Watercolor Jivers - original watercolor and graphite figurative painting

Okay, it looks like I was just totally goofing off, but my jivers like to show up in any medium, so this time they danced on Yupo for the unbridled fun of it.  This little painting is about 4 1/2 x 10".  Thanks so much for stopping by!

Sweet Jive - original charcoal figurative drawing of dancers

This drawing is set to become a painting (oil on canvas or panel).  I don't always do this, but the painting usually goes a little quicker when I have a plan of sorts.  Plus, I just love using my vine charcoal - this time, it's Coates brand - to squiggle my dancers into being.  (They're always there, of course, but I give them a little nudge.)   Drawn on Strathmore Drawing paper, it's about 10 1/2 x 8 1/2".  Thanks for looking!

Jivin' Their Way - original oil figurative painting

I really loved doing this one - well, of course, I have fun with every single one of my jivers, but this one, especially.  Maybe it's because I sense their joy. The painting's not dry yet, so is a little fuzzy-looking in the photo.  "Jivin' Their Way" is on 8 x 8" archival canvas panel.  Thanks so much for stopping by! SOLD

Those Crazy Jivers - original oil figurative painting

Those crazy jivers are at it again - oh well, it's a holiday weekend.  Thanks for stopping by - have a good Labor Day!  Oh, almost forgot - it's on 7 x 5" Gessobord.

Saturday Jive - original oil pastel figurative painting

A fun little thing that I loved doing - it's about 11 1/2 x 19" on Art Spectrum Colourfix paper - a delicious concoction and perfectly gritty for oil pastels.  Saturdays were always fun when I was young and this is a little tribute to Saturday nights.  Thanks so much for visiting my blog! Sold

Sassy Jive - original oil figurative painting

I enjoyed painting the arm position of the woman - hence the word "sassy" in the title.  It's oil on 6 x 6" Gessobord.  Thanks so much for stopping by!

Dance Party - original charcoal figurative drawing

Happy 2013 everybody!!!  Hope this is your best year ever!  Right now I'm waiting for my plane to Italy, so if I don't post for awhile, you'll know I'm busy sightseeing and drinking in the art.  Have a great time tonight and the rest of 2013!  Oh and also, this drawing was done with vine charcoal on Strathmore drawing paper - it's about 14 x 16".  Thanks for stopping by!

More Jivemania - original charcoal figurative drawing

My crazy little characters can't stay away for long - they're back and just as wild as ever!  I used vine charcoal - I love the soft or extra soft for this.  The paper is Strathmore drawing 9 x 14".  Charcoal is the most wonderful!  And my characters like it, too.  They tell me it helps them be even more expressive and loose.
On a totally different subject, I saw Trouble with the Curve on Sunday and loved it!  It helps, of course, if you're a baseball fan, which I am, and a fan of Clint Eastwood and Amy Adams, which I also am - but I think I would have enjoyed it anyway.
Thank you so much for visiting Hackberry Street Studio - I hope you'll drop by my oil pastel blog.

They're Really Jivin' II - original oil figurative painting

 

I painted this from a drawing I did earlier - 'They're Really Jivin' on June 14, 2011- (I tried every way I could to link to the drawing, but just didn't work, for some reason).   Anyway, the surface is 10 x 8" Fredrix paintboard.   It's a fairly new canvas product and I love the priming.  We artists are so lucky to be able to go to the store, or order online, and get exactly what we want.   None of the hard work of centuries past for us - I love it!  Thanks so much for stopping by!

Jivin' the Night Away - original oil figurative painting of jive dancers

Here's one with lots of brushwork on 10 x 8" Gessobord.  I'm in Houston right now - just saw the Astros beat the Pirates - it was a great game.  Love that baseball! 
Thank you so much for visiting my blog - I adore it when you stop by! Sold

Jive Madness - original figurative oil painting

This was fun to paint - no noodling, no fixing - just fast painting.  It's 5 x 7" on Gessobord.  Thanks for visiting my blog! Sold

Frenzy - original mixed media figurative drawing

Some jive music, paper, my drawing markers,  oil crayon and oil pastels, (and a tiny bit of charcoal) and I'm all set for a great evening.  My crazy little jivers are back with a vengeance - well, they never really leave me - and they're jumpin' to the music on this 5 x 17" Bristol board paper.  There are two of these - this is the first one to be posted.
I love the way people move - frantic, like in this drawing - or more controlled as in baseball, which is something I've been sketching lately.  I sit in front of the TV watching and attempting to catch the pitcher at the moment he releases the ball.  Very challenging, but I'll keep trying.  I love baseball, so it's a fun thing to do.  I saw the Orioles play fairly often when living in the D.C. area, but alas, no team nearby, so I make do with TV.
Thanks so much for stopping by! 

