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19
Oct

studyfortulipsandstarfishandowls

Watercolor Sketch: Tulips and Starfish (and painting watercolors on a plane)

Comments: 4 | Posted on 10/19/2017 by Belinda DelPesco

Painting on a Plane I just got home from Annapolis, Maryland. I grew up in and love the East Coast, and our kids used to be stationed in far away places, so long flights are a familiar event for us. That’s how painting or drawing became my inflight cocktail. Do you find art-making to work for you too, on long flights? With a small watercolor kit, and a good audiobook lilting into my earbuds, a trip across the continent goes by lickety-split fast. I had the middle seat on the plane – both there and back, but it didn’t matter, as long as …[Continue reading]

10
Oct

Scouting for Tulip Petals 7x7 inch collagraph

Collagraph: Scouting for Tulip Petals (& Art Groups on Facebook)

Comments: 12 | Posted on 10/10/2017 by Belinda DelPesco

Making Art with Other People Make art more often by joining a group, taking a class or scheduling your creative time with fellow artists. A schedule makes you accountable, and anticipation from art-minded friends expecting you to show up can be the right kick in the pants to Get Things Done. So Many Artists tell me they don’t create often enough. Self-doubt, time management, life/work-conflicts, and health issues are mortar in the block walls. And then there is the subtly squirmy discomfort with working alone. We know that making art is a solo endeavor, so that can be part of the culprit.  If this …[Continue reading]

4
Oct

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Watercolor: Painting in the Canyon (& gift ideas for artists who paint outdoors/travel )

Comments: 8 | Posted on 10/04/2017 by Belinda DelPesco

Painting Outdoors is not Easy I have talented friends who paint outdoors in fields, meadows and beaches here in California.  I admire their ability to make beautiful art while tracking slipping sunlight & shadows, fending off cows, swatting mosquitoes, and keeping their easels from poking an ant hill. Plein air painting is a courageous endeavor. So is the urban sketching movement; it’s not easy to draw in a garden or the subway with people watching over your shoulder, dispensing advice on your work-in-process, and waxing poetic about their great aunt Harriet who used to paint daisies on canvas shoes. The Right Tools for the Job …[Continue reading]

2
Oct

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Watercolor – Nested (and my Patreon page)

Comments: 0 | Posted on 10/02/2017 by Belinda DelPesco

Nourish your Creative Self Advice for Life Thank goodness brilliant minds take time to document ideas, creations and formulas. Especially these days, with storm clouds all around. Where would we be without the written word, or art supplies? You and I have the option to pour over the masterful conclusions scribbled and painted by smart people who lived centuries before us. Populations have previously wrung their hands, knit their brows and scribbled solutions toward figuring things out. We probably don’t need to sit in a foggy slump, stained by events we can’t control, or stuck on a problem. Let’s try taking a deep breath, …[Continue reading]

22
Sep

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Monotype: Winter Geraniums (when art is inspired by family photos)

Comments: 19 | Posted on 09/22/2017 by Belinda DelPesco

Do you Paint from Family Photos? The reference photo for the art above was snapped in the mid 1970’s, in the rural Connecticut home my father grew up in. My grandparents bought & renovated the house in 1944, when it had already lived a full life as Old Meadowbrook Farm – a Country Inn and gladiola farm in the late 1800’s. This monotype, in it’s beginnings, with my reference photo on the right. The image was drawn in water-soluble crayon on a sheet or prepared plexiglass, and printmaking inks were painted in layers on the plexi. Images are Already Familiar The view of rolling …[Continue reading]

19
Sep

les.terrasses.du.bassin12x16.72sml

Tips for Supplies – Travel Watercolors – and the cafe Les Terrasses

Comments: 3 | Posted on 09/19/2017 by Belinda DelPesco

Traveling with Watercolors I see lots of great art supplies in the travel totes of my plein air friends and the artists I follow in the urban sketching movement. While packing for a trip to Provence with WorkshopsinFrance.com,  I tested light-weight, small watercolor sets to cajole my affinity for art-making on airplanes, in hotel rooms, on sailboats, and in gardens. Are you thinking about drawing or painting on an upcoming trip? Here’s a list (below) of the supplies I keep handy for roaming, with links. (Note, some of the links are affiliates, so if you make a purchase, I receive a small commission. It doesn’t cost …[Continue reading]

10
Sep

marigolderuption10.5x11.75.72

Watercolor: Marigold Eruption and a video on John Singer Sargent

Comments: 4 | Posted on 09/10/2017 by Belinda DelPesco

What to Paint Next I snapped a flurry of photos for painting ideas a few weeks ago. When I uploaded them to my computer, the composition on a few of them – especially as seen in thumbnail format (very helpful) – seemed just right for a little watercolor exercise.  I’ve loved window light in roomscapes like this since I was a child, and I reveled to paint another version of this appealing play of brights and darks in geometry composition.  There’s plenty of learning challenges in trying to see & render values and temperatures that convey a relaxed, invitational atmosphere.  Do you see how …[Continue reading]

