The Challenge

The Artist Daily website has been an encouraging place to post and share with other artists. I've been participating in the challenges for about the last 9 months and the "sweet deers" who join me at the All Media Photo Challenges have helped me along. This is my most recent work to share. It's a little different than usual, in that I used my own photo rather than the one posted in the challenge. 18x24 pastel on prepared hardboard.

The Trade

So I suppose if I profess to being an artist in 2011, I must have a blog, and post my profound (snicker, snicker) musings, as well as my successes and, occasional stumbles. So....here goes. I'll just comment about today and work backwards and forward from time to time. Stay with me, please. I'll try not to ramble too much.

This is a photo of my friend, Andre von Olszewski's 16x20 acrylic painting. I saw it and fell in love with the colors and composition. I'm a big Kandinsky fan, and it seems to have that beautiful Kandinsky-like rhythm. I told him I'd make a trade. He brought me the painting and after he'd left, I realized he hadn't signed it, so I said, "I won't frame it until you sign it and I give you something in return." Knowing he loved his dear greyhound, I asked him to send pics so I could work on some sketches.....many months later..... 

I finally came up with this 18x24 pastel from a picture he had posted on facebook. Ron Green#1. I'm pleased, and he seems to like it, so we'll make the swap this weekend.

I thought the picture expressed his pup's personality, and was an interesting and fun image, unlike the usual head shot, or the regal but leggy pose of the typical greyhound. The foreshortening was a little challenging, but I think I pulled it off. The complimentary colors seem to work, too. In the photo, his left front paw rests under his chin but it didn't work in the painting. My friend and professional artist, Joyce Cambron said, "just get rid of it." So I followed her expert advice and it turned out much better.

This is a fairly new medium for me. I usually work a lot with postcard size watercolors and I'll make an attempt at a larger oil (16 x 20) from time to time, but this may be a regular standard for a little while to see what I can come up with.