Garden Of Color, 16x20 Inch acrylic painting by Kelley MacDonald

 "Garden Of Color" 16x20 acrylic on canvas, and acrylic on mylar

Is it March ALREADY????  Giving thanks for a not-too-horrible winter! And yes, it's GirlsJustWannaPaint day, too!  So, this month our topic was "Palette".  As usual, I tried out different ideas in my sketchbook.  What I decided on was a 'garden' depicting each color of my limited palette colors.  A limited palette is when an artist uses just red, yellow and blue (usually, like in my case, a cool and a warm of each color) plus white (and burnt umber).  

So I did my foliage, kind of happy, dancing leaves, etc. and was more than happy with it.  So happy, in fact, that I feared putting in the flowers.  What if that was a bad idea?  I'd ruin the foliage I liked so much.  I decided to take a piece of mylar sheeting and lay it over the canvas, to fit exactly, and paint on TOP of that, and then I could see if it would work.  It did.  But it worked too well.  I was extremely free and loose with the strokes for the flowers, and I like how they came out, like those exact brush strokes, very much.  I knew I could NEVER recreate them exactly.  So I am trying to see how to affix the mylar topping over the canvas.  Even though I've been told I can't do this (which is EXACTLY what to sat to me if you want me to break my head trying...) I love the 3-D effect having the mylar sitting atop the canvas gives.  Below are some close ups... (sideways of course... it's been that kind of day)

For now... it's just sitting.  Any ideas of fixing it to the canvas  LET ME KNOW.  :)

Bubbles & Gold, 4x4 Inch Acrylic Painting by Kelley MacDonald

$65 & $10 S&H

Click HERE To Purchase

There's something about bubbles.  I like the bubbles on foam at the lapping water at the beach... the bubbles when you wash dishes, or play with toddlers in their bath.. I love blowing bubbles and painting them.  I have been experimenting with layers of paint, and gel medium in acrylics.  After the bubbles and layers of gel (which leave it with a sort of encaustic - waxy - look) I painted the rest of the painting with a few layers of gold paint.  It's not as orange as in this photo, but at night... tough to get the right look.

Spring has sprung and you won't hear me complain!  After this Winter we deserve some tulips and daffodils!  I'm back teaching at the Art Club after a brief  time off, and have a few nice commissions lined up.  I'll share them as they are presented to their new owners.

I've been feeling kind of bad because 2 real highlights of my year are to get paintings into the juried shows at North River Arts Society and the South Shore Festival.  This year, juggling jobs, teaching and painting (and having a life, which I have kind of given up on!) I missed the opportunities.  I didn't really have anything of size to submit.  With all the learning and playing I've been doing with my acrylics I took my eye off the ball.  Well, as a good friend always says "Education is expensive."  And this Spring, learning more about acrylics and design left me out of my usual pursuits.

There's always next year!

Work In Progress: SNOW Scene

What do you do when it's a frozen tundra outside, and you want to paint,  but you don't want to even drive to the studio?  You set up at home and make a tryptic of the snow scenes (from last year!).  This is almost done on the front, but as each canvas is on gallery wrap the sides need to be finished, then I'll mount them in a floater frame.  What I loved about painting this was 1) I painted it so that each canvas could stand on its own and 2) painting in acrylic I can layer and layer and layer - with all those gorgeous colors showing through!

And... my workshop has already started filling up!  Reserve your space, Feb. 23 & 24!  Top right of the blog!

Outdoor Seating, 6x6 inch Original Acrylic Painting

NFS

Here we are, buried in snow (again), and the weather men are saying we may get snow showers tomorrow, another small storm 3 days from now, and a larger one in 5-6 days.  About now I just need a break from the shoveling!  So I'm re-posting a painting I did a while ago, of my husband's favorite Summer place to eat - the Bayside Restaurant in Westport, MA.  We've nicknamed it "The Palapas" because of the feathery umbrellas.  Join me for a cool drink under a hot sky!

"Race!" Original Acrylic Painting by Kelley MacDonald

$100 & $10 S&H
This painting is being reserved pending admission to a show - temporarily unavailable

Here's another from my little Laguna boy series!  I'm so excited about how they're turning out I'm thinking of doing a large series of them.  I love how they're all 'action'.  Thank goodness I'm taking a figure class at the Art Club.  Not that it will help so MUCH with a child's proportions.

