An Apple A Day. Or Three? More from January challenge

3 Gala Apples brought me back to 1985. I was determined to be able to draw well and Walter Prochonik guided me in an independent graduate study at University of Buffalo. He set me to draw apples and I discovered the nuances of various kinds, the importance of light and shadow and it gave me a bit of daring to be creative.  Two full sketchbooks and I learned to see. I learned that seeing is step one in drawing, and persistence is right up there, too. 

I ate two of them and needed a new model. I put it outside my light box and used a stronger light here. Although it is accurate, I consider this a fairly boring painting, it doesn’t say much to me. I do like the composition and the way the shapes are balanced.

Carly Mueller noted in Facebook that Gala apples are better for painting than eating. She inspired me to be more painterly with the same Apple as yesterday. I put the brushes away and used a knife.

'Carly's Apple' by itself, painted with a palette knife.

A Gala a Day, 11x15 oil on Arches Huile 

The Third Apple, 9x12 oil on Arches Huile

Carly’s Apple, 11x5 oil on Arches Huile

Eggsactly.

Having painted whole eggshells, it was time to crack a farm fresh one and see what I could do. My table is tilted and I was sitting closer and taller than the photo. Finished, I thought the yellow bowl looked tilted but that’s the way it looked. Good thing I began with the yolks, as the day progressed they settled and slumped and their reflections changed. I had picked the biggest egg in the carton and it had two yolk, twins!

I’ve painted these three times so far and I am ready to move them out of the studio. They have dried and faded and are much lighter in weight now. The big one is from a goose.

Really Big Eggs Are Twins 8x10 oil on canvas board

The Blue Egg  9x12 oil on canvas

Limited palette colors

A calm winter day and an opportunity to paint with Jacq Baldini in Niagara Falls Ontario was a welcome Plein air day. 

This is the barge that came loose 100 years ago which triggered a frantic rescue to the two men on board. They didn’t need to hurry as it still hasn’t gone over the Falls. 

My palette shows the small selection of colors I needed on this winter day. 

The next two paintings in January challenge

I had a lovely holiday centerpiece that had seen better days but some of the flowers were still lively. I pulled them out and scampered in the yard cutting fresh greens for this one. It’s on black canvas, 12x9 "White and Red Mums"

This is small only 5 x7 but I used a palette knife instead of brushes. The paint is thick and wet, it will be a long time before it dries. "Sweet Onion, Sweet Pepper". I should use the painting knives more often. 

The third week, Stradaeasel challenge

"Eggplant Reflections" 9x12

After some success last week I have foolishly tried another larger composition. The little ones were going well, but, big picture equals more work and time. I do like this but it took me all day. I’m astounded how the dark eggplant skin absorbs and reflects colors.

1/14..  "Goose and Blue I needed a little break and worked small, very small with the trio of assorted eggs I have in the studio. It’s only 2”x2”.

1/15.  "My Peaches" 12x9 oil. Painted them, opened the jar, and served peach shortcake. Creating the glass jar was a lesson in careful observation.

1/16. Halfway through the challenge. "Oh. The Garlic is in the Studio" 3x3. It would have been a whole garlic bulb but one of the cooks here required a clove. 

Strada Easel challenge continues

Packing up Christmas, a few items caught my eye. Whether it was nostalgia or an interesting shape, I set a few things aside and left the last storage box open a little longer. 'Big Man at Christmas' is a push puppet, you press the bottom and Santa collapses and it is a favorite of all ages.
The Elf on the shelf figure is plastic, he has a box that can be filled with a few pieces of candy. Doesn’t every home deserve a mischievous elf?
Ideal Shoe is very old, and I’m not sure who wore it. It's soft leather and a high top so I’m guessing it’s a mid century baby. We have a collection of baby shoes that hang on our tree. Tiny, they join the other ornaments in proclaiming memories.

1/4 "Big Man at Christmas" 7x5 acrylic

1/5. "Packing A Surprise". 7x5 acrylic

1/6.  "Stick Your Tongue Out" 5x7 acrylic

These are mid century or earlier baby shoes, high tops made with soft soles and leather. We have several baby shoes with our ornaments and they are welcome memories on our tree every December.

Interviewed and published, Creative Mornings Buf

Creative Mornings is an international movement to bring speakers and ideas to audiences in hundreds of locations around the world. I have been attending Buffalo's monthly presentations for two years, meeting new people, finding organizations and groups that make our city a better place and being inspired by volunteers and selfless citizens.

I was interviewed as the person of the month on the subject of chaos. The whole interview is on their website but here is an excerpt on how I deal with chaos that was published on Instagram by CMBuf. 

