Stipled Smiling Swine

"Lunch and a Spa Treatment"- Pen and Ink w/Colored Pencil

I will never give up painting but I have to confess that I am finding more and more pleasure in sketching.  This week I had a blast drawing this smiling pig standing in the middle of a mud puddle while chopping on a tasty apple.   Her eyes are closed in anticipation and you can see a slight smile across her face as you know she is imagining the crisp crunch and sweet flavor that will soon be her experience.  If this little sketch of mine has brought a smile to your face then I have accomplished my mission.

Sketch in Progress

I started her in the morning, worked on her for a few minutes during my lunch break at work and then couldn't wait to get home to finish her up.  She is drawn on a 9 x 12 Canson Bristol paper with pretty much using my Prismacolor Fine Line Markers exclusively and the .005 size the most.  It is a lot of inking but I find the process relaxing, probably much in the same way that those adult coloring books have gained in popularity.  I just love using the stippling technique but it is rather time consuming when you think of the thousands of little dots necessary to fill in a sketch.  I will be adding just a little color to the scene by adding red to the apples, a light tint of green to the grass and some shading to give her depth.  I will probably use my Prismacolor colored pencils to add the coloring.  

The whole time I was drawing this I had a smile on my face as I kept thinking of funny captions and titles but I think I've settled on "Lunch and a Spa Treatment".  I can't wait to add this gal to my new line up of greeting cards and prints for my "Down Country Roads" series and solo show coming up in April at the Boulder City Gallery.  The original of all my sketches are available until they are sold. Prints and greeting cards are available at JulieTownsendStudio.com and I'm also have an Etsy Store.

Finished sketch before I added color

Something to Crow About

Something to Crow About

It was bound to happen.  I've been blogging about the progress I've been making on my most current piece for several weeks and this weekend the final paint strokes were made and my signature added.  I moved the piece off my easel so we could start on all the final steps of photos, varnish and preparing the piece for hanging.  

There is a mixed feeling of satisfaction and anxiety involved with this final process.  Satisfaction that the piece turned out as well as my skill level will allow.  That I have poured your heart into every step of the process and now I have the tangible evidence of my labors sitting propped against the wall.  

The anxiety for me comes in with the empty studio easel.  I don't like the feeling of not having a work in progress and the what-if's and unknowns until I have worked out the renderings for my next composition.   I like the control of knowing what I'm working on and feel a bit uncertain when I can't peek in my studio door and know what I have to do next.  Top these feelings with the reality of the March calendar and that I only have 2 weeks left until I have to hang my show.  Can I finish something substantial in these two weeks or should I just focus on small fun pieces, cowbells and using my new printer to add to my inventory of cards, magnets and prints?   I think the reality that I must face is that I will only have 4 focal pieces for my show when I had planned on creating 5.

  

Being raised in the Ozark Hills of Central Missouri I can tell you that I'm just having a blast painting these cute country scenes.  So you can put your mind to ease that I will continue to paint with this theme for some time into the future.   I'm actually hoping for more venues to open up that will allow "Down Country Roads" to be on public exhibit in the future.  I already have several ideas for my next morning glory covered fence line.

"Something to Crow About" is now available on my website in my landscape gallery.  Check out my other works while you are there. Just click here:  Julie Townsend Studio or on the gallery tab above.  If you are interested in purchasing an 11 x 14 limited print of any of my artwork, just send me a message and I will be happy to work out the details.   

5 Years of Blogging

This past week marked the 5th year anniversary of my very first blog post.  Since that realization, I have been considering what that means to me and how much my life has changed in that short time.  I know that I have learned so much as an artist and yet I hope to continue to learn in the years left to me.  

As I read these words, I am mindful that they may have been penned some years ago but they still ring true for me and affirm the desires of my heart.   I want to continue to develop and discover the creative gifts that are God given and keep them burning strong in my life.  It has definitely been a journey and blogging has been an additional creative outlet for me.  I find that writing entries for this blog, sharing my art with you are ways for me to record that journey and hopefully inspire and encourage others to find their creative passions.  It's never too late to become and artist!


My first blog post from 2011....

"Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men.  Colossians 3:23  I think as I get closer to my soon approaching 50th birthday, I am mindful about legacy and mission, purpose and value of a my life.  What have I done on this Earth with the time that God has given me.  Will I be remembered for how well I balance the church checkbook or for how clean my house has been?  

I don't think so...It is the creative part, the passion in your life that brings impact to those that remain after you are long gone.  I think that is partly why I am so driven to improve my artwork.  Besides my influence of others by my Christian example, it is my art that I believe will define me in the memories of those that are left to eulogize  my life.  There is an urgency in my heart to take my work to the next level.  I want to leave little pieces of my heart framed and hanging on a wall for everyone see it, appreciate it and remember me by.  Will my grandchildren stop and tell their children that this is one of your Grandmother's beautiful paintings?  Will they say that "She loved the Lord and honored His creation by painting beautiful pictures?"  Time will only tell, but in the mean time, I need to keep practicing."

