Happy Moo Year Cow Paint-Along!

 

Kick off your new year with a Happy Moo Year Cow Paint-Along!

$20

Join us Saturday January 16 to paint this cute white faced cow. I painted her way back in 2012 from another pic. She's mighty photogenic!

Register EARLY to have time to prep your drawing! I will send you the Zoom invitation, the reference photo, some surface prep info, a materials list including alternative underpainting methods in case you don't have what I use, and even a line drawing that you can use to transfer to your board or paper in case you don't have time to freehand your drawing. Easy Peasy!

Register here! https://www.ritakirkman.com/event/147017/happy-moo-year-cow-paint-along

Beulah Bun (Warm Fuzzy #54)

 

Warm Fuzzy #54 - "Beulah Bun" (pastel, 16x8 inches) click here to bid or buy

Finally! Here's the bunny from my December Paint-Along last Saturday!

I painted this bunny before way back in 2013, as a 12x6, and called him "Buster" (see him here!) I like making my paint-alongs from something I've done before and really enjoyed because then I have a painting that I can show off already for the adverts. Plus, I get to enjoy the image again!

I like the fuzziness of Beulah Bun! You can watch the full 2.5 hr Paint-Along video with a pledge of $10 on my Patreon Page (video will be posted tomorrow, it's processing and uploading now as I type.)

The paint-along was a lot of fun, and a record number of attendees! I hope I get as good a turn-out next month. Stay tuned to my events page for my January Schedule, coming soon after Christmas.

Meanwhile, have a Very Merry, Lovely, Safe, and Creative Christmas and Happy Holidays!

Beulah Bun's drawing:

And some of my Paint-Along Attendees with their results!

Alfalfa (Warm Fuzzy #53) - Demo for the PSCF

 Warm Fuzzy #53 - "Alfalfa" (pastel, 6x6 inches) click here to bid

Thank you to the Pastel Society of Central Florida for having me do a demo for their December 2020 meeting. You all had some great questions about primers, surfaces, and framing, and thank you for your interest in my Paint-Alongs and Patreon page and the short studio tour!

Thanks also to Deborah who liked his little cowlick, for giving me the title idea! I tweaked a tiny bit of the background colors afterwards, and decided to sign it at the bottom left after all. 

 

If you are a member of the PSCF or any of the Texas pastel societies who were invited to the demo (APS, CTPS, PSST) you can find access to the video from your societies. I'll be sending them the link.

 

Meanwhile, you can see some progress screen shots from the recording on my public Patreon post here.  Enjoy!

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Furball (Warm Fuzzy #52)

 

Warm Fuzzy #52 - "Furball" (pastel, 8x8 inches) $350 framed

This fat furry Hereford was my opening demo for the Mid Atlantic Pastel Society workshop last month. I'm finally getting around to posting him, and decided to zip together these best parts of the demo into a speed video for you! You can watch it here!

"Purrball" (Warm Fuzzy #51)

 

Warm Fuzzy #51 - "Purrball" (pastel, 5x4 inches) $250 framed Buy here

This was my final demo of the MidAmerica Pastel Society workshop last month. He was one of 4 underpaintings I demoed that Saturday morning, but did not have time to pastel Saturday afternoon, so I finished him off Sunday afternoon instead. I think I was well warmed up by then, because I like how fresh he turned out! I'm especially happy with the lost edges - something I still struggle with most times.

The cat is a sweetie I met in Michigan who lived with the hosts I stayed with for the Ann Arbor Street Art Fair a few years ago. They cautioned me "He bites!" That was true, but he was also a lovey purr ball! I think he just couldn't understand why I wouldn't bite him back... it was all playtime to him!

Here he is on the bathroom sink, my reference photo for the painting:

...and "Purrball" framed:

Frederick, Maryland Riverwalk - A painting challenge

 

"Frederick, Maryland Riverwalk" (pastel, 9x12 inches, $475 framed Buy here)

This urban scene was a double challenge; for two separate pastel societies' monthly challenges. One was to paint an urban scene. The other was to paint in the style of a favorite artist. I decided to do both at once!

