Category: gouache

Day 988 Wow 13 more days

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Til the big 1000!! 

Since 13 is a mystics number surrounded by bad luck impending done a journal page on palm reading seems like an appropriate post.   The assignement this week was to completely cover a two page spread with masking tape. Then study a palm reading chart and react to that. I am not exactly a girl who believes in palm Reading so this was a little difficult for me. 

I pondered the assignment of reading your palms for 4-5 days. Then I did all these pages in less than an hour.  I was flipping thru the old Bazaar magazine looking for images to collage on another page and found the red headlines. I thought perfect. I glued them on. The grey was a scrap from ripping out collage items for the other page. Perfect color. 


I literally pulled a couple of pieces of somerset collage paper out of this heap and traced my hands and glued them down quickly.  Then I started scribbling with Prismacolor artstiks and gel pens. 

Next I stamped some old Teesha Moore stamps that I had for years and never used. I still had the third page blank. I lettered with the paint pen and drew some arrows. Then it popped into my head to do an X-ray hand for the scar page-write down all your scars-because some scars are visible but some you can only see in an X-ray. Still have to journal those. 

This is a WIP. It will change. I got some transparent purple ink to paint on it just not had time. And I have a list of things to still try out. Here are what I brain stormed. 

Yellow gold aura. Lightening bolts

Light green on x ray hand thalo blue thinned on background

Outline letters in yellow? 

Green glow 

Heart Malagra

Anyway time to get going. Busy day. 

Margaret xoxoxo

A bit of fluff or?! 

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Really enjoying making these pages in my reclaimed Saks catalog – from my sons recycle bin. You can’t tell but there’s actual journaling under this page. 

This is the first one I did. 

I forgot to take photos of the process but it started out journaled on and then white and green and finally blue acrylic paint. 

The cover 

One of the pages in process. 

Then I added collage elements. And Prismacolor art sticks and neocolor ii and hmm white paint pen. Some stamping. You name it it gets done to these pages. One of the things that makes it fun. 

Go sign up for Juliana Coles awesome Book of the night class. 

I think I like the graffiti like aspect of these pages. I do love to look at some interesting graffiti. I actually left this at life modeling in the art studio Saturday and nobody decided they needed it more than I did. Hmmm does that mean it was respected or they hated it. 

Ttyl Margaret off to charlotte for a class in wc. Let the fun begin. 

Day 973 St Patrick’s Day in Augusta 

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We had an Urban Sketchers of Augusta meet up at Artus to draw the St Patrick’s day parade Friday. Fun time with Sandy from Artus and AC who fell in love w my Lamy EF that I lent him and sweet Katie Padgett.  
These guys were enjoying some Guinness in front of Soy Noodle House and watching the parade go by. Architecture is a little wonky because I was standing on the sidewalk looking around the mob that passed by. Some of them would just stand in front of me. Eeek. 

Whiskey Bar still needs paint. These two are on 280# Arches cold press. Oops cut off their legs. 


A great pirate ship passed by. I taught AC and Katie that u don’t have to draw everyone you see but can add people from different floats to the one you are working on. Who will know!? Just you. 


One float was full of an adorable group of older women from St Johns Towers a retirement home. I forgot to draw the crowd in front darn it because I was so enthralled with the old truck and the ladies. 

These two are in my Stillman and Birn Alpha which is almost full. 

All are drawn with my Lamy Safari. Painted w Ted Nuttalls transparent palette. 

Ttyl class in Aiken. 

Margaret xoxoxo 

Day 958 A relaxing Sunday 

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Well kind of sort of. Been busy posting about our show and getting it a write up in the local paper. In the meantime here’s a watercolor for you. I have to do it on paper for my friend Monica who is in it. 

Monica works at the DuPont Planetarium at USC Aiken also known as the Ruth Patrick Science Center. She leads tours of school kids and gives them talks about the stars. 

Follow the Drinking Gourd is the black history month lecture about how slaves used the Drinking Gourd the Big Dipper to find their way north to freedom. 

I paint across the parking lot from her at USCAiken Etheridge Center. She invited me over to hear her Drinking Gourd talk. Monica did a dynamite job and I had to draw her. It was almost pitch black by the time I finished. 

The sketch sat around while I decided how to draw the star field and the whirlpool galaxy. Never done that before. 

I realized I could paint the night sky black and then splatter it with white gouache which worked out great.

 I also wanted to make the galaxy bright in the center and fade at the edges. As I painted the sky with a mix of indigo  alizarin crimson and hookers green I bled the edges around the galaxy with clear water. I coated it with very watered down Quin gold just to give a glow. Let it dry. 

Coated the sky with the indigo mix again and bled the edges again. Then I added dabs of watery alizarin crimson  and marine blue in a circular swirl. Let it dry. Added more of those colors and grey and purples to define the galaxy spin. Trying for that glow. 

Finally I splattered the galaxy with white gouache and a very small brush. I should have used a tooth brush. Next time I will. 

Highly recommend the Ruth Patrick tour!! 

Happy Sunday. 

Still in my Jammies relaxing on a chilly Sunday 

Margaret xoxoxo

Friday Time for the really BIG Show!

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The show is hung and it looks awesome.Can’t  wait for you all to see it.  Join us tonite at the 600 Building on Broad Street in Augusta 6-8 pm. The reception is today but the show will be up all month and the gallery will be open from 10-4. 

Where else will you see TWO stories of art in Augusta?! 

The building was designed by IM Pei and is very retro late 70s. 

The old Chamber of Commerce building is now the Greater Augusta Arts Council Gallery. 