The second week of the challenge

Suddenly, the challenge got difficult. I am searching for a subject daily as it requires observation and painting from life. I had these eggs in the studio from a failed painting that seemed like a good idea. It was time to give them another chance and I chose 5x7 watercolor paper and acrylic paint. Better than my first attempt last month, but these eggs are not leaving my studio until I’ve captured them to my own satisfaction.

A trip to the market and I now have models to look at and choose from. I carried several vegetables up on a napkin and dropped them on the table. A little fussing and I thought I had a good composition but it turned out to be quite ambitious for the time I had left to paint. I may go back to this when the challenge is finished as I see there needs to be more unity between the background and foreground. 

"Vegetables". 12x12 oil

1/9.   I love this! Suddenly my brushes are doing what I expect!

"This Painting Smells Like Strawberries" 9x12 oil

1/10.  "Mailbox is A Distraction" 7x5 watercolor and ink

On this day I worked in the gallery so I drew the view out the window. I’d like to see that mailbox get straightened but it is attached to a crooked concrete slab. I was stunned by the number of signs at the Pearl/Linwood/North intersections in Buffalo. There were more street signs than I included here.

The strada easel January challenge

The Strada Easel company sponsors a challenge to paint from life every day in January, if an artist posts a new picture daily, they become eligible for a new easel. Is there an artist anywhere that isn't intrigued by the prospect of new equipment?

Because I bake and party and decorate and host and travel during the end of the year, I purposefully stop painting for 5-6 weeks. I still sketch and draw but the paints are packed. Getting back to painting is easy because I've been thinking about new projects. To get back in 'shape' I decided to try the challenge. Years ago I did a painting a day for a month and it was rigorous and time consuming but well worth it. My skills went up a notch and so did confidence. That's my goal this month.

1/1/2019 Two handed Balance 4x4

1/2/2019 Too Small 5x7

1/3/2019 Defying Gravity 8x6

Grand Island library exhibits Niagara Falls paintings

 Sometimes it is serendipity to be in the right place at the right time. I was asked to fill the display walls at the public library in Grand Island and decided to show Niagara Falls on every panel. 16 different paintings of the magnificent Niagara hung there for the month of December. 

Another Art Award!!!!

The December through January 'Artists and Friends' exhibition at the Niagara Arts and Cultural Center is always a friendly and fun reception.

It is an open juried event and I have been blessed again with an award. I entered 4 paintings, all were chosen for the show and remain in the gallery until the end of January. When an artist enters an exhibit there is glory in having work selected for display but sheer elation when one of their paintings wins an award. 

The painting that won, 'Winter Shadows' was a last minute choice as I had already shown it at Buffalo Arts Studio but put it in because my Niagara Falls friends probably had not seen it. The Buffalo Art Association judge, George Grace, had given it a Merit award there. It is rare that I show a painting twice.

I figured if one of my pictures would be selected for a prize at the NACC (hoping, hoping!) it would be the new Niagara painting I had entered. What do I know? Every judge is different and a painting rejected in one place can win Best in Show in another place. 

I painted it last winter from my dining room window and would like to make another from the studio window. Alas, no snow and no shadows. Maybe next week.

Winter Shadows, 11x14 oil on board, c.2018

Serious bidding at 20th Century Club

The exquisite 20th Century Club is a Buffalo jewel. I have painted their gardens and been to events but this time was special. The Artist's Group Gallery annual October fundraiser there utilized three rooms as well as numerous sitting areas for the bidders. The art display room was very well lit, the cocktails area was elegant and the dinner was wonderful.

This photo shows one of the silent bidding tables which were busy all evening. I donated a small pastel, 'Complementary Niagara', a view of the Horseshoe Falls. Last I looked, there was a long line of bids placed and I am not sure who took it home.

A lovely evening!

Explaining where I live

The American Falls and Bridal Veil

The Horseshoe Falls

Well, yes, this is Niagara Falls and that IS A LOT OF WATER! Lake Erie ends in Buffalo and the neck of water named the Niagara River is technically not a river. It isn't long enough at 35 miles and just connects two lakes, it also is the natural boundary between the USA and Canada. It ends at Lake Ontario. 

Many areas of this river are nearly a mile wide. After Buffalo, and before the famous Falls attraction, an island is formed where the river splits. At that point it is usually called East River and West River and I live there along with about 20,000 others, in Grand Island. The Niagara Thruway bridges are our only access roads and the first was built in 1939. Before that, it was mostly a summer residence and party place, students who lived year here round took a ferry to the mainland for school...unless it was frozen over. 

The larger island here is Grand Island and the smaller, uninhabited one is Navy Island. Navy was once considered as a location for the United Nations and belongs to Canada. My home is at about 8 o'clock in the picture, near the speck of island to the left of the bridge. There are two state parks here, one at each end and much greenspace as the residents mostly live along the water. The waterfalls are two miles downriver, out of the picture. This is a view looking south toward Buffalo, you can see the expanse of Lake Erie at the top. Needless to say, the fury of the river make it a poor choice for swimming.