 Well, since Monet was not known for his urban scenes, I chose this river city scene and was inspired by another favorite impressionist, Alfred Sisley. My photo reference was one I took in Frederick, Maryland on a family vacation years ago. I really liked the composition of the photo just as it was (makes my painting job easier!) and I loved the early evening twilight glow.

To help me catch the impressionist style of painting in such a small pastel (9x12) I used a heavily textured paper, Sabretooth, a very bumpy sanded pastel paper. No underpainting this time, just dry working on the white paper with lots of blending of base layers. It took me about 4 hours total work time.

View the reference photo, along with some progress pics and the inspirational Sisley painting, on my public Patreon post here!

 

Fuzzy Hereford Paint-Along on Saturday!

 

 So, you don't really want to SHOP this weekend, do you?! How about a Paint-Along instead?

This fuzzy Hereford calf "Taylor" is an earlier painting (pastel, 6x6, sold) that I thought was so cute I've decided to paint him again at my Virtual Open Studio this Saturday (as a Paint-Along!)

I'll be using this other photo of him:

Join me Saturday Nov 28, at 1pm Central Time on Zoom, and paint along with me! Only $15 to register.

Follow along with my complete painting process. I use acrylic-based pastel primers for my underpainting, in gold and terra cotta tones, but many other underpainting mediums will work almost just as well. 

(See some pics of the two steps of "Taylor"s underpainting HERE!)

If you'd like to join us live, be sure to register EARLY for the Zoom invitation, the reference photo, and some tips on how you can utilize any underpainting materials and painting/drawing surfaces you might have on hand. I will even include a drawing trace-out that you can print for quick assistance with your drawing!

REGISTER HERE!

 

A "Peek" at some Small Works for the Holidays

 

"Peek" (Warm Fuzzy #51..?) pastel, 8x4 inches, $285 framed (Buy here)

Peek was one of my demos from the virtual pastel class I taught back in August. Wow, has it been that long?? I didn't realize I had so many paintings I haven't posted here yet! 

This curious emu is one of many small works that I will be taking to the Carriage House Gallery (Boerne Texas) on Wednesday when I work. Each year we focus on Small Works for the Holiday Season, great for gift giving!

Here's a peek at some of the little paintings I'll be hanging at the gallery Wednesday:

A few of these have already sold, but a few more are not pictured here that I'll be framing tomorrow ;)

See something you like, please inquire and I'll send you a closeup!

Here's Peek peeking around the edge of his frame:

See a slide-show of process pics for the making of Peek on my public Patreon post here!

"Mewler in Profile" (Warm Fuzzy #50)

 

Warm Fuzzy #50 - "Mewler in Profile" (pastel, 6x6 inches) $285 framed (buy here)

My latest little portrait of our lovely Mewler kitty! He's such a good model. This was my demo for the Central Texas Pastel Society on Saturday. It went pretty smoothly; I love it when that happens. Then I was able to get right into the house and crop and format this little speed demo from the video I took... all before dinner time! I'm getting better at this!

The 3 minute speed video, hope you enjoy it!...

 

Here's how he looks in the frame:

 

Buckeye (Warm Fuzzy #49)

 "Buckeye" (Warm Fuzzy #49) pastel, 6x6 inches. $285 Click here to buy

Buckeye will be traveling next week to Boerne Texas to be one of the Small Works for the Holidays at the Carriage House Gallery (unless he sells first. ;)

 

For a $10 subscription you can see the full process video of Buckeye on my Patreon page here! But right now you can see a few of the screen shot progress pics on this free public post.

 

Here's how he looks in his frame:

 

 

 

Park Trail #53

 

"Park Trail #53" (pastel, 8x8, sold)

 

This one was my one landscape demo for the recent workshop with MidAmerica Pastel Society. I don't do a whole lot of landscapes, but when I do I just love painting pathways (as evidenced by the "#53" on this one ;) And I love dappled light through the trees.

