Red Lines Flamenco - original Sharpie sketch

A fun little thing (about 8.5 x 5.5").  The paper looks slightly green, but in real life, it's white - just my lackluster photography skills.  Thanks for looking!

The Dancer's Nap - oil pastel figurative

I bought some of the 6 x 12" landscape Pastelbord panels and have used a few for just that purpose,  but I just couldn't resist this pose from an earlier drawing.  Plus, she looked like a torch singer, and for some reason, I have such a soft spot for these ladies.   I left many of the lines, because I'm always looking for a way to keep from covering all the lines with paint - or, in this case, oil pastel.  Thanks so much for stopping by!

Palo Duro - original oil pastel landscape

Okay, just posted a more correct photo.
Although there's a little cool pink in here - and a little blue, neither one is showing up.  But this piece is definitely done in mostly warm colors, which is unusual for me.   Gotta depart from the usual once in awhile.  Click here for the Palo Duro website.  I was there a couple of years ago and have lots of sketches and photos from my visit.  It's a beautiful place and well worth a visit!  This painting is on 6 x 12" Pastelbord.  Thanks so much for dropping by!

Akimbo - original charcoal figurative drawing

How I love to draw with charcoal!  And I was lucky to get this pose - it was kind of dark where we were, but still am pleased with the outcome, even though I didn't totally "finish" it.  I just love when I get almost to the bottom of a figurative drawing, just getting really loose and making it more about line.  A bit about charcoal - I used a vine charcoal here, so lovely and soft, but there are other forms of this fabulous medium:  Click here to read a little about it.  This drawing is about 14 x 8".  Thanks for looking!

Sketch for Sunday - Man in Boat - charcoal figurative drawing from life

On Saturdays, I like to get out and do sketches of whatever I can find  - and I found this guy.  I had just a moment to capture him and the essence of the scene, which could end up being a little painting.  With maybe a little more detail, of course.  It was fun and I think sketching from life always helps my drawing immensely.  Thanks for stopping by!

On My Easel - Cowboy - oil pastel figurative work in progress

Hoping to get this finished tomorrow, it's 6 x 12" on Ampersand Pastelbord, which is so great.  I love dogs and love seeing cowboys and their dogs - the best.  Much to do, but such a pleasure to work on  this subject and on Pastelbord.  Thanks for looking!

Playing Guitar - oil pastel figurative drawing

Hey, Houston, Corpus Christi, Victoria and all of y'all down that way coping with this disaster - hope you're safe!

Although I'm not totally finished with this piece, I just decided to go ahead and post - will finish it tomorrow.  I used Sennelier oil pastels on Sennelier oil pastel paper, 9 1/2 x 6 1/2".  Thanks for stopping by!

Sunday Sketchbook - black and white sketchbook drawings

This page is one I worked on today - mostly plants, for some odd reason, but that's what I was mainly seeing, I guess.  This is just one of three sketchbook pages I did.  It's about 8 1/2 by 11", well, probably a bit more with the spiral.  The tree is water-soluble pencil, and everything else is vine charcoal.  Thanks so much for looking!  

Moment of Truth - original charcoal figurative drawing

Did he see it through?  This drawing was done on Mi-Teintes paper, 12 x 9".  I used a stump along with my charcoal pencils (General's Primo, black and white).  Thanks for stopping by!

Sky Practice - oil landscape/sky painting

This is one of my practice pieces from the sky painting class that I'm taking.  Landscape has never been my thing, but I'm trying something new here.  And it's fun.  This is on canvas board, 6 x 8".  Thanks for stopping by.

Black and White Country Luv - original charcoal figurative drawing

After the rodeo dances here in Junction a couple of weekends ago, I have lots and lots of two stepper drawings and paintings.  Here's one of my faves.  It's about 11 x 8 " - it's actually on 12 x 9" paper, but I've matted it smaller.  This is on Bee Drawing paper and I'm really glad to see this brand around again - bought it at Michael's.  Love the paper, although it's not as forgiving as some others, it's still a pleasure to draw on.  With me, I make so many changes and erasures - I sort of like to mess up the surface a little -  I love paper and love to work it over.  Thanks for looking!

