Painting with the lens

Playing with my camera and painting with it's lens.  

This lovely poppy grows at the edge of the garden steps. It was "thinking" about blooming the afternoon before, just bits of orange beginning to show through the tight green bud. We woke to this gorgeous bloom. What a cheerful view on a gray morning. 


Playing with photo editing just because. Sure wish I knew what I was doing. :)

This is a easy-peasy edit, which has given me an idea for an abstract painting. 



Sharing with Paint Party Friday

Abstract disaster!

Well, maybe not totally a disaster, but it's close. I need advice... and who better to give me art advice than the Paint Party Friday artists!  

It seemed such a good idea! The abstract is based on this photo from a hike my husband and I took two years ago while camping at Ft Ebey on Whidbey Island, Washington. I love that park! Lot's of cool trails AND ocean beach. 

And this is the disaster: 

I started by texturing the 8x8 inch canvas with molding paste, painted a light green background and started applying paint with a natural sponge. It was looking kind of okay, and then I decided it needed more "light", so I added some back in buff paint with a bit additional green color...  which messed it up. And there she stands. Blah! Lost my urge to finish this little disaster.

Ah well, I may just paint over with gesso and start again. My inclination (now) is to lay the basic color lines down and then use the natural sponge to replicate the leafy look. One should sometimes think things out before one begins. But that would take some of the adventure out, don't you think?  :)

If anyone has advice on how to save my abstract disaster without painting over it entirely, I'd be delighted (and grateful) to hear it. 

For art that actually worked this week, I suggest visiting the Paint Party Friday artists!  

HuMp DaY Haiku - News!

Autumn Mountain
Helen Campbell ©2012 

Now the rush is on!

How much art can I create

by mid-November?

I wanted to share a little bit of news (BIG to me!) I was chosen to display (to sell) my art at the Allied Arts Holiday Arts Festival. I am so excited!  I will be focusing my attention on creating pieces for the show for the time being... after I return from an art conference in Portland.

As you read this, I'm driving to Portland for the ArtforAll 2012 Conference. I've been very active in planning the event, and will also be teaching two classes during the weekend. I'll have fun stories for you, I'm sure, when I return on June 18. 

In the meantime, have a wonderful week! 

I started doing Hump Day Haiku with Carla Sonheim's Silly classes...  and decided as a challenge for myself, I'd continue.  In this process, I have found that creating a haiku (non rhyming poem with 5 - 7 - 5 syllables per line) feeds my soul. I especially like creating them to go with my photos and art. 

Would you like to share a haiku you have written? 

You may include a haiku in the comments, OR you may copy your blog post url (featuring a haiku) and add a link to your blog using Mr. Linky. And consider visiting other contributors blogs to see what they've created and say hello. 

Spring Trees

Last week my husband and I took a drive up the mountain (toward Mt Baker) on a hunt for morel mushrooms. (we found some) The early spring trees along the way were just budding out, and the light green against the fairly bare looking branches was stunning.

I've been playing with ideas to transfer my impression onto a canvas. This is what I've finished thus far. The colors are slightly off in my photos, but you get the idea.

I painted blue acrylic over gesso textured background, sanded a bit, then added the forest floor and trees. 

For this attempt, I sanded after adding all the paint. It's still not what I see in my mind, but I'll keep working on it. It's helping me to play on "paper" before I start a real live canvas. 

Today I'm joining Paint Party Friday, hosted by Eva and Kristin. For wonderful inspiration, check out what the other Paint Party Friday artists have created this week! 

Paint Party Friday - working on it

I so look forward to Paint Party Friday each week, and visiting as many fellow artists as I can to see what they've been up to the past week. Thanks to Eva and Kristin for hosting! 


First a couple of announcements:
I've started a Facebook Page for Natures Walk Studio, and I'd love you to check it out. 
 I've also just started selling a selection of my photography at Fine Art America. I'll be adding more to both galleries as the weekend progresses. 

Now on to the Party! This week I worked on the 5x5 abstract landscape, trying several layouts for the final texture. 

After painting a bit more, I spent some time sorting buttons to find some that would work best... 

This photo shows the tree, some threads, dyed lacy ribbon attached, and some buttons laid on to decide if they will work. I'm still not sure about the buttons.  It's such a small canvas it was hard to find small buttons in the right colors. 

At this point I'm going to add more threads... and perhaps these buttons. And it may need something else in the bottom right corner... hmmm. )

 More to come... 

Check out what the other Paint Party Friday artists are working on here. 

Paint Party Friday - Abstract Flowers

Yay for Paint Party Friday, hosted by Eva and Kristin!

One of the things I worked on this week is a tutorial from Carla Sonheim that I've been meaning to try... Abstract Flowers. 

I started by painting blobs of color on my watercolor paper (140# cold press watercolor paper). After it dried, I circled the flowers with white gesso, immediately scratching marks with the point of the brush handle. 

This is not the best photo, but you get the idea. 

After the gesso is dry, you loosely circle the flowers with pencil... you can check the rest of the steps on Carla's tutorial. 

This is my finished piece. I made a few mistakes, but not too bad for the first try. tee hee! 

I had so much fun playing with this that I've started working on more abstract flowers, including one in my journal. And not to worry, I've worked on my WIP canvases also, I just haven't completed quite yet. Perhaps by next week. :)

Be sure to see what the other Paint Party Friday artists are working on here.  

Also linking to Artists In Blogland