But I really agree with Ken Auster's take on figures, too.  You KNOW what people are supposed to look like!  Have some common sense when you're giving the painting your final approval - if the limb is wider near the wrist than at the shoulder - it's wrong!  Same with the ankle, etc.  If the head is too big or small - you know it!  He said to think "What if this figure was coming towards you on the street - would you run in horror?"  I love that.  To that end, I do know that my other 'little boy' I posted last week had an extremely pointy elbow.  When I was painting the sand around him it covered up that bit of his arm. I may fix it, or wait to make it right on my larger piece!

Evening Song, 6x8 Original Acrylic Painting by Kelley MacDonald

SOLD

This is one of my favorite sunsets from my porch. Last time I used a taller canvas... this time more rectangular. I still think I'm going to do a HUGE one of these! I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend. I enjoyed my time off and am 'off to the races' now. I have more plans for my 'donut war'... so I hope you don't mind!

Getting ready for my Open Studio on my front lawn this weekend - 11-5 ... you can see this view from there... I've heard from so MANY of you saying you were taking a girlfriend on this tour - I think they should call it the 

"Open Studio Girlfriend Tour"! So fun!

BFF's, Original Acrylic Painting by Kelley MacDonald, 6x6

These girls were watching a street performance during my recent trip to Quebec City. Everyone around me was riveted by the young men break-dancing, but I was riveted by the crowd. These young girls struck a chord. You know how it was when you wanted to wear exactly the same thing as your best friend? It's a sweet time. Speaking of sweets, I want to reassure Susan Roden that I have defnitely NOT abandoned the Donut War, and she should be ready for some incoming fire!

Think Outside The Box!

At the North River Arts Society, they have a fun event that's coming up.  Artists get an 8x8 inch square of foamboard and they have to think Outside The Box (or OTB) when they make a piece of art on it.  The pieces are not signed, rather they are assigned a number, and throughout August people can bid via Silent Auction on them.  So I was working on mine, and there's NO WAY I'm putting it up here, but I'll show you my brainstorm pieces - and my submission is inspired by one of these.  

The Opening is open to the public (and a good time will be had by all, I assure you!) and is the 7th at 7 p.m.   Join us if you can!

Also:  below, my Ammo For The Donut Wars:

Happy Birthday to my son, Conor!  

Are We There Yet? 6x6, Acrylic

This gaggle of Canada Geese was crossing the road down the street from me. It was a family - 3 youngsters and 2 adults (well, that's what it looked like), and reminded me of my own family and trips we'd taken. There was always the question, "Are We There Yet?" and my husband and I would look at each other like the 2 geese on the right. With a *sigh*.

Also, yes, these are "Canada Geese", as opposed to "Canadian Geese" as you sometimes hear... they don't have Canadian passports....

My husband's favorite part of this painting is the guardrail. Yup, the guardrail....


If you're down in the Duxbury way this weekend, I have 2 paintings in the Midsummer Members' Show at the Duxbury Art Association! I also have 20 little paintings at goooood prices in the members' studio sale!

Last Light, 6x6 Acrylic

SOLD

This painting was from a photo I took in Marshfield, MA. It's such a great place in the summer. I love the peach sky and the pale blue water. You know the time of day... everyone stands transfixed by the play of light between the sky and water.

Naptime, 6x6 Acrylic

SOLD

Oh, he's too warm to do too much else, here in July!  But truthfully... Paco is a CHAMPION napper. He can fall asleep sitting up.  Or licking my face.  I love the red blanket, too, it's almost like he picks a 'paintable' background sometimes!

I had a wonderful Open Studio weekend.  This was my 'soft' weekend, without invitations, etc.  The BIG one is in August - believe it or not,  it will probably be cooler.  I met so many interesting people, and saw lots of friendly faces from last year - it was great!  Lots of people were interested in classes and workshops, too.  I'm thinking of a couple of Painting Safari's - one in the RI area and one in Hull - where we paint outdoors at a different wonderful location each week.  I'll demo, then we'll paint and do a critique -it'll have just a nominal fee. Beginner to intermediate levels.   Shoot me an email if you're interested, and I'll put you on the mailing list.

