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Archive for the ‘daily painter’ Category

Abstract Work

Posted in Abstract, daily painter, tagged , , , , , on March 17, 2010| Leave a Comment »

    

Falling Leaves I & II are acrylic on gallery wrap canvas measuring 12″x12″ and are available individually for $175 or the pair for $300.

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Red Pandas and More….

Posted in daily painter, Small Town Life, tagged , , , , on March 12, 2010| Leave a Comment »

More from my trip to the Conservation Research Center….  I saw Red Pandas.  These rare little guys are just beautiful and so sweet looking. 

It would be hard to resist those cute little faces.  They look nothing like the pandas you normally think of at the national zoo.

I saw the Przewalski Horse, the last of the wild horses and on the red list for endangered species.  Much more info on them can be found at this National Zoo Link. 

     

I also saw some very lazy cheetahs.

They were enjoying the first bit of nice weather in awhile so they wouldn’t even get up….just laid there and swished their long tails around…three beautiful, but lazy, boys.

Then I saw a Ferret.  Look closely in the black tube.  His little head is poking out.  He’s very shy.  These guys are being reintroduced to the wild. 

And then I saw the strangest thing….Maned Wolves.  They have a fox looking face and a hyena looking back-end.  Very odd when they got up and walked around with very long legs. 

 

Aren’t they funny looking?  They were enjoying the sunshine that day too and were pretty lazy laying there.  But one did get up and you could see the strange legs and their funny gait.

Once again, many thanks to Jessica for inviting me.  A private tour of such a magnificent place is a rare and much appreciated opportunity.  I would hope that given the chance people will come up and see what interesting and important work the folks at the CRC are doing.  I know they have an open house in the Fall.  Make a point to go.

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Conservation Research Center

Posted in daily painter, Serendipity, Small Town Life, tagged , , on March 11, 2010| Leave a Comment »

One of the really cool things that  I get to do from time to time is go somewhere unusual to take photos that I might eventually paint.  Yesterday, the unusual place that I went was right here in our own backyard, Front Royal. 

I was invited by Jessica Kordell, one of the animal keepers, to the Smithsonian’s National Zoological Parks Conservation Research Center that is located right here in Front Royal to take pictures to paint. 

This text is directly from their website…

“The Conservation and Research Center started primarily as a breeding center for endangered birds and mammals. Today, the black-footed ferret, Eld’s deer, and several species of Pacific island birds are being bred to maintain genetic diversity and provide reserves for highly endangered species.

The current priority for CRC’s animal collection is veterinary and reproductive research. By living in controlled environments, the birds and mammals—most of them little-known and endangered—provide ideal subjects for intensive study and the rapid acquisition of urgently needed information. Findings from these studies provide critical information for the management of captive populations and valuable insights for the conservation and management of wild populations.”

I took photos of the Clouded Leopards first.  They are beautiful.  I wish you could see them without the cage but you will get an idea from these shots.  Their feet are huge and their tails very long. 

But it is their gorgeous coloring that gives them their name….huge “clouds” of spots or markings on their bodies. 

The last photo gives you a better idea of the size of those paws.

I will share more of my photos from the CRC visit with you over the next few days.  It was such a terrific visit and many thanks to Jessica for inviting me.

Tomorrow Red Pandas!!!

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A Lesson in Shadows

Posted in Art Class, daily painter, tagged , , , , , , , , on March 10, 2010| Leave a Comment »

This painting was a lesson in Trees and Shadows for my young students.  They did a great job grasping the concept.  And this was how my painting turned out.

It is a 9″x12″ acrylic on canvas panel available for $145.

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Looking Forward to Warm Weather

Posted in daily painter, tagged , , , , , on March 9, 2010| Leave a Comment »

 One of the great things about painting is that when you get really sick of the cold, gloomy weather outside you can go into your studio and paint something “warm”!

I found this photo that I took last summer and decided to warm up the climate by painting it. 

Summer Beach is an oil on canvas panel measuring 10″x10″ and is available for $165. 

Bring on the sunshine.

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A Rose Study

Posted in daily painter, tagged , , , , on March 8, 2010| Leave a Comment »

Rose Study is an oil on canvas panel measuring 8″x10″.  

A painter often refers to a painting as a study if they are doing the piece to prepare for a larger piece.  This is often the case with plein air painting when an artist will paint a scene on location and then go back to the studio and paint a much larger piece. 

Or maybe they paint a study as a warm-up to a more detailed piece.  They could be testing colors or shapes.  Or it could just be a practice as it was in this case.

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Barn with Fence

Posted in Art Class, daily painter, tagged , , , , , , , , on March 5, 2010| Leave a Comment »

The Fenced in Barn is an oil on canvas panel.  This is a piece that we did in art class recently.  There are many lessons to be learned on a painting like this from color mixing,  shading, perspective, etc.  We try to choose ideas that allow the student to gain increased knowledge so that they may advance their painting skills.

If you’d like to join us and paint along, contact me at kwalker@doubledogdesigns.com .  We’d love to see you in class!

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Jeffie’s Day

Posted in daily painter, Dogs, tagged , , , on March 4, 2010| Leave a Comment »

On March 4, 2000 I was lucky enough to adopt a little Black Lab/Basset Hound mix puppy.  He came with the name Black Bart but we changed it to Thomas Jefferson Walker and he came to be known as Jeffie. 

Jeffie was three months old when we got him.  Truman was just about 3 weeks older and they were best buddies from the day they met.  They grew up together.

They partied together.  They did everything together.

Then Rosie joined the mix.  

She was a puppy mill rescue who was scared of everyone and everything.  But Jeffie knew what to do.  He slowly helped her learn to play.  And he was the only one that she would play with.  They were so good together.

Jeffie was an angel and the sweetest dog I have every known. 

Today we celebrate Jeffie coming to us.  We lost him at age 7  to cancer.  It was much, much too soon.  But we always think of him with a joyful and happy heart because he that is what he did for us.  He brought us much joy and happiness. 

We miss you Jeffie.

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Abstraction

Posted in Abstract, daily painter, tagged , , , , on March 2, 2010| Leave a Comment »

 Abstract Lesson in progress…..stand back!  This piece is a lesson that we are working on with a private student in abstraction.  This particular canvas is large, 30″x40″.  Often when you think or see abstract work it is very big.  This style lends itself to a large format.

When working with an abstract piece you can work it flat on a table or on the ground if it is very large.

Or on an easel if you have an easel large enough to hold the canvas.

This is my student, Marlene.  She came to me several months ago wanting to learn to do abstract work.  Now some people think that sounds funny because all an abstract painting is seems to be paint slung on a canvas, right?

Well no.  You must think about color theory and shapes in order to make a successful abstract work.

With this one, Marlene is well on her way.

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Impressionism – Trivia Thursday (on Friday)

Posted in daily painter, Trivia, tagged , , , , , , , on February 26, 2010| Leave a Comment »

I love impressionism.  Many people do.  When you ask someone what their favorite painting might be often people will name an impressionist’s work; ie.  Monet, Degas, Renoir, etc. 

But do you know what invention truly help to develop the impressionist movement of painting outdoors and capturing light and fleeting images?  The paint tube!   Never would have guess that, right?  Before the invention of the paint tube which allowed artists to easily carry their mixed paints in the field they had to use, of all things, pig bladders.  Yuck.  I’m thinking I would have remained in the studio to paint too. 

Miniature Summer Flowers is an oil on canvas panel measuring 3″x7″ and is available for $45.

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