End of Day Little Portrait Sketch - original oil portrait sketch of a young girl

I was cleaning my palette and with the models that I'm blessed with this week, I did this quick little portrait.  It's on 8 x 6" canvas board, using only the soft colors that I've been using in the sky painting course I'm taking.  So not the usual oranges, etc that I usually use for people.  Thanks for looking!

Sketch of the Model Cinda - original portrait sketch

I had plans to put in a vase of flowers in back of Cinda, but, alas, didn't have enough time.  Always the story.  Did this with Caran d'Ache pastel pencils.  They are heavenly!  Not too powdery and really good for drawing.  It's on Art Spectrum smooth, which is delightful to work with.  I love Art Spectrum's lightly toothed paper for oil pastels because it really grabs the oil pastels, but this smoother one is perfect for pastel pencils and doesn't grind down the points.  Thanks for stopping by!

Piano Practice - acrylic figurative sketch

Okay, not perfect, but a fun drawing of an earnest piano student mastering Bach - I think it was.  I used a stick with acrylic on cold press watercolor paper and in some places, I used my finger and more water to smudge.  This drawing is about 9 x 9".  Thanks for looking!

On My Easel - Sketch for Reading - original pastel pencil portrait in progress

Much to do on this one, but just thought I should post something, even though nothing much is finished.  On Colourfix board, which is great to work on.  Have a great weekend!

Red Flamenco - original acrylic figurative

Hung up on flamenco at the moment - today I listened to Spanish gypsy music.  Lots of wailing and emotion, just like real flamenco.  Kind of a different grip on the fan, but she really did it, then deftly flipped it around without a hitch - if they only knew how difficult it is to portray - oh well, it's good practice!  My Able Assistant seems to approve - I've started showing him all my work - not just some of it.  When he looks confused, I figure the piece needs more work - but no confusion today.  Just the wagging of his little stub of a tail (cocker spaniel) - always a good sign!  On 10 x 10" canvas.  Thanks for looking!

Blue Flamenco #3 - original ink and watercolor figurative

I could have done a bit more, or even a lot more, but I just decided to stop here.  Will paint more of these, I'm sure, but the landscape course that I'm taking sort of demands my time and thought a lot more than I thought it would.  When I get a few more things finished in that genre, maybe I'll post a few, but for now, they're in hiding.  This piece is about 12 x 7".  Thanks for stopping by!

Do-Si-Do - acrylic figurative painting

I painted this one with regular heavy body acrylic paint, which dries really quickly, unlike the Golden Open that I love and most often use.  Not sure if I will perhaps include another couple or another dancer.  Probably not.  There's enough happening without additional figures.  These figures are from a painting that I did last summer after observing the dancers following the August rodeo in Junction, Texas.  What a rich night for a figure painter that was!  I not only drew furiously, but snapped lots of pictures for later use in the studio.  This painting is 10 x 8" on panel and although I was taught that you should vary your brushes and brushstrokes in a painting, I used a #8 bright for the whole thing.  Just lazy, maybe.  Thanks for stopping by!

Curlicues - original ink drawing

Since I haven't posted in awhile - busy with lots of happy things - here is an ink drawing of an ironwork balcony I did earlier in the summer.  It's about 9 x 5 1/2" - thanks for stopping by!

Nude on Aqua Paper - original nude drawing

Here's one I drew a few months ago on aqua paper, using colored pencils.  Great model to work with, too!  It's about 12 x 5 1/2".  Thanks for looking!

Tango Romance - original acrylic figurative painting

Here's a 7 x 5" tango painting on panel, done with acrylic - my new replacement for oil.  Just makes life easier.  Thanks for stopping by!

Tiny Spaniel - original charcoal drawing

I love dogs and here is a little drawing - about 8 x 11" - that I did of a King Charles Cavalier spaniel.  One of my boards on Pinterest is about dogs - when you have a minute, please check it out!  Thanks for stopping by!

Baseball Doodles - figurative ink drawings

Okay, maybe not the most accurate or elegant thing ever, but I love the chance to catch a baseball game and especially love getting in a few quick sketches.  It's on Bristol paper, 9 x 12".  Thanks for stopping by!