Reflections On Clouds, 8x8, Acrylic

SOLD
With this painting I was just experimenting with surfaces.  I'd made the canvas very 'textured' with layers of paint and medium, just playing with how one of the sunsets would look.  I think I still prefer a nice smooth surface for the sunsets, or for plein air as well.  This is kind of fun with contemporary subjects, or something kind of abstract, but I think it makes a person confused as to what they're supposed to be looking at.  Maybe.  I must say that the camera exaggerates the texture.  In person it's less defined.  I think this will be NFS, and I'll hold it out for my Open Studio Tour in July.  Hope you all had a nice weekend - it was perfect weather here in New England!

Painting of Harry, 11x14 acrylic

$125 & S&H via Paypal
Not a 'Daily' painting here, but I've had it in my mind for a while to do this.. I just need to work on the fur a bit more, but this is SUCH a classic look from my lovable (to me) kitty, Harry.  His attitude is "We'll do things MY way..." and I love him so much I go for it every time!  He likes to lay on my FACE while I read at night.  (So, yes, here's a little struggle we have - I just need my EYES clear, you know?)  You may not understand our 'relationship', and think it's one-sided, but this kitty does not EAT if I'm away.  Not a bite.  For however long I'm gone.  (Which makes it really hard for me to leave, right?)  Anyway, I have no illusions that this will be in any of the upcoming shows, but it was in me, and I needed to do it!

*** I'm teaching a Beginner's Outdoor Painting Workshop May 19,20 and 21 in Humarock, MA.  Email me at kcareymac@hotmail.com for more information***

Portrait Challenge, First Try, Acrylic

This month my Challenge group is doing portraits of each other.  Whose terrible idea was that?  Mine.  I don't know what I was thinking!  I've decided to do the portrait of fellow artist and all around dear person first in acrylics, then in oil.  This acrylic painting, in a 6x8 in format, took about 3 hours - wayyyy too long for what it was.  And truthfully, this looks nothing like her.  So.  I have my work cut out for me, and will try again probably next week.  But now I've analyzed the image I'm working from pretty thoroughly.  I'm a little dazed from the Marathon day yesterday.  I cannot imagine what it's like to actually RUN it!

Mojito! 8x8 Acrylic

SOLD
I set this up in my house and worked in acrylic - more difficult for me with the things like glass, etc., but easier with layering of the limes!  If anyone wants this please email me very soon ($100 & $10 s&h via PayPal), because next weekend I'll be giving it to my daughter to auction off - she's still only halfway to her fundraising goal for her Boston Marathon Run.  I'll post a link to her site, too, because people have been asking about it.  Anyway my favorite Mojito is made with sake (ooooh, so smooth!) but this one is traditional, with rum!    Hot lights & ice.... equal rapid painting!

Telephone Challenge: Help Me Choose!

I'm involved with a 'challenge' with 9 other artists, and this month our task was to paint something with a 'telephone' theme. I had a zillion ideas, then ran out of time. Tomorrow I'll show you my 'idea' page in my sketchbook, but tonight I just need some votes on which one I'll submit. The top one, "Stuff My Cell Hears...", is acrylic, with collage (that ran... which is one reason why I usually stick to 'regular' painting..) and the bottom one "Never Without The Blackberry..." is regular oil. It started OUT as an acrylic painting, but all of a sudden the darks started feeling sticky, and I realized I'd loaded an oil paint onto my acrylic palette... eeeks! So I took it to the studio today and re-did the painting in oil. So... help me out, please, and tell me in your comments which I should submit to the Challenge. People in the challenge thought I was the 'uploader' this month and sent me some really wonderful paintings, and I think I was intimidated!

Hope you all had a good Thanksgiving, and are sufficiently 'stuffed'!

Thank God I Don't Have A Real Job....

