Daphne Goes to Venice (Part 2)

In just 5 weeks, I head to Venice with Daphne (my 6 yr old artist/granddaughter) and her Daddy (our son, Antoine....he kept his French name when we moved from Montreal to the U.S. when he was only 3.5 yrs old.)

When Antoine decided to join us on this Venice trip, I wanted to be sure he wouldn't be bored, because Daphne and I will sketch or paint every day (probably all day long, since it's her favorite thing to do).  Antoine reassured me and said he might actually paint with us!  As a child, he was good at sketching, but real life got in the way of things creative although I'm sure he'd say golf is his creative outlet!

As part of my effort to get him up to speed quickly, I've created a tiny TRAVEL PALETTE for him (it's actually a pill container!).  I've included 3 cool colors, 4 warm colors and I've added Shadow Violet by Daniel Smith which is a color I can't live without lately. It plays so nicely either by itself or mixed with other colors.

Pill Container turned into mini travel palette.  Buy it HERE
(If you buy a different brand, make sure it's still white.)

Pigments from left:  Daniel Smith (DS) Thalo Blue (green shade), Winsor & Newton (WN) Permanent Rose, DS Nickel Titanate Yellow, DS Quinophthalone Yellow, DS Aussie Red Gold, WN Cadmium Red, DS Ultramarine Blue, DS Shadow Violet (in the center).

The first 3 are cool colors.  The other 5 are warm.

You really could use whatever cool and warm colors you already have, but try to stick with blue/red/yellow since there are not many wells.

You may buy the water brush HERE.

Then I created a chart in the back of his SKETCH BOOK that shows him what every color looks like, painted over every other color.  Look at all the colors you can create with just 7 colors! Check out the variety of greens w/o one single tube of green being included!

I used a PINK PIG 270g A5 Posh Banana Watercolor Book, but when I went to find it online for you, it's only showing up on Amazon UK.  I do believe I actually bought it through them and it shipped to me in about 2 weeks' time.  The price is right and the paper holds up very well to lots of water.  Check it out HERE.
The colors bled only because I didn't wait long enough to cover the initial color with more color.  I knew better.

For Venice or France, I particularly like the combo of Shadow Violet with all of the other colors (as shown in the top row of the chart)! Except when you're on the Venetian island of BURANO, when all of the other brighter colors will come into play!

Even though I use all kinds of travel palettes, I'm planning on all 3 of us using this new mini version in April. I'll let you know what Daphne thinks about that in a future post! We're really starting to get excited now!

You may also enjoy "Daphne Goes to Venice (Part 1)" HERE.

In September, I'm teaching at a castle in France (where we'll LIVE!)

You can find all that info right HERE.

Non-painting spouses are also invited! 

READ MY LATEST POST HERE

www.HelenKBeacham.com

Tippette #37 - Watercolor Sticks

Tippette = Snippet of a Tip (in watercolor). Tell a friend!

This morning I tried a new "tool".  It's Winsor & Newton's Professional Watercolour....pigment in stick form.

In the top picture, on the left, I drew with the watercolor stick into a wet puddle.  On the right, I drew onto dry paper, then wet part of it.  In that section, the color almost disappeared.

I could see using these sticks to draw en plein air, then painting over and into it (they're totally compatible with your regular watercolors).  The drawing lines would kind of disappear, if that's your goal.

This particular color is Burnt Sienna.

p.s. I did this exercise in my new Strathmore #483-5 travel sketchbook which I plan on taking to Key West with me tomorrow!  Note: It does pay to shop around because the link I just gave you to Amazon shows the sketchbook to be about $10 whereas I found it elsewhere on line for $19.

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Beach Shells?

I did some quick math (yes, I can do math) to come up with 980 individual students who have studied with me over the past 30 years of teaching watercolor (my jaw literally dropped when the calculator showed me this evidence).

Some of my observations:

1.  I put a lot of thought into making my classes unique, because so many of you have studied with me for years, and I don't want you bored.  What new things do you want to learn? 

