Cutting a Mat for Painting of Allan

I’m getting a couple more pieces ready to enter into another show, and one of them I needed to place behind a mat. This is the gouache painting I finished a few months back, “Allan at the Boat Dock.”

I originally was thinking of a lighter shade for the mat, but this was the best color the store had that I liked, and I think it looks okay. I used a Logan Mat Cutting Kit model 525 to cut it, and it’s not the best model they sell, but works fine once you get the hang of it. This painting is 20 x 16″, and that’s about as large an opening it will cut.

I still need to attach it and the painting to a backing sheet of mat board. I’ve got a frame picked out that’s dark brown, or I may go with black. I’ll wait until I hear if it gets accepted before I decide.

“Park Serenade” Drawing Framed for Show

I received word that my new drawing was accepted for the local art show, so I picked up a frame that I think works well with it. I’m giving it the title of “Park Serenade.” All I need to do now is string a wire on the back, and it’ll be ready to drop off next Monday morning.

The exhibit will be at the Artspace gallery in Round Rock, TX with the opening event on February 2nd and closing on Feb.26th. Stop by if you will be in the neighborhood.

Drawing Final: Guitar in the Park

This is the final state of the drawing, not accounting for some minor clean up I still need to do. I darkened the bushes behind his leg some, too, so it would be easier to see the leg. I’ll let it sit for a few days to see if there’s more to be done.

Williams Tower Art Opening in Houston

Had a very nice time at the art opening in Houston at the Williams Tower. The exhibit will be there in the main lobby until March 3rd.

Several people sought me out to tell me how much they enjoyed my painting, which made me feel very humbled, and I even met two separate people who owned paintings of mine, which was a pleasant surprise.

Drawing Update 3: Guitar in the Park

Here’s the latest state of the drawing. I’ve gotten more of the figures drawn in and started on the back wall. I very loosely scribbled in some lines on the back wall to get a random texture, and now I’m scratching away more regular lines.

Painting in Celebrate Texas Art Show in Houston

I recently received a flyer for the opening of the art show in Houston where I sent my painting. This is for the “Celebrate Texas Art 2017” show sponsored by the non-profit, Assistance League of Houston at the Williams Tower Gallery, 2800 Post Oak Boulevard (“The Galleria” area.) The hours are 8AM-6PM Monday-Friday, and the opening event will be this Wednesday at 6PM. The show closes March 3rd. Please stop by if you’ll be in the Houston area around that time.
(Parking note: visitor parking for the tower is accessed on Waterwall Dr. To get to it, drive south on Post Oak, right on Hildalgo, right on Waterwall.)

Drawing Update 2: Guitar in the Park

Slowly plodding along on the drawing. This is the first time I’ve worked with Claybord in this manner. Before, I would cover an area in ink, and scrape away to the white. Here I’m using it more like a regular drawing, and it’s working, but very slowly.

One effect I’m noticing is that because its a non-absorbent surface, when the wet lines of ink intersect the ink will flow across the area, sort of like the way watercolor stains. This causes the lines to get lighter in some places as the ink puddles. I then have to draw back over the area again, slowing things down. Also, I was hoping the undertone staining I had done with thin oil paint would not scratch away so easily. That’s forcing me to go back and forth with drawing, scratching, and then reapplying the tone. This new tone of oil color is thinned with mineral spirits so it won’t disturb the ink.

I’m not sure I’ll get this finished in time for entry into the art show I was planning to apply for at the end of the month, but I’ll keep at it anyway.

Drawing Update: Guitar in the Park

I’ve got the background bushes drawn in. That bottle is about 1/3 full. I hope I don’t run out before I finish, since Hunt doesn’t make that Osmiroid ink any more. I may be able to mix some other ink colors I have, if necessary.

New Drawing Started: Guitar in the Park

I came across a new call for art from a local show that was having a theme of anything monochromatic, art with a value range of just one color. I have several finished drawings to pick from, but also thought I might try something new using paint. That’s how this picture got started.

Unfortunately, I didn’t like how it was turning out, so I wiped it all off to start over. That gave the surface (Ampersand Claybord) a nice sort of beige undertone. I chose the Claybord so I will be able to scratch down to the white if I want. I redrew the outlines in charcoal, and decided I would make it as a drawing using colored ink. I settled on my old bottle of Osmiroid, which is a reddish sepia color. I started roughing in some wash tones, and found if I mixed in a little of my casein medium it was a bit easier to control the layering. I’m still a little unsure how well this is going to go, but I guess we’ll find out soon enough. The size is 18 x 24 inches.