Because the SMALLEST thing throws me!  This is not a 'Daily Painting' - it's an abstract sunset done a couple of days ago, and it's 11x14, done in acrylics.  My actual Daily Painting is loaded in my camera at the studio, which I forgot when I bolted out the door today.  See.... yesterday there was this ADORABLE tiny mouse in the DRAIN of my sink - hiding there because he (or she) heard me when I came in, and it couldn't get out.  So I left it alone, and washed up in the bathroom sink before I left so I wouldn't disturb it.  Well, today I came in and....hmmm... still there, standing on my chunk of brush soap, EATING it.  It occurred to me - the mouse COULD not get out of the slop sink!  DUH!  How thirsty/hungry must it have been to have been drinking the soap water and eating soap???  So, I made a 'ladder' out of scratched cardboard, gave it a little bit of fresh water in a jar top, and bits of muffin and left it to figure it's way out.  Only it couldn't even make itself eat or drink, it was so sick and weak from the soap!  So as I painted today it slowly DIED - and although I did two daily paintings (the final hydrangea, I promise, and a really different painting after that) I was a little freaked & sad about the (now expired) mouse.  So I ran out (with Paco, of course) and left the camera there.  I'll grab it tomorrow a.m. and post.

AND I'm celebrating - I have my 100th subscriber!!!!  I'm going to have a giveaway next week to celebrate - I'll post a painting and anyone who wants it can email me, I'll put names in a hat and whoever wins gets it for $10 postage.  Yay!!!!  Thank you all, you are amazing!

Cosmos, 6x6 Acrylic

I don't usually post my acrylics - as Daily Paintings - because I'm not so so confident with them. But today I was inspired by my blog buddy Karen Mathison Schmidt who has a couple of blogs, and paints with acrylics so beautifully, they look like mosaics of paint sometimes - I could look at them for a long, long time. So here I am, with the puppy eating ice cubes off my toes (if you've never experienced this, you should try it, especially on a hot day) trying. But, as usual, I smooth things out too much. Anyway I ended up happy because of the layering especially of the petals, which has three or four colors of deep pink. For a girl who grew up in a tenement, and had no use for flowers when I got married, I have 'seen the light', and can never have enough of them. Cosmos oblige by re-seeding by themselves (thank you) and are so cheerful in the garden.

Long Time Gone....

First of all I want to thank everybody who sent encouraging comments to me - I've been a whole month 'immersed' in the baby dog! Now, I think it's a good investment of my time, since he's going to be my companion for (hopefully) many years, but it's been hard not to paint. It's getting better, and he's a little doll. (**Valerie you were sooooo right!)

This painting is a 6x6 acrylic - my starfish paperweight that I keep on my yellow kitchen windowsill. There are so many layers of greeny blues that I've hesitated to tackle it. As it is, when it was finished my son said "that's great - it looks like I could pick it up!" while my husband said "umm... you can hardly tell what it is...."

Among the things that have kept me away from posting recently is the plethora of Spring juried shows. After 2 total smackdowns of my Big Sky from the Littlest State series, that I'd worked on so hard this winter I think I'm going to NOT enter juried shows for a little while. Take a break. I'm in really good company this year, but still, I think I'd rather just paint for my own sake, and not rely on jurors to affirm my art. We'll see how long this lasts, as I am at heart rather competitve!

More than you need/want to know: last week I saw a Medium, and it was very cool. She said - without prompting - that I must work in a creative field and that I need to try a different direction. I had been thinking earlier that day about the very cool art I've encountered in the blogsphere (you know who you are!) and how I'd love to experiment a little more, like them. For instance - HOW does Manon Doyle (see link to the right) get those loose, lovely ethereal images? Oh, there are so many that I check in on and wistfully linger at! So I'm giving myself not only permission but an order to experiment more and not say 'no' to any new artistic whim. Today I'm painting pillows, and my theme is aquatic (thinking starfish, again)... we'll see....

And Paco needs his own blog, I think.... any thoughts for a title?

New Parrsboro Sunset, 11x14, Acrylic

Well, I say it all the time but this looks better in person. I didn't do a small daily painting yesterday, but did try to work on this smalled version of a big oil (see my Studio Blog). You wouldn't believe, given the simplicity of the subject, how difficult it is. It so easily slips into being trite. Now... even if no one believes me, I have painted that magical night when the sky erupted into the most unbelievable colors - even I as a huge sunset fan - had never seen. This is acrylic, and I did many, many layers, and used lots of medium, and IRL it has a luminous quality (or maybe I'm just drinking my own kool-aid!).