Thank you to James Cavanaugh for permission to use this unique Grand Island photo, we usually see if from the southern view. More of his dramatic aerial photos are at http://www.dripbook.com/cavphoto

Merit Award in Buffalo

Last winter was dreary and gray and had little appeal to convince me to paint outdoors. The thing about this area is, if it is winter and the sun is shining then it is really very cold. Those mild temperature days are due to cloud cover holding in heat and there seemed to be an overabundance of sunless afternoons.

Winter Shadows, oil, 12x16

Merit Award for 'Winter Shadows'

Last February, a blazing sun cast deep dark shadows in the backyard woods. Lazily, I set up an easel and paints in the dining room window to capture that view. Not quite true plein air, but painted in the spirit, and I finished it at the window in a long single sitting and I let it be. Prettiest day of winter 2017-2018!

The BNAA fall show is at Buffalo Artist Studios in Trimain and the awards reception was during the Trimain and BAS Fourth Friday event. I am pleased to have been awarded a Merit Award from the juror, George Grace.

Infringement on Allen Street.

What started as an oversized plein aire took two weekends sitting on Allen Street and a lot more time in the studio. It’s a lovely painting but my original idea didn’t resemble this. The details grabbed me by the throat and screamed 'PAINT ME". So, instead of a loose and painterly view in Allentown I have a pretty accurate rendition of the street on a weekend morning. But I like it.

It is now showing at Buffalo Arts Studio in the Buffalo Niagara Art Association juried exhibit, prizes and ribbons will be awarded at Trimain's fourth Friday event.

Infringement on Allen Street, 18x24 oil c. 2018

A bit of Magritte

The artist Magritte played with images, some serious, others were whimsical. My favorites are when he has a painting overlapping a picture, the image behind the canvas is on the canvas. I tried it. 

This is a view and of the lower Niagara River on my easel, painted from Canada overlook by the Whirlpool. I lined up the painting with the view.  It’s harder to photograph than it looks. The painting is the image on this month's calendar page.

This is a sample of painting by Magritte, all of it is paint, including the easel and curtain.

Winning is wonderful, but I forget to share it!

Two years ago I participated in a week long plein air event in Westfield, NY. During that week I stayed with friends and spent most of each day painting, there were several evening events for the artists and a lovely weekend art exhibition.
While there, I discovered the local bakery, Portage Pie where you preorder dessert pies or take a chance they have an extra. I left a fun painting of the Portage Pie shop with my hosts. The next year, the building which had been blue for as long as anyone remembered, was painted brown. Just another example of a plein air artist capturing an image that doesn't last.

Nearby Barcelona Harbor, which is along the nearby seaway trail has an eclectic collection of new and vintage boats including liveaboards on shore and rusting hulks in assorted places. I was attracted to a majestic sailboat in the harbor; while I painted a gentleman sat quietly eating for a long time so he was added to the boat portrait. Later I met him and thanked him for eating his lunch so slowly.
"Lunch?' he said.
"I only had a donut."

At the Riverwalk Exhibit in Tonawanda this summer that painting was selected to win an honorable mention. The announcer prefaced the prize  announcement with "This painting is of my favorite places, Barcelona. We are thrilled to be headed back to Spain next Spring."
Sheepishly I informed her that it was the Barcelona on Lake Erie and we all had a good laugh. So pleased to have had such a successful year with my paintings. I need to keep up with this blog better, the paintout was two years ago and the River Art Gallery sponsored prize awarded two months ago. Old news can still be good news.

2 Masts In Barcelona, 20x16 plein air oil

In progress, a season of sunflowers

Not titled yet!!! c. Kath Schifano

This fun old truck is parked at Sunflowers of Sanborn to add to the collection of curiosities that make a visit here special. The painting is in progress here, wet and on the easel.

The view from my parked car. 'Best parking space view' award.

Inside the field, you are surrounded by the joy of happy visitors and the sunny faces of the plants.

‘Calm’ A pastel at Tifft preserve.

Calm 12x16 pastel Kath Schifano

Beautiful, lush, quiet, peaceful, and natural Tifft Wildlife Preserve is a jewel of a place, formerly a massive and useless brownfield in South Buffalo. It used to be a busy railroad terminal for industry, full of crisscrossing tracks and the junk associated with a zillion old trains. With a great deal of help from  the community and government it is now a large sanctuary open to hikers and interested people. Nature has totally reclaimed this place. A few years ago you could see rust and grain elevators in the distance, as trees grow, that view disappears.

Love to paint here, I think some of my most peaceful moments painting happen here, every painting has a story. Ask me about the turtles. This calm pond sometimes has egrets and herons on the shore, it always has ducks and turtles and fish. Bring the kids, find peace.