The Chipmunk

As I was making up small test batches of homemade casein paint, I realized that I had a lot of earth toned pigments. What to paint that's brown? How about a cute little chipmunk? As I was painting the fur, I was reminded of the many excellent tutorials on YouTube by wildlife artist, Jason Morgan. Yet while there were similarities in technique, there certainly were differences, since Jason often paints tigers. 
This particular painting, unlike the other casein paintings I have done, is in fact an emulsion. It is an oil and water hybrid, with the easy handling and quick drying characteristics of a water-based paint. 

Fireweed

My dad was telling me about his recent reminiscences of time spent in northern BC, and of how he remembered the profusion of wildflowers that grow there. I thought to myself how a painting of those flowers would make a nice little Father's Day gift. So I duly got busy and painted this incredible field of fireweed. But just as I was giving him the little 5 x 8 piece, a realization hit me that it wasn't fireweed, that he was missing, but rather Indian paint brush. I had painted the wrong flower! We had a good laugh over that one. Oh well. His birthday is next month.
Here I am continuing my adventures with casein paint. I've actually taken things to the next level by making my own. Milk and acid and alkali and water and pigment and you have casein paint. Not that hard to do. Really. This paint is so versatile.

Ocean Park

After more than half my life inland and far away, I've returned to the Pacific coast. Home is where you're from, and now I'm home. Ocean Park is on the western tip of the Semiahmoo peninsula, a quiet gem near White Rock, between the US border and Vancouver. Views like this are common, and are shared with bald eagles. 
Yet another water based media, this was painted opaquely as well as transparently using casein.  Pronounced kay-seen, it is a pigmented binder, or glue, made from a protein found in milk. Binder plus pigment equals paint. Ten years ago, I did a painting of the infamous kitten, George Michael, looking out our window. As a generally overlooked paint, it has great potential.

Blue Iris

A few blocks from our home, there is a ditch between a road and someone's fence. And there, from this lowly location, grew a handful of blue bearded irises. I don't know how they got there, but they were largely overlooked as cars raced past. Determined to do something about that, I returned later with my camera, and found myself eventually right in the ditch (it was dry) and even getting honked at. Nonetheless, I got what I was after, and this is the result. 

The Heron at Crescent Beach

Last fall, I was at Crescent Beach, near White Rock BC, and captured an image of this heron as the sun was setting. I took it on my smart phone, and from there it went to Instagram in the requisite square format. It was one of those rare right place at the right time photos, and I especially liked it. It made sense to paint it. This is done in acrylic, my first attempt in that medium. Acrylic is a very popular water based paint, but because of it's handling characteristics, I suspected that I wouldn't like it, and hadn't been in a hurry to try it. An art store's closeout sale finally compelled me to buy a small acrylic set. I can't say that painting in this medium was for me a terrible experience, but it was at least a learning one. I did it on 140 lb watercolor paper, and was amazed to find that by the time the painting was finished, the paper had become plasticized, like a vinyl coated tablecloth. 

Daffodils

We have a number of neighbours on our street who are exceptional gardeners. I, on the other hand, would rather paint flowers than tend them. As mentioned in the previous entry, Kathleen is a great gardener, and these are her daffodils. I started this painting in watercolor, but part way along, I decided to experiment with gouache, which is closely related to watercolor, but is opaque rather than transparent. This means that it is easier to work with, as mistakes can be covered, and its possible to change your mind and alter your course as you go. You sure can't do that with watercolor! I've heard it said that gouache is fun, and it is. Note to self: paint in gouache more often.

Mitzi

Kathleen is our neighbour, and although she has a dog now, years ago she had this beautiful cat, Mitzi. She is a fantastic gardener, and must miss the pond that she had at her previous home. This painting is a tribute to Mitzi, and to that lovely garden hideaway in Vancouver.

Garden Tour

Every year in June the Rotary Club of Chilliwack puts on a garden tour featuring especially amazing yards and gardens of area residents. I had a great time getting photo references of roses and all manner of fabulous garden views from about a dozen or so very different gardens. Now I can paint summer gardens all year long if I like. This landscape is taken from a very special property high atop Chilliwack Mountain overlooking the Fraser River. The painting is small for this much detail, only 8x10", and was my second attempt at gouache. It has been such a long time since I painted an outdoor scene, and I was surprised by how similar it looks in style to my watercolour landscapes. This time I painted on cold pressed watercolour paper which I found to be easier to work on than the smooth surfaced mat board that I used on the gouache horse.

Watersoluble Oil

About three years ago, I bought a set of 'water mixable' oil paints. Seemingly a contradiction since we all know that oil and water don't mix, these paints really do just that. Oil painters can now paint without harsh chemicals, and watermedia painters, such as myself, may cautiously dip their toe in the mixable water, so to speak. So even though this blog entry is technically an oil painting, it still qualifies as 'light painted with water'.

I knew I wanted to give these oil paints a try when I bought them, but I had no idea it would take so long to get around to it. Oils have intimidated me. That is what other painters do. The ones who went to art school and learned all the rules. So when I finished this painting, using my self taught transferable skills, I gained a new sense of confidence. I felt like saying: HA! I just did an oil painting, so there!

In some ways I liked the experience, and in other ways I did not. I soon realized that what I liked about it were the ways in which it was similar to watercolor painting, and what I disliked were the ways in which it was not like watercolor painting. It was a nice place to visit, but it just wasn't home. Transparent watercolor remains my media of choice.

Wet Canvas Reunion

For three days in late June, members of the Wet Canvas watercolor group met together at Sutton, Ontario, on Lake Simcoe. They had come from as far away as Vancouver, San Francisco, Nebraska and Indiana. Four even came from England for this event. Some knew each other well; many were meeting for the first time. Char, who led the macro floral tutorial was there, as was Judy, another student from that tutorial. I was fortunate to be among them. We socialized, but we also painted together in a couple of workshops. This loon was started in a workshop led by Shelley, a highly respected artist from Burlington, which I finished after returning home. It was nothing short of fascinating to paint and be among so many fine artists.

Starfish

Another reminder of my trip to BC. I especially liked experimenting with the wood grain.

Pine Cone 2

The two individual pine cone paintings were matted and framed together, something I hadn't tried before.

Pine Cone 1

The pine cones were done to hang on the wall at my husband's new clinic, Everygreen Therapy. About this time, while running some Google searches for casein, I came across artist's web site, WetCanvas!.com. Here were thousands of artists from around the world freely offering their assistance and comraderie to one another. What an important site, since so many artists, including myself, work in isolation. That, plus a vast copywrite free photo reference library enticed me to join. A nickname was required, so I called myself "Lightseeker". I seek light in every painting, and I seek the creator of light who is "the way, the truth and the Light".

I found the photo references I needed for the pine cones on the WetCanvas! free reference image library; photos donated for this use by other artists. It was a new year, and I was taking a new direction.