

And December! There has been a lot of packing and shipping, which is good, but also makes me really want an intern for these less than glamorous tasks. Anyone want to be my intern? ;)

child portrait painting

So there you go..."12 best of 12" :) Not a bad year at all. May 2013 be even better! Happy New Year!

30 Paintings in 30 Days! Are you ready?

I've been contemplating another painting project the whole past year - something along the lines of a painting a day/week, a month of landscapes, or 25 abstracts. My main stumbling stone is the tragic unreliability of daily painting time. My kids seem to be in some kind of arrangement, where one of them can only nap while the other one is awake. And painting with kids around...well, let's just say I've tried it and it doesn't work for me. Still, when I found out about Leslie Saeta's upcoming "30 Paintings in 30 Days" challenge, I decided that it's a perfect opportunity for me to give daily painting another try. I don't know if it's going to work but I'm excited to get started! Official kick-off is January 2. I am looking for a theme or two to work on, and I might switch media (probably acrylics), at least for some of the paintings. If you have an awesome idea for a theme, please voice it in the comments! And all are invited, so please consider joining the challenge yourself!

 

misty lake with pine trees watercolor for sale

Happy Holidays!

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mountains watercolor on yupo Whatever winter holidays you celebrate, I wish you happy and merry ones! It has been a good year for me, both personally and professionally. Thank you for your interest, support, and encouragement! They mean a lot to me. As a small gift, please treat yourself to a desktop wallpaper with the image above. It's the new version of an older painting of San Bernardino mountains. To download the wallpaper, click on the image, then right-click and choose "Save Image as" or "Set as desktop background" (or something along those lines, according to your operating system). Enjoy!

Small Works Show at Eclipse Gallery

paintings on a gallery wall Last Saturday was the opening reception for "20x20", a small works show at the Eclipse Art Gallery. The show features several High Desert artists, each with 20 works no larger than 8x8". As you can see from the photo, my 20 pieces represent several attempts to work in a series. The big idea was to have all 20 with an ocean/sea/water/beach theme but it didn't quite happen (insert a rant about how impossible it is to find the time to paint with two small kids). I ended up recycling some older paintings and adding some of my Virtual Paintout pieces.

To keep the format the same, I used 6x6" Aquabords, either painting directly on them (the Virtual Paintout street scenes) or mounting completed paintings on watercolor paper or Yupo onto the boards. The mounting part is new to me, though I have been wanting to try it for a while. It was easy, I like it, and I will definitely do more!

Two of the paintings ("Fishing at the Pier" and "Roskilde") sold at the reception. The show will run through the end of the month so I'm hoping for a few more sales. I kept the price a bit lower than usual to fit in with the whole gift-shopping idea of the show. After the show closes, these little beauties will be available through DailyPaintworks and, of course, my website.

fishermen watercolor painting

ocean beach watercolor paintings series

On a slightly different note, my Grand Gratitude Giveaway Week was fun. I got to try a few things in terms of marketing (mostly through Facebook, as it was a Facebook-focused event). Participation was great, especially towards the end of the week. People won cards, prints, a calendar with my art, an ACEO (tiny original painting), a portrait study, and an original painting. Did I have a ton of sales? No, but 1) I wasn't counting on them, and 2) It was just nice to give stuff away to people with genuine interest in my work. Many of the winners have supported, motivated, and inspired me for years, and I was happy to give something back. I will most definitely do something like that next year :)

desk calendar with watercolor paintings

DPW Hurricane Sandy Fundraiser

Did you know that I am participating in the Daily Paintworks Hurricane Sandy Fundraiser? Out of the two paintings I donated, one is still available (with the auction ending in several hours): architecture canadian city scene painting

- and the other one sold to a new collector in Massachusetts:

bleecker street new york manhattan art painting

This is an awesome way to buy artwork and contribute to a good cause (all proceeds are donated to Hurricane Sandy relief efforts, in my case I donated to American Red Cross). Sometimes, I even get fancy and gift-wrap paintings that I ship to their new homes:

gift wrapped painting

Also, if you are an artist, consider participating in the fundraiser yourself! There is no cost to enter and shipping is paid by the buyer.

Welcome to Gratitude Giveaway!

Thanksgiving is just a week away (yep, I know it might be a surprise for some of you..it was for me)! I love this holiday, and not even for the food. I love the idea that at the very least once a year, you get to pause and take inventory of all the things you are, or should be, thankful for. It doesn't even matter who you are thanking, it's more in the experience of gratitude itself. gratitude giveaway artist blog

This year, I am celebrating the whole week before Thanksgiving and I would love for you to join me! I am grateful for your interest, support, and encouragement without which it would be a whole lot harder for me to keep painting. With Thanks, I will be Giving something away every day - from greeting cards to an original painting. Daily giveaways will be happening on my Facebook page with a final drawing for an original painting on November 21. Daily giveaway rules will be announced on Facebook. To be eligible to win the original painting, you can do one or more of these things (each counts as one entry):

  • "Like" my Facebook page
  • Sign up for my newsletter
  • Sign up for blog updates (see box on the top right)
  • Comment on any of my blog posts...as long as it's relevant
  • Comment on this blog post telling me about a thing or two you are thankful for this year
  • Share my website with your friend on any social network (just make sure you let me know about it)
  • Tweet about me (giveaway, website, art) and mention @YevgeniaWatts
  • Mention me on Google+
  • Participate in one or more Facebook daily giveaways

Like I said, all of these are ways to enter more than once, so if you, say, sign up for the newsletter and the blog updates, you entered your name twice!

Ready...Set...GO!