Portrait of Sheila - watercolor portrait

It's always fun and unpredictable to paint on Yupo and this little portrait (about 10 x 8") was no exception!  Not really my thing, but watercolor is exciting to do every now and then.  My brush was actually a 'round' for oil or acrylic - kind of a no-no, I guess, but I had a good time.  I worked from an old drawing - one of my collection of thousands (okay, maybe just hundreds) - I spent a lot of time in my life attending drawing groups - hence my collection of drawings, which often have another life as a painting many years later.  I finally had to get rid of most of these drawings and just keep the photos of them on my computer.  How modern is that?!  Thanks for stopping by!

Sketch for Flamenco - charcoal figurative drawing

This drawing is done on Colourfix board, which is a great product - the surface is already backed by the board, so when framing, you don't have to tape it to backing and it has a nice white surround that gives a neat, sort of matted appearance.  All one has to do is put it behind glass/plexi using Econospace or Framespace.  Done!   I'm planning to spray this to the nth degree with fixative and cover it with oil pastels in my all-time favorite palette - red, ochre, black and white and maybe a little blue.  Of course, theoretically, blue isn't necessary in this palette, but I like to include it anyway.  Thanks so much for stopping by!

What I'm Working On - original soft pastel figurative in progress

This piece is one I'm really enjoying.  Since soft pastel causes eye and throat irritation for me, I tried having a small fan blowing across the paper, then vacuumed up the dust.  Maybe that'll work.  The pleasure for me in this figurative, which is being done from a photo, is that there are many lines in it - unfortunately, some will have to be covered, but I'll cope.  Hoping to finish it this weekend.  The support is Pastelbord in sand , 11 x 14".  Thanks for stopping by!

On My Easel - oil pastel portrait drawing in progress

I have so many things that I'm working on and nothing is anywhere near being finished, so here's one of the works in progress.  Lots of stuff to do to reach a stopping point, but am thinking I'll leave the negative space as is.  It's about 14 x 12" on Colourfix paper.  Thanks for stopping by!

On My Easel - Tina's Album - oil pastel figurative

Even though it's a million miles from finished, I'm posting so it doesn't seem that I've dropped off the face of the Earth.  Actually, we were in far west Texas - Alpine, Marfa and Ft. Davis.  It was so nice and cool - loved it!  I did do some sketches of plants there, plus people, of course.  Much fun! This piece is on Colourfix paper and I used almost all Sennelier oil pastels.  It's 12 x 9".  Thanks for looking!

Gwen - original oil pastel nude painting

This fairly quick drawing is oil pastel on Colourfix paper, 9 x 12".  Didn't have time to smooth things out, so it's still a little raw - the way I like it.  Thanks so much for looking!

Moody Blue - original pastel pencil drawing

Here's another Dutch iris from my garden - I have a whole yard full of subjects (if I can just keep them going through our hot, dry summer).  Botanical drawings have always interested me, like the prints I did years ago - I keep saying I'll go back to doing those things, so maybe I will just do it.  I don't know about y'all, but I can procrastinate like nobody's business!  The other day I was encouraging a friend to do something she has always wanted to do and telling her there's no time like the present etc. etc. - all the while knowing I am not a good example.

This drawing is done with pastel pencil on 12 x 9" Art Spectrum Colourfix paper.  The actual flower is really a deep royal purple and royal blue.  Every time I used the actual colors, the drawing looked, well, kind of cheap.  So, I grayed the color and put a reddish ochre behind it, kind of liking the idea of coming from the dark background at the top, into lighter shade at the bottom.  Now I wonder if just the grayed color without the ochre would work, but anyway, am just going with it as is and maybe do another version later.  Actually, the photo doesn't display - at least on my laptop - as blue as the drawing really is.  Maybe I can fool around with it later, although I only have iPhoto.  Also have Pixelmator, but even that is beyond me.  Plus it's well after midnight.

I used mostly Carbothello for this, but found a Caran d'Ache set on sale and it was finally delivered yesterday.  Heavenly stuff!  A few weeks ago I purchased a set of 12, and now I'm the proud owner of a set of 40 - would not have done it if it weren't on sale.  Expensive, but worth every penny.  Thanks for stopping by!