Drawing a Crowd

I took a few minutes the other day to finish up a sketch I started the previous day of a nose licking calf.  The sketch is on Canson Bristol paper and is primarily done with my Prismacolor Fine Line Marker .005 using a stippling technique that I just love to use .  It is time consuming but I find the repetition very relaxing.  I can quickly get into the "ZONE" with my sketchpad in front of me.  I also lightly tented the drawing later in my studio with a Tombow marker and my Prismacolor pencils and overall very pleased with how it turned out.

I have found, as a busy artist, grandmother and working part-time as an accountant that I must seize the opportunities presented me to be creative.  Because of this, sketching is a perfect solution.  Dragging my rolling art case, easel and canvases everywhere is just not practical. So I have developed the habit of caring a portable drawing kit that I've made up with me everywhere I go. (I think that will be an excellent future blog)   As it is my custom habit on many mornings to be found enjoying my favorite cup of coffee and the free WiFi I can often be found at none other than McDonalds writing this blog or sketching in my sketchbook.

Coffee in hand, It wasn't long before I was into the zone only to become faintly aware of the fact that I could hear voices behind me and I looked up to find a young man, red-haired and freckled face standing there.  He looked to be about 11 or 12 years old.  I could tell with his father's encouragement he came over to me to tell me that he really liked my drawing. I smiled and thanked him.   How sweet is that?

A short time later a small group of African-American ladies had also taken up a position behind me.  The obvious mother of the group shared with me how her daughter likes to paint and the she proceeded to use me as an example of how how her daughter needed to keep practicing her artistic skills.  I thanked them and gave them an invitation to my up coming solo art show next month.

What a positive morning that was.  I can honestly say that "It made my day!"  I love sharing my love of art with young people.  Well honestly if you're even anywhere close to ear shot and still breathing I would enjoy talking to you about art in general and specifically my art.  I guess that is why I love this blog and have spent the 5 years now writing it.

"Who Needs a Tissue"-8 x 10" pen and ink sketch

The original artwork of "Who Needs a Tissue" is available for sale and is matted to an easy to frame 11 x 14 inch size.  Prints and blank greeting cards are available at Julie Townsend Studio or  Julie Townsend's Etsy Shop

Something Has Gone AFOWL in the Studio

I thought you might enjoy seeing my progression on a piece that I am almost finished with.  It's been about a 3 week process because I don't paint very steady.  A little bit here and a few minutes there is my normal studio habit.  I want to work on that this year but I find I get pretty restless and need to get up after only 20-30 minutes of painting.  I've yet to find that "zone" that other artists speak of where they paint for hours on end and late into the night.  

  

Photo 1- Initial Rendering

This is my first rendering that I did in colored pencil.  It is certainly not a fine piece of artwork but here I'm not really looking for detail as much as a feel and mapping out some of the composition.  I knew I wanted it to be about a crowing rooster on a wooden rail fence with an old wagon wheel.  The piece also had to have the signature morning glories that I have painted into the three other pieces in this "Down Country Roads" series. (Photo 1)

Photo 2-Rough Blocking in of the composition

This next photo is now of me blocking in the main elements of the composition.  I had to repaint that fence at some point because I realized I had made the classic mistake of letting it drift upward and I needed it to be straight.  I pulled out the trusty straight edge and got it back on track.  The background took me sometime to work out.  I finally decided on a the distant ruins of a barn and I think that was a good choice here.  Because I'm working with the canvas in a vertical position, I have a lot of depth to fill in the background. (Photo 2)

Photo 3- Adding Focal elements

With this photo you can see I've straighten the fence line and now begun focusing on the wagon wheel.  This proves to be a really challenge because I want it to have the illusion of leaning against the fence and so my perspective isn't straight on.  I'm not a draftsman or architect so getting the wheel to appear correct and balanced is an issue.  I choose to let it go off the page because it really needed to be that large in comparison to the fence post to look realistic.  I still think it may be too small but that is the difficulty I often face when painting a number of random items from reference photos that are not in the same setting.  (Photo 3)

Photo 4- Adding flowers, grasses and foreground hens

Now we are getting into the final elements of the composition.  I have decided the best thing to do to handle my lack of skill at painting circular wheel and spokes is to have an old board also leaning up against the fence with a healthy growth of beautiful morning glories.  All in all I'm pretty sure I made the right decision there.  I have also begun blocking in the two hens in the foreground. (Photo 4)

