the Lioness again

Okay, so I didn't like the off-balance of the quilt; the shapes under her neck stood out too much and so I have been looking at it hung up on my design wall.

Since then, I have enhanced her face with paints, coloured the bottom with oil pastels, sprayed walnut ink on the bottom, added some melted textiva, and burned bits with a wood burning tool.

Now the bottom is darker and more uniform than it was, but I am still not sure I have it right. It is hanging up again so I can look at it some more...

Next painting

I got lesson five done this week too. Lots of layers and embellishments.

Many times during this assignment I did things that I REALLY didn't like. But, I didn't panic, just added something else and kept going until I DID like it.

This piece is just 6"x12", but a tad too long for the scanner so I had to photograph it. Unfortunately I just can't seem to get a photo that shows the colours the way they look in person.

Last week I ordered a field guide for my camera, as I really need to learn to use it better before our trip to Italy this summer.

Who knows, maybe I will also learn how to take better photographs of my art along the way... (I have a sneaking suspicion that my problems may be partly due to poor lighting).

Anyway, here she is, my Rain Goddess. If you click on her, you can see it a bit bigger than it is in this post.

And Holly, if you read this and see it- when you are here this summer, hopefully I will have a bigger collection of works and you can have a good look in person to see what you would like to take home with you. I am very flattered that you like what I am learning! Love you!

my painting for class

Can I just say again how much fun I am having and how much I love my Goddess & Poet class with Suzi Blu... this has been a wonderful experience for me all around.

So this is my first painting for the class, Lesson Four. Keep in mind that this is a mixed media class- thus the many layers and textures.

I just love it! There wasn't a lot of conscious thought throughout the process, I tried not to over think things, but just DO.

I am just thriving in the "no mistakes in art" zone too.

When I took a class with Heather Thomas, she commented to me that I was not a perfectionist, and I didn't know if that was a good thing or not, and I worried a little. But I believe it was meant as a positive thing, because perfectionism can definitely get in the way of letting our art out, of letting it be what it wants to be!

I have accepted the fact that I will never make a stunning pieced quilt with perfect corners or curves. But someday I might make a stunning art quilt that speaks about what I want to create...

There is just one lesson left for this class, another painting on wood. I did the sketch for it this morning while I waited for poor Heidi to get her wisdom teeth out. (She is now resting comfortably on the couch with an ice pack and a movie line-up...)

I am also in Suzi's Angels class but haven't gotten too far on it yet. I have a sketch ready for wood and will hopefully get it going this week. I need more modeling paste... can't do decent angel's wings without modeling paste!

Just last week Suzi introduced a brand new class: Piety & Passion- 3/4 and profile portraits based on the Tudors. How fun is that?! So of course I signed up for that as well. Expect to see a lot more art work in the coming weeks!

AFter that, Petit Dolls... I am going to learn it all and then cover our walls and my studio with it!!! lol

If you like mixed media and fun, check out the classes Suzi offers- they are WELL worth the small price. You get to keep the instructional videos forever, and the critique is available for the whole semester, which is usually four months. Plus you can keep in touch with other artists on the same pathway as you are on! Here is a link to the class descriptions:
http://alovelydream.com/site/Workshops.html