Middleweights - original ink figurative drawing

Sometimes I watch boxing matches - reminds me of sitting with my father as we watched the fights.  Nice memories.   This drawing is on 9 x 12" Bristol board, which is such a good paper for drawing - I used the vellum type and two kinds of pens - Itoya and Penstix.
Just as with drawing dancers, it's important to use memory, which is what I did here.   I saw an online drawing course recently that included memory drawing.  I taught that concept in my figure drawing classes from years ago, and although I haven't seen it mentioned in classes very often, it's a really great drawing exercise.

On My Easel - acrylic portrait of Fran - work in progress

A good bit of work to do, yet, but I should finish it this weekend.  I won't have such a spotty background, for one thing, and will do more work on her face.  It's on 12 x 12" board.  She is really lovely - hope I can do her justice.  It's always so great to at least begin a painting or drawing with the actual person sitting in front of you, but if they're not models, no way can I expect them to stay as long as it takes.  There are exceptions, of course, and I am very grateful for those who are able to actually stick around.  Fran is so sweet and spent as much time as she could, but was on a tight schedule, so I was happy to have her sit for even a short while.  I love going to drawing groups, but since I'm not a regular attendee,  I often have to take whatever position in the room nobody else wants, which is probably why I have a lot of paintings of the model with her/his back to me.  I generally love back poses, but usually just of nudes, Come to think of it, I may need to seriously consider those paintings with clothed back view models that are languishing in the back of my studio - some of them are pretty good with good shapes, etc.  Hmmm - a fresh approach, maybe.    Thanks for visiting my blog!  Just talking to you helped me rethink things.

More Two Steppin' - original acrylic figurative painting

My two-steppers are back.  I suspect they never really go away, but just wait their turn to show up again at Hackberry Street Studio.  This painting, like most I've done lately, is acrylic.  Great stuff!  This one is on 8 x 8" cradled panel.  Thanks for looking!

Cowboy Fiddler - original pen and ink figurative sketch

He's not the only fiddler here.  I'm another one, but I was doing my fiddling with a dip pen and ink, which I haven't done in years.  I was kind of hesitant, since it's been a long time, but I remembered how much I used to like using this technique.  I drew with a 512EF bowl dip nib and then applied water.  I love the way these kinds of nibs make contact with the paper.  They don't run smoothly like ballpoints and they sort of 'catch' every now and then, which I think gives an interesting look.   Now I'm not saying the lines in this sketch are interesting, since I pretty much covered them up with water, but the nibs can and do provide these textures most of the time.  This sketch is on 12 x 9" mixed media paper.  Thanks for looking!

Drawing of Clarice - original charcoal portrait drawing

This drawing is done with vine charcoal, mostly using the side of the stick - on 14 x 11" drawing paper.  Thanks for looking!

Sparring in My Sketchbook - original ink figurative drawing with touches of white pencil

I am always interested in drawings on different supports.  Here, I used yellow ochre acrylic brushed on my sketchbook page.  Watercolor would be more traditional - or thinned ink - but was just working with what I had.  It's about 7 1/2 x 7 1/2" - the page seems to be a hot press watercolor paper, which I love to use - it can take lots of abuse!  Thanks for stopping by.

Scenes from a Tango - original charcoal figurative

Just a little fun with my tango dancers.  This charcoal drawing is 10 1/2 x 14" on drawing paper.  Thanks for looking!

On My Easel - oil pastel portrait in progress

Wonderful model, but of course, now she's gone and I have to improvise.  On this one, I used 16 x 12" Art Spectrum Colourfix board💗 - so wonderful!  Will finish on the weekend - thanks for stopping by!

Sketchbook Ink Nudes - ink drawings of nudes

Here are some pages from one of my sketchbooks in which I was practicing some mapping and crosshatching.  l really think I need some more practice, plus it's a lot of fun to do!