See ya tomorrow nite. Oh did I say we have wine too!! 🤗👍🏻

Time to Get ready! Xoxoxo

Day 951 Lazy Sunday 

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Ah NO. have a pile of 7-8 sketches to paint. Oh my!! 

In the meantime. MY fav heathy out and about breakfast the bowl at the Inner Bean. Scrambled eggs black beans avocado tomatoes bacon and hmm oh cheese. Yum. 


These guys sat next to me at the Bean as I ate my bowl. Deep in conversation over Masters preparations at local golf courses. Never noticed me sitting there sketching them. 

Both done with a Lamy EF with Lexington Grey ink in a Stillman and Birn Alpha. Ted Nuttalls transparent colors plus cerulean. 


A few of the pics of sketches I need to get painted. 

Thanks for stopping by. 

Margaret xoxoxo

Day 938 Sometimes it doesn’t turn out like u expected  

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so it’s good to have a fall back. 

I have darkened this one down quite a bit. Trying to get the lights to glow.  Still not there. Better than it was. 

Here it was earlier. I drew this last week in downtown. It’s where AC and I ate late lunch. 

Remember this?! Like this one better. Maybe I need to write all over it.  Lol. Still have one more sketch from or Sunday unpainted. 


Off to our first meetup of urbansketchers of Augusta. Hope to see you at the Earthfare meeting room at 1. 

Ttyl 

Margaret xoxoxo whose having a way too busy weekend. 

Day 936 Today’s the day!

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So I will make this short. 


I keep thinking there’s a painting. At Costco. Maybe several. Not sure. I drew this at the pre Super Bowl snack frenzy. Vultures including me walked away well fed. WHOLE slices of pizza. I stood not far from them booked propped on my cart, drawing and nobody noticed me. NOT ONE person. So strange.

 The lady was handing out pizza bites. They had to pass right by me to get to the whole pizza slices. The mobs were huge. Sausage hot dogs Artichoke dip popcorn -lots of great snacks. 
Noodler Konrad Stillman and Birn Zeta Ted Nuttalls transparent palette. 


The check out line at Costco. Think this might be my next acrylic. What do u think. 

Ttyl 

Margaret xoxoxo

#costco

Day 935 Urban sketching at the Augusta Museum and a cartoon. 

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Sunday was a free day at the local museum. I had not been since it moved to its new building and it’s just remarkable. The Augusta room is so well done. The train that all my kids loved is still there to walk thru but now inside out of the weather. 

This is drawn from a display of the Stallings Island Archaic period.  

As a girl my friends and I volunteered at the museum and worked on the original arrowhead exhibit for the archaic period. We always had fun working after school at the old museum 

I did mean to draw something else on this page but forgot so I filled it in with the notes on the Stallings Islnd culture. OOPPS. The yellow is. YOU guessed it. Quin gold. With cerulean 

There’s an Augusta Trolley car too. AC and I had to check them both out. Very fun. Love be the bright yellow trolley. Going to have to go back when I can stay longer.  

 The 70s exhibit


An old water pumper. I drew it but still have to paint it. Maybe today?!  

My sketchbookskool homework a Day in the Life. Should have done a two page spread because I ran out of room. Oh well it’s done. 

If you want to try this make a list of your days activities OR just make blocks and fill them in. 

Pitt pens pyrrole red Quin gold cerulean hematite green. Stillman and Birn mixed media Zeta. 

Ttyl yoga time soon. 

Margaret xoxoxo

Day 934 Urban sketching and a cartoon 

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I drew this apartment building from the porch of the Partridge Inn last Wednesday. It was bathed in the late afternoon sun. I don’t know if I captured it but it’s my other favorite sketch from yesterday. 

Color Quin cold and Quin coral on the building w a violet in the shadows.  Hematite green bushes w ultramarine blue. Sky cerulean. 

Sketchbookskool homework.  Draw a cartoon. 

This is our beloved art professor Al saying his quips that keep us laffing and coming back for more of his teaching. I am starting year two. Some people in Advanced Painters have been there for twenty years. His New Yorkness is still there all these years later. 

Some more Al-isms. 
Looks like a gorilla painted this. 

Don’t mess it up to fix it. Never happens. 
You owe me some time. 
You need to leave room 140

There’s a world outside room 140

This is not a democracy. 

Steal from the best. 

“These two areas of your painting need to talk to each other”. 

 “Get working. Stop talking”. 

 “Don’t let me paint your painting for you. You decide”. 

  “Seven years he has been here and he has never done anything I’ve asked him to do”. (Like in a way he is sort of proud of the guy for that)

 “So do you think you have another painting in ya?”

 “Work on this for your next 20 paintings”.

Kawfee 
“You got it!” (I.e.do we understand?)

 “You are in danger of finishing this painting”. 

 ” It’s your painting; I don’t want to micromanage it”
“Be thinking about your next painting” ”
“Keep it fresh!

“Don’t get too.close.to me….or might be I don’t want to get too close to anyone, I might be coming down with something.”

“I am very tired.today” ” I have to go crack my back”.

Stop.talking….start painting…….and/or. “Get to work”!😕🎨
Have the same person paint this side.  
Watch those edges. 

Big brush strokes. 

Warms and cools make a happy painting 
Complimentary Pairs. 
Brush strokes 
Same intensity of two complimentaries make them pop. .
Change blue use thalo sometimes. Thick paint makes it closer glazes farther away
Texture brush strokes 

People are stingy about their paint 
A really great painter pays attention to the corners and edges not just the middle.