Dreamscape 2/19/13

acrylic on recycled assembled wood panels

approximately 6"x 6"

Still Life-Grapefruit, Avocado, Lemon

                                                                11"x 11" oil on canvas

                                                                         and the stages....
                                       
                                         

Portrait of Skye Completed

            Finally completed this. My niece, Skye.

48"x24" oil on canvas

 Here are the previous stages:

                                               (you may want to click on it for a closer view)

Ideally, this portrait would have been painted directly from life, start to finish. Unfortunately , that was not possible. It was started and about 85% to a stage of completion on site, when various factors such as my niece's and her mama's apartment move (the new environment would be a different one than her balcony..not something I'd rework as that would be a different light and composition.) In addition, the final possible sitting was interrupted by a surprise visit from some of my nieces's friends, cutting the session short. Then I had to deal with my own major move, getting settled and back into the oil paint and working from life. My dreamscape work (totally from imagination) sustained me when I didn't have much of my supplies., or when I was bouncing between many errands of setting up the household here in Arlington.

Although I do eventually finish what I start, I was very uneasy about going back into this piece. When I work in oils from life, I feel strongly about committing to direct on site observation. Photos usually don't cut it for me. Still, I'll photodocument the scene for insurance in case a tiny area needs adjusting or tweaking, and something prevents a final on-site session. I know some painters do work entirely from a photo source and make it work in its own world.  Although it makes the logistics of working much easier, (no fading or shifting light to capture, no crowds, no weather challenges) I just find I can't capture the color (the human eye sees so much more color than what a photo can pick up) as well as the urgency, the many shifting moments, just the vibe of being there. Sometimes the frustrations of live sessions are the fire behind the most successful pieces. 

So not finishing my niece in that final life session left me a bit bummed out last summer. It was a situation that left me with this choice: either I abandon the work as is for idealism's sake or try to make it work in a new circumstance with a different approach and emphasis that may drift away from the totally naturalistic direct observation route. After warming up with several smaller on site separate paintings, I pulled out my digital references and tried to resolve this one. I found that my dreamscape work actually helped. That body of work it is very decorative and patterned, with areas flowing into others. I manipulated the environment and pattern of lights and shadows as well as tweaking other shapes of colors to make the composition flow better.

I still think three more hours of a live sitting > a week of studio tinkering from photos and imagination. I did lose some things in the removed studio route, but it was an interesting experiment nonetheless. 

self portrait/new smartphone website

                                                                  5"x4" oil on canvas

I have also been working on a smartphone website. To view go here: m.jeannehospod.com

still life / landscape

                                                         both are oil on canvas, 10" square 

free form exercises, sketches, etc.

It should be pretty obvious what is from observation and what is invented.

"Sketches" can be a misnomer though. The idea that the free form work would be brief is an attractive one, but it hasn't turned out that way lately. They grow and change and I linger with them (even though other projects are calling to me) until they tell me they are complete. That said, the plein air ink sketch third one down was actually the briefest (and most satisfying).

More coming (other stuff in progress as usual)

8"x8 watercolor/acrylic ink/pastel

on paper

each panel approximately 6"x10" watercolor/ink/pastel on paper

approx 11" square ink/watercolor on paper

8"x8" acrylic ink/pen/watercolor on paper

oil on canvas 10" square

                                                          8"x8" ink/watercolor on paper

new year exercise 1

Along with numerous ongoing projects, I'm trying to do one free-form-meditative-painting/drawing a day. I may need to approach them with a time limit so it doesn't cut into everything else I need to focus on. The point of it is 1)  to just complete a work in a session and 2) have a creative warm up before getting on with whatever is the priority for the day. Approx 8"x8" mixed media.

Happy Holidays

I haven't wanted to share much lately-product or process, for various reasons. I'm working out a lot of different projects, painting and animating but it feels like a time to lay low other than occasional lighter tweets.

There was a recent death in the family. A painting and perhaps some personal writing will be coming down the line regarding that, after a obituary is published.

Thought I would share one thing on the lighter side. A gift to my sister. It is over the top cartoony and decorative. The two cats are Junior, the tux who was my parent's loyal cat for 15 years and Pookie, a Maine Coon rescued from the streets who never fully grew out of her feral start. She loves my sister but she is strictly a one-human cat. Jr. and SpookyPooks lounge by our balcony overlooking the trees, where many crows settle for the night.

Each panel is approx 5"x7". Acrylic ink/mixed media.

Hope you are all having a happy holiday season. 

Portrait of Janice by Joan Hospod

A piece I found at the old homestead. Portrait of my sister by my mother*. It is the most popular and wide reaching post on my "Art by Jeanne Hospod"  facebook page, more than any of my art works. (Good for you, Mom! Though I can't help but feel a little competitive, ha!) 

It's been almost a year Mom passed. 

It's been a year of revelations and revolution about many aspects of my life since that time. Some are sad and sobering, and some are healing. Life with my sister in Virginia has been good for me.

* I am always ok with reposts of my uploaded work (with proper credit and link back of course). In this case, I highly encourage blog reposts/pinterest pinning of this piece. Mom never put her talent out enough.. I'd like to see at least an example of her work shared with the world.

trees-gold and black

all 4"x 4" acrylic black and metalic ink on canvas

from my balcony

6"x 6" acrylic ink on canvas

finishing unfinished business

2 feet round-acrylic ink and acrylic paint on wood
conclusion to these previous efforts: here  and animations "One"
and "Four" embedded on upper left side of this page

nursing home visits

some sketches of my father. 14"x17" marker and pen on paper.

"Philadelphia" acrylic ink, watercolor and pastel on watercolor paper approx.11"x7"

all approx 6"x10"acrylic ink and watercolor on watercolor paper

Some work from life

Top to Bottom:

6"x4" acrylic ink on canvas board

approximately 9"x2" acrylic ink on assembled wood panels

7"x5"acrylic ink on watercolor panel

6"x4" acrylic ink on canvas board

5"x5" acrylic ink on canvas

4"x5" acrylic ink on canvas

more work from life (and in oils) to come

Dreamscape Uploads part 2 -growths

Top to Bottom:

this was a resolution of a small study for a project completed earlier this year found here and here. Acrylic ink on 6"x4" canvases

watercolor and ink on acid free watercolor paper approx.10"x6"

watercolor and ink on acid free watercolor paper approx 6"x4"

Dreamscape Uploads part 1--new blues

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Triptych-watercolor and ink on acid free mat and watercolor paper-each panel 10"x8"

Acrylic ink on assembled wood panels-approximately 8.5"x2"

Triptych-watercolor and ink on acid free watercolor paper-each panel 6"x4"

Watercolor and ink on watercolor paper approximately 10"x6"

Acrylic ink on assembled wood panel 4"x4"

Watercolor and ink on watercolor paper approximately 10"x6"

So there will be more uploads in the morning, and over the weekend. Some will also be work from life, but the smaller pieces in acrylic ink. I've broken out the big guns (oil paint) but haven't resolved anything yet I want to share there yet...soon I hope.

I've finally settled in and life in Virginia has been good, despite some sadness around the edges. I'm so appreciative to my sister to provide this opportunity to try a new environment and shake up my life for the better.