Crazy Little Jivers - original mixed media figurative drawing

  Here they are again, no sign of wearing down, much less stopping their antics!  Where there's music with that boogie beat, you'll find them dancing the night away!  I used ink - probably the Prismacolor pen - I just reach for them and don't really notice which one I have while in the heat of battle - and Caran d'Ache wax crayons.  These crayons, Neocolor I, are a delight to work with, as are all the Caran d'Ache products that I've tried.  Plus, there's a tiny bit of charcoal here and there.  The paper is Strathmore sequential Bristol board paper 5 x 15". 

It seems like weeks since I posted anything, but have been busy trying watercolors - I do this every now and again just to prove to myself that I'm way too obsessively meddlesome to do watercolor.  Thanks so much for visiting my blog! Sold

Jivedoodles All Over Again - original figurative mixed media drawing

For this 5 x 17" drawing, I used Strathmore sequential Bristol board paper, then drew with the fine end of a Prismacolor drawing pen and colored with Caran d'Ache Neocolor I crayons, or wax crayons.  I may add a little more color.  Or maybe not.  It's really, really late, so I'll see what I think in the morning.  Thanks for stopping by my blog - sweet dreams!  Sold

Jivedoodles Again - original graphite figurative drawing

This drawing is not only drawing practice for me, but  practice for my little dancers, as well.  I've developed some characters here that I will use again in my next drawings.  After I do these, I go over them and question why I put this one here, that one in that space, and so on.  Never satisfied with the arrangement, I'll do it again tomorrow, just slightly different.  This drawing is done on Borden and Riley's Paris Paper for Pens, 9 x 12", and I used General's Woodless Graphite - 4B, which is pretty soft.  I love using this fairly slick paper for graphite and charcoal - charcoal is especially interesting to work with because it doesn't adhere very well to a paper without tooth (the roughness that helps dry media cling to the surface) and you can just smear to your heart's content.  If that's your thing - and I guess it's mine. 
And if you haven't worked with woodless graphite, it's also a delight.  All that luscious graphite - plus, it smears well, too.  I guess I shouldn't say "smear" - not too sophisticated - maybe "soften" is better.
I hope everyone had a lovely Easter - thanks so much for stopping by!

Little Jivers - original figurative ink drawing

Here's an example of what I did while waiting (for what seemed like an hour) for an appointment.  I could see it would be a lengthy wait and, fortunately, I had a couple of pens - one regular ballpoint and the other, a marker with a thin tip.  Also lucky for me, I had a 6 x 6 pad of Bristol board paper, so I did lots of pages of these little people.  I worked on designing the page, as well as scribbling my little creations - always good practice, I think.  Thanks so much for dropping by! Sold

Jitterbugs All Over Again - original oil pastel figurative painting of dancers

Those crazy jitterbugs are at it again on 12 x 16" Pastelbord.   I danced with them while I drew and I'm worn out - it's off to bed for me.  Thanks for stopping by! Sold

Crazy Little Boogie Woogie - original oil figurative painting

 

Here's a version of last night's charcoal drawing, done with oil sticks  - not oil pastels.  They're  unavailable in oil pastel sizes, so it's really difficult to be exact unless you sharpen them.  R&F sticks are soft, so that would be difficult.  They're not only soft - they're luscious beyond belief and a real pleasure to use.  I also use Winsor & Newton and Sennelier, but my faves are the R&F; I've been meaning to try Shiva, too, but just haven't gotten around to it.  Oil sticks harden just like oil paint because they really are oil paint in stick form.
Since the sticks are pretty big (and these are the small sizes) I simply aimed for the general vicinity of the place I wanted to make a mark and let whatever happened, just happen.   If, like me, you love to draw, give the oil sticks a try.  I am such a drawing enthusiast that I try to use all kinds of different drawing media and right now, I'm big on oil sticks!
The painting is on 6 x 6" Gessobord.  Thanks so much for stopping by!

Boogie Woogie Sketch - original charcoal drawing of dancers

This one - even though it's only about 8 x 8" - took me so much time to get to the point of hearing their feet as they drummed on the floor.  I played boogie woogie music 'til I could get his left leg the way I wanted.  Drawing dancers is something I could do all day long.  And, heck, some days that's just what I do.  Love it!  This sketch is on Strathmore Bristol board paper.  Thanks so much for looking!

More Tiny Jive - original oil figurative painting

It's been awhile, but I'm back and am hoping all of you are having a wonderful start to the New Year!   This painting is on 5 x 5" Gessobord.  I could say that I've found a fabulous cosmic satisfaction in painting even smaller, but the truth of the matter is that I found some great sale prices on 4 x 4" and 5 x 5" Gessobord at Herweck's in San Antonio, Texas, not long ago, and I'm loving these very small supports.  They're fun!  Thanks so much for stopping by my blog! Sold