7
Sep

cruisingCalifornia126.6x6.300

Watercolor: Cruising California Rt 126 and Inspired by Sketching Artists

Comments: 7 | Posted on 09/07/2017 by Belinda DelPesco

How Many Times a Week Do You Sketch? Hi y’all, I’ve got some links for you related to sketching, drawing and doodling inspiration. Do you want to draw and sketch more often? (I mentioned this goal in a previous post here.)  I’ve been trying to sketch in the evenings – whether I’m sitting with my Mister, or in a gaggle of friends and family sprawled on someone’s couch. Arm yourself with a two-ingredient plan;  a pencil and a sketchpad.  Draw what’s in front of you, or tuck a few reference photos into your sketchpad.  You can still chat and listen while your pencil …[Continue reading]

31
Aug

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Leonardo Da Vinci book review and a Watercolor Study from Provence

Comments: 5 | Posted on 08/31/2017 by Belinda DelPesco

Making Art Before we had Books I just finished listening to a book tracing the history of Leonardo Da Vinci’s drawing of Vitruvian Man.  If your art includes the figure, and you’re interested in the history of learning, check it out here. Toby Lester begins with the Roman military engineer, Vitruvius (born c. 80–70 BC, died after c. 15 BC), who authored ten volumes of architecture analysis.  Imagine – ten books describing (in hand-written latin) the constructive and aesthetic analysis of arches, columns, aqueducts, bridges and harbors – without a single illustration –  no diagrams, photos or drawings. With a scant 30-40% literacy at …[Continue reading]

23
Aug

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Artist reference photos from San Francisco and a watercolor – Cafe Coffee Date

Comments: 6 | Posted on 08/23/2017 by Belinda DelPesco

Take a Camera on your Weekend Getaway We just returned from a whirlwind weekend in San Francisco, where we joined friends from Arizona. The four of us had non-stop exploration, and I had an opportunity to collect artist reference photos! We walked five miles a day (12,000+ steps, yeowza!) to gaze at shorelines and parks, dine at neighborhood cafes and watch a Giants baseball game. San Francisco couldn’t be more different from the spaces we occupy every day at home, which is always stimulating to the artist’s eye. Since we compressed San Francisco into a weekend, I knew there wouldn’t be time to …[Continue reading]

14
Aug

QuiltedAerial12.6x9.72

Six Tips to Paint More When Time is Short – and a Watercolor: Quilted Aerial

Comments: 7 | Posted on 08/14/2017 by Belinda DelPesco

Quilted Aerial 12.6 x 9 watercolor on paper This summer has been a whirlwind of events and family-fun with very little time for painting watercolors. I get rusty and a little distracted when I don’t paint regularly, so I look for efficient ways to shorten the path to my brushes. Here are six tips to paint more when time is short, because there’s a great deal of joy & happiness mixed into all those pigments, and we have to actively and deliberately go after it. 🙂 Six Ways to Paint More When Time is Short Pre-Draw your work.  Plan your next series, and …[Continue reading]

13
Aug

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Drypoint Printmaking: Fervent (& small, affordable printmaking press alternatives)

Comments: 19 | Posted on 08/13/2017 by Belinda DelPesco

Making Prints without a Press On my youtube channel, one of the most frequent comments left on printmaking tutorials is how to make art prints and printmaking without a press. A press is an expensive investment, and they’re heavy, with a large footprint that’ll take up quite a bit of floor space in a room.  There are also many to choose from, so it’s understandable that beginning printmakers are overwhelmed. Press Alternatives There are workarounds for some printmaking methods (relief/block prints), but not all of them. Hand transfer of drypoint engravings, etchings and intaglio style prints is a lot of work, fickle in nature, and it might …[Continue reading]

8
Aug

CottonandIron12.6x9.4.72

Do the people closest to you Influence your Artistic Journey?

Comments: 4 | Posted on 08/08/2017 by Belinda DelPesco

  When I first considered leaping into art full time, I called several artists I’d heard about, introduced myself and asked if I could buy them lunch and pepper them with questions related to making art as a livelihood. All of the artists I called agreed to meet with me. One of them relayed that her journey started with no art experience, beyond some much-enjoyed watercolor classes. She didn’t have artist friends or family, and her job had nothing to do with art.  Once she decided to pursue art, she earnestly sought a mentor, and friendships with experienced artists. She attended art-related events, …[Continue reading]

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