 

I don't much enjoy tree trunks as a major subject however, so I kept these trunks simple. As usual in my work, it's more about the light!

 

I didn't quite finish this painting in the time I had allotted myself for the demo, so I finished it a few days later.

See some of the progress pics on this public Patreon post!

 

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"Snuggle Ducks" (Warm Fuzzies #47 and #48)

 Warm Fuzzies #47 and #48 - "Snuggle Ducks" (pastel, 8x8 inches) click here to bid or buy

This was my demo for the Pastel Society of North Carolina this morning. Once again, these cute critters are from Fry's Fun Farm (as are about 80% of my baby farm animal pics!) The dappled light really attracted me to this image. And the sheer cuteness of the pose, of course!

Here's the reference pic and the underpainting.

Warm Fuzzy #46 - Gosling

 

Warm Fuzzy #46 - "Gosling" (pastel, 8x4 inches) click here to bid or buy

I just finished two back-to-back 3-day online workshops. Whew! These were what I had been preparing for all these months since the pandemic started and my string of four east coast workshops turned in to two that agreed to stick with it and move to Zoom.

I created my Virtual Open Studio Days in part to "practice" my studio streaming setup in preparation for these two workshops. All the preparation sure paid off because they both went more smoothly than I had anticipated (Well, except for a few moments when Alexa interfered with the connection of my bluetoooth headset and I finally told her to turn off after I realized it was my headset trouble and not everyone else's mics... Ahh, the adventures of technology!)

This cute little "Gosling" was my opening demo for this week's workshop with the PSNC. He was one of the babies at Fry's Fun Farm a few years ago. I love that petting zoo, their baby animals are the best!

Warm Fuzzy #45 - Asa

 

Warm Fuzzy #45 - "Asa" (pastel, 6x6 inches) click here to bid or buy

This whiteface calf had such a noble pose and elegant look about her. She fit so well perfectly centered in a 6x6, and I decided to make the background dark to better set off the glowing white of her face.

For a $10 pledge, you can watch the full-length video of the creation of Asa on my Patreon page here!

"Castor and Pollux" in the Pastel Journal "Spark"

 "Castor and Pollux" original sold, giclee prints available.

I'm excited today because my Pastel Journal just came in the mail, and I was invited to write a little blurb for the "Spark" section of the and here it is in the December issue! 

 

 

Visit my public post on Patreon, where I've transcribed the text so you can read the article, and posted larger pics!

"Castor an Pollux" also happens to be one of the canvas giclee prints I have available at the Woodlands Waterway Arts Fest this weekend! See more about it here. 

 

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"Brownie" at the WWAF

 "Brownie" (pastel, 10x10 inches) $550 framed and free US shipping

Support the Arts this weekend from the comfort of your coffee table! 😀🎨 

This weekend is the Woodlands Waterway Arts Festival which has moved Online! My newest cow painting "Brownie" (pastel, 10x10) is part of my inventory for the Festival. More info on the Festival here

The art booths open Saturday at Noon CST! Preview my page at https://www.eventeny.com/company/?c=10842 and browse the other artists Virtual Booths too starting Saturday.

Meringue to WWAF silent auction

 

I wanted to share this with y'all! I've been prepping vigorously for The Woodlands Waterway Arts Festival, which is this weekend, October 17 & 18. Hosted by The Woodlands Arts Council, they've done a pretty amazing job with how they are presenting the online events and activities and artists booths/galleries. They even have a Zoom chat option available (and I've got one ready!) 

 

THIS LINK will take you to my Virtual Gallery for the festival. I THINK I have all my work loaded now... 

 

This is my piece donated to the silent auction: "Meringue" (pastel, 12" circle)

The silent auction has already begun! You can register for free HERE.

 

Check out THIS PAGE for more festival info, previews of events, and artists booths open at Noon CST on Saturday!

 

Hope to see you there - come visit my Zoom chat!