On My Easel - original pastel pencil figurative in progress

Here it is in the wee hours and I'm just now getting to posting.  This drawing is being done from a black and white sketch from some time ago.  At this point, I don't know if it will be "finished" - well, probably not at this point.  Don't know if other artists leave things for awhile the way I do.  This is on Colourfix board, but my usual problem is cropping up - pastel dust.  Thought it wouldn't be bad with the pencils and while it's not as bad as with the sticks, it's still a problem.  Maybe I'll start working with them outside.  Anyway, thanks for stopping by!  PS.  That's a book on her lap (will definitely make that more finished)!

Seated Back Pose - original oil pastel nude

I did this nude on 12 x 9" mixed media paper and matted it to about 9 1/2 x 7 1/2".  There's just nothing - to me, anyway - like the blues and greens in skin tones.  I just find them irresistible.  This piece is a little "raw", just the way I like them - not quite "finished".  I took a portrait course in which the portrait I painted is so exact and finished (although I didn't attend the last lesson) and everyone who sees it says 'wow, you did this?" and while I like it and am proud of my accomplishment, it's not my natural way of doing things.  Just my personality, I guess.  I love it that each artist's personality always shows up in his/her work.  Thanks so much for stopping by!

Three Gals on Green - original acrylic figurative

Just a fun thing I did while cleaning my palette - it's on 8 x 8" cradled panel.  I love greens  - cool greens mixed with warm greens and I really love those made with black and golds and yellows.  The greens on this piece, though, are straight from the tube.  They're nice to work with, too.  Thanks so much for looking!

On My Easel - original acrylic portrait in progress

I'm working on this piece with acrylic paints.  Like most everything I'm doing right now, it needs a bit of time to get it finished, which I hope to do tomorrow.  Thanks for stopping by!

On My Easel - Tea For One - original oil pastel in progress

All I have that I could post are lots of unfinished pieces, so I just closed my eyes and picked one, and the winner is. . . . .  Sooo much to do on this, but it's going to be finished tomorrow, I hope, so I can get busy with my other stuff that's in limbo.  This is on 14 x 11" Pastelbord.  Thanks for stopping by!

A Nude on Wednesday - original watermedia nude

This painting is mostly water media with a few touches of oil pastel.  It's on mixed media paper, which, if you haven't tried it yet, is wonderful - stands up to all kinds of torture.  It's about 9 x 11".  Thanks for stopping by!

Early Spring - original pastel pencil drawing

This drawing is of one of my Dutch irises, which I didn't expect to bloom 'til later - my backyard has been absolutely full of roses for weeks, which is earlier than usual.  I used my Carbothello pastel pencils on 12 x 9" Colourfix paper for this one.
 

Easy Listening - original pastel pencil portrait drawing

I'M SO EXCITED TO ANNOUNCE THAT 'EASY LISTENING' HAS BEEN SELECTED FOR INCLUSION IN THE BOOK 'STROKES OF GENIUS' 10!!!!!!!!!!

                                                                          After a long day - nothing like some 'easy listening' music - at least that's what I hear.  For me, though, it has to be something with a beat.  Right now I'm listening to salsa music, mixed with a little jive - of course, I had a really good day with no problems, so maybe I wouldn't want the zippy stuff if I were really tired.  This woman is being rejuvenated by the soothing music, which is perfect for both of us.  She is very still and, therefore, a good model.  She's happy - I'm happy.
This drawing is on 12 x 9" Colourfix paper - fresh grey color.  The problem with drawings that aren't "finished" is where do I stop?  I'm tempted to work on the chair, but won't because I think I've covered all the bases without doing that.  And if I do "finish" it and then decide I shouldn't have done it,  it's too late - can't be undone.  Same with her other leg.  Decisions, decisions.  Thanks for looking!

Thicket - original charcoal landscape drawing

I've been finding lots of enjoyment in drawing thickets.  Doesn't sound too exciting, but the line making is so satisfying.  I'm basically a "drawer", so putting pencil to paper and making marks is what I love best.  I have many more of these, plus I've been working on pen and ink nudes, mapping the shadows and then practicing my hatching.  Will post some of those tomorrow. Drawing is my fave!  This one is on 8 x 10" Strathmore drawing paper.  Thanks for stopping by!😊