Serenity Reflected and Red Mountain Majesty, #24 and #25 in 60/60 for $60

Quite the struggle trying to get caught up! There are so many paintings dancing in my head that I am dizzy! Not sure which to create first!

I am planning a few large, detailed paintings, but feel I must complete these 60 in 60 for $60 first...these two are just really special aintings to me, as they evoke a real emotional response as I travel back in time to the moment I was standing in that very spot! The west is so full of eye candy for the artist and nature-lover.

#24

 

Serenity Reflected

8 x 10" oil

 

$60

 

 

 

#25

 

Red Mountain Majesty

9 x 12 oil

 

$60

 

 

 

 

Courthouse Butte Rock, Sedona, AZ

Nature pulls at your heartstrings when in Sedona, AZ! Your spirit soars as you take in the rhapsody of such beauty. All around, there is another breath-taking sight to behold. Even when the weather turns bad, it is incredible, for the purity of the air provides for dramatic lighting not often seen elsewhere.

For an artist and/or photographer, it is almost overload the first time you visit. I have since been back several times and am just now able to attempt to record that beauty in paint. I was priveledged to return to Sedona with my daughter, Missy, and her family. What a feast for the soul as we watched the sun set from the airport as it cast it's golden fire on Coffepot Rock and Courthouse Butte!

'Courthouse Butte'   (Sedona, AZ)       oil on panel 9 x 12"          $300



This original oil painting can grace your wall if you are the first to press the button!

Keep watching; I will soon post the painting of Cathedral Rock.

Thank you for letting me be a part of your day.... -Ruth Ann

# 5 of 30 in 30 days

I painted this scene in a large format and since it is one of my very favorite places, Sedona, I wanted to paint it again in a smaller size.

I have to admit, I liked it better about 40 brushstrokes ago, but since none of you were here in my studio to grab the brush from me, here it is...

                        Red Rock Crossing in Autumn         9 x 12" oil on panel        $75

                                              Have a fabulous weekend..........Ruth Ann

Color charts and snippet # 2

Today was a good, productive day in the studio. This one is coming along nicely, although it surprised me when I started liking what was happening on the canvas a whole lot better than the pretty darn good photo I had managed to capture of this area. I got one spot that looked really 'sweet' and I knew I needed to avoid it like the plague or I would destroy it. I then chose to forget the photo and just paint what I liked on the canvas.

 A light bulb moment, kind of, as now I better understand those before me that recommended using a photo as a 'jumping off point', not just slave and copy it.

I should be able to complete this one tomorrow.........can you guess what landmark this is?

                  ***************************************************


I also was having trouble with subtle grays
 for one of the very large paintings and it was
 full of little shifts of greys.........so I opened
up the cupboard door and studied my color charts.
 There it was! I was trying to get the tone/value
 using Burnt Sienna when a much better and
more accurate choice was Transparent Oxide Red!
 I am pretty sure that I will be using
 my color charts more often now.



Have a wonderful evening and remember when that color is elusive, make some mixes and record them for future reference!

Lots of wonderful things happening, now if I can just juggle them all. My studio helper...she already knows how to hold a pose!

It can be difficult choosing which opportunities to take and which ones to pass up...what if??? Chosing the one that brings the most joy is usually a good one. Then there is the financial aspect. Life is but a journey, hoping to make it an enjoyable one....maybe I will meet with you along the way!

Painting #10 "It's a long ways down..."

Where does the time go? I really plan on behaving and getting to work right away on my painting but I got distracted by a number of things in the studio. Putting things away as I hunted for that one little "must have" for in my still life set up. Never did find it.

The sun was shining and Sedona demanded to get to go for a walk. I never argue with a chance to soak up some sun, esp. in the winter. That left little time for my painting so I elected to paint from a photo I took earlier this week. Sedona is afraid of going down our stairs, in spite of the fact she goes up them like a streak of lightening!

I was interested in challenging myself to forget warm or cool and just try to look at value and not over think it; just respond and pick up paint, put it on.

"It' s along ways down..."       10 x 8", oil on matboard   

I will paint many more of her. She is a great model. Snapped a few today as she lay on the studio floor, bathed in sunlight...

Thanks for looking.........