 

  

 

Blaize - at the Woodlands Waterway Arts Fest

 

"Blaize" (pastel, 7x5 inches) 

This little Arabian colt was painted at one of my Virtual Open Studio days last month. She will be part of my inventory for the Woodlands Waterway (Virtual) Arts Festival coming up Oct 16-18, 2020. The Woodlands Arts Council, creators of the WWAF, have done an amazing job creating an online experience to connect collectors and artists, including a silent auction, musical performances, artist interviews and more. Check it out here on the 16th when it goes LIVE!

I've been getting all my recent paintings uploaded to my virtual art "booth/gallery". I'll even a Zoom chat room available over the weekend! I'm really looking forward to this online art festival. I've got good vibes about it. After so long being isolated with so many events canceled month after month, this one seems to have a great grasp of the new virtual reality and is making the most of it.

So I hope you can get on your tablet or laptop in the comfort of your home, enjoy the show, and support the arts this coming weekend!

(Take a sneak peek at my WWAF virtual gallery/store here. I'm uploading new works daily.)

"Blaize" pastel, 7x5 inches, $325 framed and free shipping in the US

PS: Subscribe to my Patreon page for instant access to the full length demo video of the pasteling of "Blaize", and many more fun, informative pastel videos!

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Tulip Garden - won some pastels!

 

"Tulip Garden" (pastel, 12x12 inches)

The Pastel Society of Southeast Texas has been having a themed painting challenge each month, and last month the subject was Flowers/Gardens. I'm thrilled to say that this won an Honorable Mention in the challenge (and $50 to Dakota Pastels! Whoo hoo!!)

You can see a slide show of the PSST monthly contest show on their home page here. (The September show will be featured until the October show is judged.)

Landscape is not my main thing, and frequently when I do one I'm either taking another artist's workshop or trying to channel another artist's style. For this one, I was inspired by the landscapes of Gustav Kimpt and a cloudy-day photo I took at the Dallas Arboretum which reminded me of Klimpt's landscapes. I painted this on MingART Premium sanded pastel paper, dark gray.

This was painted during one of my Virtual Open Studio days. You can watch a Speed Video demo of this painting here!

"Tulip Garden" will be part of my inventory for the Woodlands Waterway (Virtual) Arts Festival coming up Oct 16-18, 2020. 

$550 framed and free shipping in the US

 

Warm Fuzzy #42 - Piggly (and video!)

 

Warm Fuzzy #42 - "Piggly" (pastel, 8x6 inches) $300 framed

My viewers chose this Piglet for the Virtual Open Studio last Monday. I was happy with how fresh this one came out!   Enjoy this 2-minute speed video below!

You can watch the full-length video of Piggly (with a subscription) HERE and many more pastel painting videos full of tutorial content and fun casual conversation about everything pastel, on my Patreon page. 

Piggly will be part of my inventory for the Online Woodlands Waterway Art Festival next month (unless she sells before then.) They're doing a really good job of setting up an online gallery and virtual experiences for artists and collectors. I'm still getting my artwork organized and uploaded to the system.

Piggly's reference photo compliments of Kathryn Helmink https://twitter.com/KathrynHelmink

 

"Baby Sea Turtle"

 

"Baby Sea Turtle" (pastel, 6x12 inches) $390 framed

I wanted to title this in my "Warm Fuzzy" series, but...   hmmm...

He's still cute! Painted much larger than life, this baby was about 2 inches long! I caught some photos of this baby at a zoo on my travels a couple years ago. I had a lot of fun painting the strange color temperatures of the aquarium lighting.

This little turtle was pasteled last week in my Virtual Open Studio, and underpainted last month. You can see the full-length video of the pastel process here on my Patreon page (with a subscription.)

"Baby Sea Turtle" will be listed among my paintings available at the Online Woodlands Waterway Art Festival next month. They're doing a really good job of setting up an online gallery and virtual experiences for artists and collectors. I'm still getting my artwork organized and uploaded to the system.

Here are some progress pics from the underpainting and the pastel video: