Becoming an Artist - For Real

That Handy Dandy Sketchbook! Part 1

2011-05-20T22:42:00.013-05:00

'Remembering Billy'
Pen and colored pencil on paper

Sketching to Keep Busy

One thing I have been doing on a regular basis has been keeping my sketchbook with me at all times! There is no excuse to not have one, that's what I tell myself anyway. Especially when I forget it! :) If I can remember to put one in my scooter, then I'll have one with me at all times.

I have several. One is a tiny little thing, no bigger than an iPhone (which I don't own), and can be taken out whenever I'm in a situation where I'm bored -- which happens too often. The other is a Moleskin Watercolor Notebook which can withstand some abuse and is not too large. This one is my new favorite and the one I have used for my newest sketches. This one I'll cover in part 2 of That Handy Dandy Sketchbook!

You never know what you'll end up drawing, it might be worth saving.

I learned that from a very wise teacher, Miss Mularkey, who made me realize that we may as well draw on the good stuff! You can always buy more paper or use the back of it if your work doesn't turn out.

My old favorite is the Canson Field Drawing Hardcover Ringed Book. It has a heavy paper, cream colored but it is a real drawing paper, not sketch paper and holds up to massive abuses. Not that I'm a paper abuser mind you, but I don't want my paper to buckle or rip if I have to erase or do something nasty to it to fix a mistake. I also want good paper if it's something I want to frame or sell later.

Pens and Pencils

I had thrown in my purse a Micron India ink pen, .005 mm, I also have used a Zig Millennium .05 since they are pretty cheap too (look at fabric stores or Michael's), so I can get really fine lines since the book is so small. This is where it is proportionately appropriate to use this small of a pen tip. I also throw in 3 sharpened colored pencils... a light yellow, magenta and a cyan. Later, I ended up adding a few greens and darker colors to make it easier for myself, but actually I was able to get all my range with just those three colors. This is a good challenge though! Three colors acts like a printing press. Throw that black pen in there sparingly and cleverly and you can draw the world.

When I'm sitting there at a park with my kids, or in the Dr.'s waiting room, or even just sitting at the family farm, I haul out that little sketchbook and start doodling. It makes me feel like I'm accomplishing something and puts me in my happy place!

My Time

2010-12-18T21:33:00.005-06:00

Again,

Not doing a lot of posting. Typical! There is a lull here which is good. I have been very busy working most of the year. Lots of freelancing, lots of teaching at the CVA, some private teaching here at the house. It's been a good year!

My Stuff
What I should be doing now is working on MY stuff. First, I need to clear out a space to work, then, I need to figure out the greatest question while I do that...what is my stuff? When an artist works so long on everyone's projects for so long, they lose sight of what their style is and what their voice is. Or, at least it has happened to me.

A friend of mine has my artwork from when I was in college. She is just in love with my stuff and asked me what was my motivation and how did I come up with the colors and ideas? It's actually part of the header on my blog (which I need to resize!)

I had to tell her, it was for my senior show, I had a deadline and I had to crank out some shit as fast as I could... that was my motivation and muse. I don't think she cared for that answer, but it was the honest truth. Sometimes the truth isn't what people want to hear, especially in art.

I do have to say, I think it's good, some of my best work. Art doesn't have to necessarily mean anything, but people want to hear a good story, so we do as artists need to come up with B.S. story sometimes. :)

Green Cutter 2010 Acrylic on Canvas 12"x12"

Where am I going with this?
I think the one thing that I feel is driving me at this point is the farm stuff I'm doing. The rust and equipment from my family farm. That does mean something to me. Too bad I gave my art away. I'll have to recreate some of it and keep it this time.

Well, my husband is home for a good week, I should have no excuses for cleaning up my studio space and at least getting a canvas going. Let's see how far I get. Maybe I'll post before the year is up!

It's been a while!

2009-12-08T14:15:00.003-06:00

Things have been pretty crazy on the home front. Our little guy is now 4 months old and has been a very easy baby. The upside is that I have been able to do some artwork, but I can see that when he's about 6 months, that will come to a screeching halt again as he will be mobile. Not sure how I'll deal with two kids under 3 and do artwork. I do rely on daily naps to get through the daytime so I can work at night. What I won't do for art!

I had to have Maggie go to daycare and have anyone who could watch her take over for a few days while I worked. When it rains, it pours! I was very, very busy last month!

Freelancing!
I had a freelance gig with a Department Store which came and went just as quickly. Lots of late nights and sleepy days, but it was worth it. I should have a line of plates, cups, kitchen towels and placemats coming out next Christmas. I'll have to post how things look!

Just on the last day, I barely got things out. My G4 laptop (6 years old) died on me. It was dead. I couldn't start the computer, the battery was also dead since it was so old. I decided that having a freelance gig was a sign I should just get a new computer and have the G4 as my backup. I also had to get all new software since the new operating system was Intel based and the old stuff won't port over. So, I am excited about what I can do now.

I'm not so excited about why my old laptop died. I didn't realize it was just the power cord until my husband "tested" it with his tongue. So with a new power supply, it's working, though it's not totally reliable. I can't burn DVD's, the cover doesn't shut, the keys are wearing off and lots of other things aren't working due to it's age.

Teaching my first Acrylics Class
I had just got done teaching my first painting class at the Center for Visual Arts in Wausau, WI. It was a basic Acrylics class. I had 5 students, which was a good amount for both of us being beginners! I feel it went pretty well, everyone seemed to learn a lot and gained confidence in what they were doing.

It strikes me how afraid people are to try painting, as if it's so mysterious that they can't possibly do it. When they find out how easy it really is to just apply the paint to the canvas, they blossom. It's not that they don't have ideas on what to paint, it's the actual application of paint that is the scary part. I personally have the opposite problem, it's the idea that is difficult and the paint application that's easy!

As I expected, I learned a great deal on using Acrylics from the students and just my research. It's really opened up a new world on how I approach painting as well. Working with an extremely limited palette has made me realize I really don't need more than primaries, black and white. Even black is optional! We never painted that way at college, I wish we did.

Acrylics class online
I do plan on posting (not sure when) how I went about doing the Acrylics class so maybe other who are thinking of teaching will possibly pick up something. I really couldn't find anything online on how to come up with a beginner's curriculum, how to teach and what seems to be expected of students and the instructor.

Drawing Class in March
I'll be doing the drawing class at the CVA in the spring and as far as I have understood, it's mine if I want it. I'll have to write how I got this class when I have more time. It's a sad story, but I know it was meant to be. I already have one or two students signed up, my Dad and possibly my Aunt. I told them they need to be my guinea pigs so I can develop the class ahead of time!

New Web site Launched

2009-07-11T23:05:00.008-05:00

Web site Update

www.amyrebella.com

I decided to redo my Web site (again) after I realized how difficult it was for search engines to track it and to add verbal information easily. It originally was more of a gallery, which was easy to update, but it wasn't practical for actually ordering from the site!

I added a form for ordering. It should work for most orders. I will be adding a section to upload pictures directly and for making payments through PayPal. Always more stuff to add!

Hopefully will get more traffic and orders with this version.

I'm glad that I can do my own site and coding, it's not so great that I am so picky!

"Saturday Evening Post Cover - 2009"
12" x 14" Colored Pencil on Bristol Board

This was several years in the making, as it was a Pro Bono for my Father, and was put on the back burner pretty much constantly since I started it. Since I have a limited amount of time right now before baby #2 is born, and wasn't too busy with other work, I should take the time and finish the project once and for all!

It's a cover reproduction of a 1950's Saturday Evening Post. The thing making it special is that I had to replace the original photo of the Harley Davidson with my Father's Indian Motorcycle.

It was interesting to go back and work on something that I started so long ago. My techniques for colored pencil have changed quite a bit over the last few years and I have learned a ton since starting this.

I have been working in colored pencil for over 20 years, but not as intensly and detailed as I have recently. The progress was much faster now than it would have been if I continued when I started it.

Glad to have it done and I will be giving it to him as soon as I can!

Teaching at the Center for the Visual Arts!

2009-06-24T15:33:00.002-05:00

Just found out I'll be teaching an Acrylics class at the CVA this fall. It will be a month after having my baby - hope I'll be able to stay awake for the class!

Now, I really need to get some painting done. It's one thing to know how to paint, it's another thing entirely to teach someone else how to do it. I did document my last painting and kept mental notes of what I did to get to where I needed to go, but it wouldn't hurt to do it again. I also don't have any current work and would like to enter the juried show again this year, so I'll have something to show for class and for the show if I get in.

I'll still be working on my colored pencil stuff since it's a lot more portable and it's my first love. I just wish I had more time like the old days, before kids, to get things done.

Life Drawing
Right now I'm also taking an open lab life drawing class. Best $25 bucks I've spent in a long time. It's been about 17-18 years since I drew from life like that. I didn't do too bad, but I can certainly use some more time to get proportions on the lower half of the body correct. I can't remember all my little tricks, but they are coming back to me as I do more and more.

It's a great group of people in there. The difference between this and a regular college class is that everyone wants to be there and are fairly accomplished at drawing, where in college most of the class is inexperienced or don't want to be there.

I hope I can make it to the end of the class. It goes until the end of July, I'm due in the middle of August.

Another Portrait Finished

2009-06-03T20:37:00.000-05:00

"Maggie in the Leaves"

2009
8"x10"
Colored Pencil on White Stonehenge Paper

Got one more portrait done! I'm working as fast as I can before our second child arrives in August. This portrait will be at the Center for Visual Arts in Wausau, Wisconsin for a July show. I need to frame it up and get it ready!

Still haven't heard if I will for sure be teaching an acrylic class this coming fall. This would be a great opportunity for me as I really do love to teach. I'm intentionally doing more acrylic paintings just to be able to describe my process. It's one thing to just do it, another to teach about it.

I am excited about the prospect of taking a life drawing course in the next few weeks. It's a rare opportunity to have an open lab without the commitment of a formal class and that it's right here in town. The only possible problem is that there won't be enough people signing up to take the class and they might not offer it if it's not full.

"Thresher" 12x12

2009-04-24T16:37:00.000-05:00

I just finished a 12x12" painting recently of a thresher from the family farm. It was one of those projects that took way too long, but was a lot of fun to do. I ended up putting Maggie in daycare so I could work on it during the day. She sure likes going there and I sure like to get stuff done, so we'll do this as long as I can afford to do it.

I figured I better get back into acrylics if I teach a class this fall! That was part of my major in college and I did a lot of acrylics in high school, so I'm familiar with it. Things sure have changed though on the kinds of acrylics that are out there. I'm really enjoying the OPEN line from Golden. I hate how long oils take to dry, but acrylics are also a problem even with retarders added. They dry way too fast. The new kind of acrylics are so much easier to work with, staying open to drying time a lot longer, but will not stay open so long as to require months of drying time.

In this case, I opted for the regular old acrylics just to get a feel for it, but I would like to keep working with the OPEN line and I got a bunch of the Atelier line to try out.

Finished Jax & Oscar

2009-03-29T21:37:00.001-05:00

After a rocky start, I finally got the portrait of Jax and Oscar completed. It's an 11x14 on Stonehenge cream colored paper.

The best part of doing portraits is always the delivery of the artwork. They were very happy and started to cry, especially when they saw the black dog. He died unexpectedly and this was a tribute to him.

Next project: Ford F150 part II

This could be considered a series as it's the exact same image of a Ford Truck that I had just done, except the background will change. It's family who had just sold the truck which had belonged to their father. This is a great way to keep the truck and make it part of their family history. I'm hoping to get started with it this week. I'm getting really busy now and hate to stop.

We'll be having our second child in August, I expect my last days working will be in June sometime as I will probably have carpal tunnel terribly bad again, just like last time. After that though, I'll be back at it. So, right now I'm frantically trying to get as much done as possible!

Commission: Oscar & Jax

2009-02-08T10:42:00.001-06:00

Right now I have another commission to do portraits of a pair of dogs.

The one in the foreground had just unexpectedly passed away. The one in the background is still around.

The client really wants the foreground dog to stand out, which should be easy since he's a black dog.

I have to watch the background however. I'll be putting grass around the dogs, so I also don't want it to get overwhelmed by that. I'll post pics as I go along.

Finished the Truck!

This is the second to last of the proofs, I had to finish the bottom part a little more and sign the thing. I got it done a couple of days ago. I sure learned a lot from this one! I'm still not too familiar with pastels and what the best method is to work in them.

One thing I learned is I should do the background first! I don't like to do the background first when I do colored pencil, it gets too hard to keep the subject clean for me at least. In this case, it was a real problem adding things around the vehicle after I already had it finished. I think I did alright, but it could have gone smoother.

The other is don't use my finger for blending. I need to make sure that if I do, I have a good callous built up because I pretty much scraped the skin off my finger on the sanded paper. It would have been a bloody mess if I didn't watch what I was doing. It really hurt too.

I haven't found a tool that can blend quite as well as my finger. The things out there lift off the pastel and don't force it into the grain of the paper. Working so small also requires a delicate touch so I can't always blend just using the pastels themselves.

I'm not sure if I like the Wallis sanded paper. It seems to have too much tooth for the above reasons. I did like Pastelbord by Ampersand. It's just enough tooth, but not too much. Problem with that is it's a major pain to frame. I'll have to show a demo on how I framed something else when I used the Pastelbord.

I'm so not a writer!

2009-01-27T14:28:00.001-06:00

I still have to get used to blogging! I don't write a whole lot as far as journaling goes, especially with an 18 month old who wants 100% attention. Anyway, I have been pretty busy drawing/painting lately.

CVA Midwest Winter Show
The show officially opened last Friday and had a great turnout. I was there for most of the time, lots of food! :) The quality of the pieces was very good this year. I haven't seen the previous years work, but sometimes I am disappointed in what is in the gallery. There were pieces from 11 states, coast-to-coast. I'm hoping my little piece would get someones attention and it has. I have two commissions resulting from that. Not a lot of money, but it's something! I figure it's worth it to do to make up for all the art supplies I have bought over the last two years. Now I can really use them up!

I also got to talk to the director and I'm hoping to be able to teach a class this summer. I really miss teaching and I think this would be a great outlet for me. I have to find out when it will be, I'm due in August -- I should still be able to teach, as long as I don't have the babes on the day of the class!

Truck #2
Here's what I have been working on for a couple of weeks now. It's not that it has taken that long, it's just that I'm beat at the end of the day lately. I'm hoping my energy level increases as I approach the second trimester.

This is the first commission I have had for a while. It's on Wallis sanded paper, pastel pencils mainly and some soft pastel, 10"x8". It was two photos combined, I had to include the gas station in the background somehow and make it a different kind (Texaco). Not sure if it's the way I want it to look yet. I need some distance to get a good judgement.

The big issue I have is as always, the background. I'm not sure if adding trees will be convincing enough. Not much to go on in the photo, but that's where I have to work my magic!

Something is finally happening...

2008-12-12T22:32:00.000-06:00

ACEO's

This week has been a very good week for me! I'm very happy to report that all four ACEO's sold.

I was initially asking $9.99 for each, then changed my mind and lowered it to $7.99. I ended up getting for all four $45.00. One sold for $18.25, pretty good for a newbie!

All of them were Madonna and Child images which I thought might sell for Christmas. All are done in Colored Pencil (Prismacolor, not my favorite) on 2-ply Plate finish Bristol Board.

They were a labor of love and pain. These caused me major amounts of pain in my neck which I'm still recovering from. The pins & needles feeling in my face is driving me crazy. I did love to do them and will probably do some more and sell them for next year.

Now I just have to come up with my own stuff. That's the hard part!

I think I'm more of an illustrator than fine artist as I do like to have a purpose for the artwork, not just a means to express myself. It's the action of doing the art I love, subject matter doesn't usually do anything for me. That's why I think I get artist's block a lot.

The juried show entry that got in

Juried Show

2nd great thing is that I got into the Center for Visual Arts juried show coming up in January. It's called "Midwest Seasons" and was marketed toward National/International artists. I think it's mainly for the Wausau, Wis area however. We'll see what all ends up being at the show.

I'm really happy I got in, but not as happy as I would be if it were the one I wanted to get in. Actually, it is the one I thought would get in, but I was working on the Daffodil picture and another one for so long, I was hoping one of those would have gotten in. Objectively, the one that was chosen is the strongest!

Getting up the nerve

2008-12-03T21:13:00.001-06:00

I finally got up the nerve and posted some Art cards on EBay the other night. I'm patiently, impatiently waiting to see if someone bids on at least one of them. They are all of Madonna and Child images which I hope will spark someone to buy for Christmas presents.

They were more of a last minute deal to see if the format, which is very small would be of interest to me (they are always 2.5" x 3.5"). I did find it a challenge but it wasn't too bad. All of them are reproductions of mostly Raphael images, so it was also an exercise in drawing.

I think I'd do it on different paper using different pencils.

I'm really not a fan of the Prismacolors. I feel like the only one out there that doesn't just love them! Reasons why I don't like them... too waxy, they seem to crumble too much, especially when I was using the bristol board. layering also seems to be harder to do for that reason. They don't have the dry feel like the oil based ones (which escape me right now, and I'm too lazy to get up to see what the name is right now!) I think that's what I hate the most.

I did make a significant investment in Prismacolors before finding the other ones which shall remain nameless right now. I regret doing that now. I'll use them up eventually. Good thing they never go bad. I have pencils from college I'm still using, and that's been nearly 20 years now.

Done!

2008-11-10T14:17:00.000-06:00

"Maggie's Daffodil"
11"x14" Colored Pencil on Cream Colored Stonehenge Paper

Here it is, finished. I adjusted the color so it is closer to the actual image.

I'm glad it's done, the thing about it is that it has so much time involved in it, was it worth it? I'm hoping to get it into a juried show this month, if it doesn't get in, I'm afraid I'll be horribly disappointed. I have two other paintings I did since this one just so I have a better chance of getting something in.

"Beautiful Truck"
Pastel on Pastelbord 8"x10"

I have never worked on a pastel in this fashion before. It's always been on a watercolor as more of motion marks. I never used real pastels either, always "nupastels", which are a very hard consistency. I bought some Sennelier pastels to finish the piece which gave it some punch and boy are they velvety! I hardly have to put the pastel to the board and it leaves a heavy mark.

The majority was done in pastel pencil and some nupastel.

"Past Their Prime"
8"x10" Colored Pencil on Strathmore 500 Illustration Board

This piece was the first time I used colored pencils on a hard board and also used a solvent (unconventional Isopropyl Alcohol). The background is mostly done with the solvent application. Not an easy thing to control for me. I'm not sure if I'm doing it right. I didn't like using Turpentine, too greasy. I think next time I'll try to use heat instead of anything solvent based. I see wonderful things done with just melting the pencil lead on the surface of the paper.

Working like crazy - not much time!

2008-09-02T13:09:00.000-05:00

I can't work fast enough! I have only a few hours left by myself but this is as far as I have gotten. Now I have to confess, this image took me about 2 years to complete, with 1 year off.

I have been working on the right side all weekend. It's colored pencil, 14" x 11". Boy this takes forever to do but I love to draw in CP.

I know the subject matter is overdone, but for some reason I just wanted to see if I could draw really REAL and tight. Probably because I have been doing a lot of technical drawing when I was working in graphic design. I'll loosen up eventually!

Becoming an Artist - For Real

2008-08-30T11:02:00.000-05:00

So I finally have time to myself. A whole weekend to do some artwork and here I am blogging and fooling around on the computer! I figure if I do this, it should be something semi-productive. In this case, writing about my trials and tribulations of becoming what my dream has always been, being an artist.

I have been an artist all my life. I've been drawing since I was a child, pretty continuously. I knew I wanted to be a commercial artist since I was 10 years old and was very serious about it.

When I was in high school and college I kept getting pushed into the fine arts. It worked out just fine. I am glad I did that since I find that knowing how to draw and paint makes doing artwork on the computer and design work so much easier. I know way too many graphic designers who do not know how to draw. I find that to be quite sad, like they are missing out on an aspect of their education. I have a BFA in drawing and painting, so my background is in the fine arts.

My work background is in the graphic arts and that was by accident. Lucky that the newspaper business was in need of paste-up artists in the early '90's and that's when computers were really starting to be used in the design field. I got free training and learned as much as I could. I ended up at several jobs that allowed me to really do whatever I wanted to do in graphic design and Web site design. It was fun for a while, but then I got sick of it. When I get good at something, I lose interest in it. I think that's what happened. It wasn't fun anymore. I still do it, I can make a living at it at least!

It's funny, I read "The Artist's Magazine" and other magazines promoting full-time professional artists and almost every single one of the people interviewed has in their resume, "so, and so worked as a graphic designer for 20 years and quit to become a full-time artist". I tell my husband that every time I read another article! It's not just me who has the itch to do what is really a natural progression from graphic arts.

It may be because one goes from working on someone else's vision to wanting to do your own. I never have done something for myself. I don't think I have ever done my own project. Even when I draw and paint it's always been something that has been an assignment or a commissioned piece of some sort.

Right now I have my opportunity to do something that is my choice, whatever I want to do. I have to clear out of my head unhelpful comments that past professors made about what is or isn't art by their definition. I just have to do what I like and just do it.

I'm such a procrastinator though and have such a fear of failure it's hard to get started or if I start, it's impossible to finish!

So, here I am again. I have 3 projects going right now. One I am determined to finish this weekend. This is a colored pencil drawing that has potential I think as long as I keep my confidence up. I would like to enter it into a juried show this fall.

The other one is a watercolor painting which is about 75% done, but as I look at it more and more I'm losing interest in it and not liking it. It might have to be scrapped. I'll post pictures.

Third project is one for my Pop -- which there is always something going on for my Pop! It's a cover of a magazine with a Harley swapped out for his Indian Motorcycle, also colored pencil. That one is a big project. It's been on my easel for 2 years now.