Experimenting with Linocuts

I love linocuts with a colored pattern in the background and a black foreground. So before I start a new print, I thought I'd play a little with a few pieces of linoleum I cut out recently for other prints and put them together in this way.

Here is my rabbit with a different view.
Just as I thought - I like the blue background with the black on top!

Cuisine Medievale!

When we visited France last September, I saw this at a restaurant in the medieval walled city of Carcassonne, located in the south of France. I really enjoyed the arrangement and colors of the various signs, reminding me of a good design project!
Some of the food is looking a bit modern!

Pathway in Gouache - Final Result!

This is the final result of the gouache I've been working on of a pathway in France. I saw a nice photo of a friend that I liked and thought I'd try to paint it. I hope I was able to capture the light that inspired me and also add a little of my own imagination. One frustration with painting with gouache is the lightening of the colors as they dry. When I think I'm finished, sometimes they still don't seem dark enough...so more work is needed!

January at the Beach! Brr.....

I was close to the beach this morning running an errand and thought I'd stop and enjoy a look since without tourists, it's so easy to manage. With the blue sky and light clouds, it really was pretty.... but windy with hair blowing every which way..... and cold...brrr! The seagulls were busy flying all about hoping for snacks, natural or people-provided! Here's a photo of the beach and one of a friend on the railing. I'm always trying to get photos as references for later work whenever the opportunity presents itself!

Pathway in gouache - the next step!

I'm continuing to work on this painting. I'm enjoying painting with gouache all the while thinking that there is much more blending, etc. that can be done if they were oils. Not willing to go there now! Besides, gouache has its good points - lovely colors for one!  And it dries fast! (well, sometimes too fast)

Birdman II Ornament

Each year I see this Christmas ornament it brings back good memories of a vacation years ago to the New England states of Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine. The trees, the mountains, the countryside - there surely can't be a more pleasant place to enjoy the change of season into fall! Anyway, this ornament was bought at a countryside studio in Vermont and made by a man, Edmond Menard, from one piece of green cedar wood. He calls himself Birdman II as he learned his craft from another who called himself Birdman I. The first man, Chester Nutting, produced well over 50,000 of these birds and I learned that Birdman II is still working and quickly approaching 50,000. That's pretty impressive!

The beginning of a new gouache painting.

Only land. No animals!

A challenge - yes!

I love the paints on this dark Canson paper.

Back to work!