Calm Lake

"Calm Lake"

Image size 15" x 22"

Watercolor

I finished this watercolor that I started last month.  I wanted to do a cloud study and this is what I decided to paint.

I also worked on my ceramic mural.  I still haven't cut any clay yet, but I have finished cutting out all of the pattern pieces for the two murals.  I'm having work done in my garage this week and as soon as I get it put back together, I will lay the patterns out on my work tables and start the real work!  I'm excited to start.

Mosaic Mural - small side

Mosaic mural - small side

Image size 27" x 40"

I did the pattern for the smaller side of the mosaic mural this week.  I just noticed that I didn't add any circles for the glass beads, so I need to do that.

Here is a picture of how they will look in my yard.  I took this before I designed the smaller side.

I know this looks pretty rough, but you get the idea.  Once it is installed, I will do plantings that overhang the edges so that it will look more like a pond.

I also spent a lot of time cutting out pattern pieces from the larger side this week.  There are over 400 pieces on that side, not counting the circles.  I have cut about 300 of them.  

I'm keeping track of the time I spend on this project just for fun.  So far, I've spent more that 40 hours on it and I haven't even touched a piece of clay!

It's a slow process, but very meditative.

mosaic mural pattern

Mosaic mural pattern

Image size 4' x 8' approx.

This isn't a finished painting, but it is a finished pattern for a very large project I'm working on and I'm thrilled to be able to finally start on the fun part.

Each of these pieces will be formed from clay, then textured and glazed with colors to create a "Koi Pond" for my backyard.  The background (which isn't colored on this pattern) will be various blues and the circles will be glass beads.  I just colored the fish and lily pads so that I wouldn't get too confused as I'm working on it.  

My next step will be to number all of the pieces and cut patterns for each piece.  This is my master pattern and if this gets destroyed, I will be in a bad place.  

I purchased my glazes and 75 pounds of clay to start.  I am guessing that it will take about 100 pounds or more to finish it.  There is also a small area that will be on the other side of the sidewalk so it (hopefully) looks like the stream flows under the walkway.  I haven't designed that yet.  It is much smaller than this side.  It's probably about 3' x 3.5'.  That will be for another day.

Encaustic Eucalyptus

"Encaustic Eucalyptus"

Image size 18" x 24"

Encaustic

I painted this from a reference photo that I took on an early morning walk close to where I live.  The sun was just peeking over the hill and I love how the sun is hitting the trees in this picture.

Restful Lilypads

"Restful Lilypads"

Image size 12" x 16"

Encaustic

I'm still working with encaustic this week.  I've been working on this one for a while.  Now that I'm seeing it in a photo, I think I will add some reflections to the edges of the lilies.

On The Horizon

"On The Horizon"

Image size 7" x 5"

Encaustic

What is that on the horizon?  Who knows?  It's whatever your imagination thinks it is.  

Hanging Out

"Hanging Out"

image size 15" x 22"

Watercolor

Watercolor is the perfect medium to use for painting Koi.  They are a favorite subject of mine, and I plan to paint more of them in the near future.

Hazy Sunset

"Hazy Sunset"

Image size 9" x 12"

Encaustic

I was experimenting with a wax that is supposed to crack.  I thought that would give the painting a really nice effect.  I could fill the cracks with a different color to really make them a focal point of the painting.  

The first layer of the crack wax gave me two very small cracks.  The instructions said to put a good base layer of other wax before adding the crack wax.  I thought I did that, but maybe it wasn't enough.

So...I added oil paint to fill the small cracks and added more wax, an encaustic burn and finally, another layer of the crack wax.  This time, I got no cracks, but it did give and interesting texture to the surface.

I noticed that this wax melts at a higher temperature than the wax that I usually use, so maybe that had something to do with my results.

It was a fun experiment, but I will probably stick with my usual encaustic supplies.  Of course, I will use the rest of what I have so you will probably see another experiment in the future.  I will call the company and see if I am doing something wrong.

Cool Day

"Cool Day"

Image size 7.5" x 11"

Watercolor

We have been having some hot weather so painting this subject was my way of cooling off this week.

Lapping the Shore

"Lapping the Shore"

Image size 12" x 12"

Encaustic

As much as I love the look and sound of large waves, there is something very soothing about those beach days when there are just little ripples that come to the shoreline with just a hint of white foam.