Photo 5- Rendering of details to add

This is a little rendering I did of what I had in mind of adding to my painting.  I wanted a couple of chicks fighting over a juicy worm for breakfast.  The sketch has also been added to my greeting card designs and I've matted and framed the original.  The resourceful artist and accountant in me will not let a good sketch go to waste lying in a forgotten portfolio but rather try to turn it into a future revenue source. (Photo 5)

Photo 6-Still blocking in the composition and adding depth

In this photo you can see I have blocked in the chicks and added more layers to the hens and depth to the morning glories and foliage.  (Photo 6)

Photo 7- And this is what it looks like today

 So here we are today and I'm entering into the final stages of this painting.  Did I mention that this canvas is 24 x 36"?  That is a rather large piece and so it does take sometime to work your way to the bottom.  Now I'm obligated to focus on all the details that still need to be added to make this piece really pop.  With a little effort I'm hopeful that this piece will be finished by the weekend and soon be available on my website.  I've taken you from "What the heck were you thinking" to "This might just work after all" to finally "I'm Lov'in it" all in 7 photos.  That is the normal progression for me as an artist.  It progresses from Awful-to Awkward-to Amazing!  Well at least we hope for the AMAZING part.

If you enjoyed my little assemblage of progression photos, leave me a comment below and take a minute to check out my website at JulieTownsendStudio.com.   

Be Sure to Eat All Your Vegetables

I started this little sketch yesterday morning while enjoying my favorite McDonald's coffee, thought about it all day while I was at work and finished it up while I was eating my dinner and watching NCIS series on Netflix.  Sometimes you create something that makes you excited and this piece is that for me.  I couldn't wait to share it with you this morning on my blog.

The overall size of the actual sketch is about 8 x 10" so that larger size made the fur a bit daunting.  I used a combination of hatching and stippling to give it that textured fur look.  The challenge for me came in when approaching the lighter areas because I had to have good control of the pressure on the pen so the ink tapered to a place that was barely visible and yet still  giving the impression of fluffy soft fur that you know this little guy has.  I also wanted the carrots to stand out from the bunny so at the end I took the plunge and used a darker bolder line.  Ink is not forgiving so once you make a decision there isn't much ability to turn it around.  With acrylic and oil painting you can create detours and exit plans all day long that are just not afforded to you with this medium.

My focus for the past few months has been creating art that reminds me of my childhood growing up in the Missouri Ozarks.  My brother and I raised rabbits for several years.  In the winter that was a particular challenge as the rabbit hutch was situated at the edge of the clearing that was our yard and the top of a particularly large hill.  I remember several times the ground covered in ice and I having to work my way to the hutch by grabbing on to tree after tree to keep from sliding down the hill.  Good memories.

I'm working on my 4th large 24 x 36" acrylic painting but I have also added a number of sketches that are waiting to make their public debut.  I have a solo show coming up in April in Boulder City Nevada that I am calling "Down Country Roads" and this piece will most likely be matted and framed for that show if it is not sold before that time.  I want to have a number of cards and prints available and this bunny will make a great addition to the lineup I think.  My hope is to make my cards and matted prints of my sketches available on JulieTownsendStudio.com in just a few days.  I just received my new Canon Pixma Pro 100 printer last week and I'm working hard to get up to speed and bond with this new studio addition.

4 designs that I have already developed in my series.  These are all hand tinted and packaged and will be sold individually or in a group.

Fuzzy Chicks and Tasty Worms

I had plans for my weekend to spend much of my time finishing the painting that is taking up all of my easel space but as often happens those plans didn't come to fruition.  Not to say that all was lost on the creative artist front, but it just wasn't as productive of a weekend as I had hoped and with my solo show "Down Country Roads" coming up quickly on April 1st I'm getting a bit of an overwhelming feeling.  So much painting and so little time.  What's an artist to do?

My pencil and ink sketch called "The Early Birds"

This little sketch I started yesterday while enjoying my usual morning McDonald's coffee time with my husband.  Today, I decided to add some color and used my new set of Prismacolor pencils.  I have found that drawing is an excellent exercise to prepare me before I pick up my paint brushes.  These little chicks are going to be added to the composition in my painting "Something to Crow About" that I am currently working on.  

The sketch actually turned out cute enough that I'm going to matte and frame it and also add it to the show. I also decided that the sketch of my little early birds made a cute addition to my greeting card designs.  I started playing around with my new printer this weekend and have come up with 4 designs so far that I think work well printed on greeting cards.  As you can see both the chicks and the crowing rooster are featured both on canvas and on the front of a card.  

If you are interested, cards will soon be available on the Country Store tab of my website at JulieTownsendStudio.com.  

Work in Progress

"Down Country Roads" greeting card line