2.  My newer students sometimes feel like they're not up to par with the others.  I say "you've got to start somewhere".  Besides, in just a very few short weeks, I'll bring you up to speed and it will all make sense.

3.  Many of you have never painted "en plein air" (this means "outside" in French).  I remember my first time....who doesn't!?  ;)  It CAN be scary, but again, do it once, and it won't be scary anymore.  What you learn by painting outdoors will contribute more to your learning experience than reading about it in a book.

4.  I love treating each of you as individuals...that means if you want to follow my lesson plan precisely, okay.  But if you want to show your individuality, okay too!  The world doesn't need more "Helen Beachams".  The world is ready for YOU.

5.  My students give me the best suggestions.  What's on YOUR Bucket List for a possible plein air travel destination?

6.  I was recently told by one student that she was officially my "groupie".  She lives out of town (hi, Char) and plans her trips (into Charleston to see her son) around my workshop schedule.  I'm honored, to say the least.  Anyway, Charleen gave me the idea that we should find a name for my groupies!  I must admit, I didn't spend too much time on this yet, but what do you think about my "Beach Shells"?  Get it??  Beacham...Beach Shells?  Ok, I tried.  Why don't you give it a try (and please let me know what you come up with!).  I look forward to hearing your Comments!

 A beautiful shell, found by a friend of mine.
Unique, like each of my wonderful students.

www.helenKbeacham.com

Come paint with me! 

In 2015, we're going to Venice, Niagara Falls, Montreal and so on!!!  
Find details HERE.

SEE MY LATEST BLOG POST HERE.

Newbies No More

Every now and then, I offer a short 3.5 hr #sketching #workshop outdoors to introduce artists to the fascinating world of "en plein air" painting (literally, it means "in the open air").

Tippette:  Don't spend too much time trying to find the "perfect" spot.  You could spend hours walking around.  Settle down in short order, and get to work on whatever's in front of you, especially when everything's as lovely as it is in downtown, historic Charleston! 

Yesterday, we tackled architecture, that dreaded P word (perspective).  Drawing comes easy to some, and not to others.  For those of you that fit into the second category, I recommend two things:

1.  Buy yourself a copy of "Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain" by Betty Edwards and do the exercises in the book.  It's THE best advice I can give.  Click HERE for a link to it on Amazon.

2.  Buy a Compose-It-Grid and learn to use it.  See http://compose-it-grids.com/.

I was careful, I thought, to pre-select our spot under the protective canopy of trees, as well as to choose a street that didn't allow parking in front of the houses.  Well, par for the course, a white minivan comes up and parks right in front of the house we were sketching.  But, this time, the nice lady walks over to me and says she's just going to spend 5 minutes unloading and will be on her way!  That was good news!  (The lady turned out to be a lawyer that rents that building.  She said that hers must be the most painted and photographed building in the city.  She said many brides choose to have their wedding pictures taken in front of the arches and gates in the brick wall!)

Here, I'm laying in my first wash.  Trying to capture those beautiful cast shadows on the building.  We take lots of pictures when the sun accommodates us (peeking through the clouds that hung around much of yesterday), so that we can later remember what to include as we finish our paintings in our studios.

Painting "en plein air" is invaluable.  My students are no longer newbies, overcoming their fear and hesitation of painting outdoors.  They learned a lot about how to truly see the relationships of one section (or plane) to another.  I gave my students a handout of my "en plein air" tips.  If you'd like a copy, email me at helenKbeacham@gmail.com (remember to include the K in the middle of my name or it won't come to me) and I'll be glad to send you one!  And why not leave me a comment below about YOUR first experience painting outdoors!

www.helenKbeacham.com

Come paint Montreal, Maine, Charleston, and Magnolia Plantation with me in 2014!  In May 2015, we go back to Venice!!!  Find details HERE.

SEE MY LATEST POST HERE.

Campo Sant' Angelo

On the first day of our Venice painting workshop (in Oct 2013), Kelly Medford and I took our students to Campo Sant' Angelo, just a short walk West from the Piazza San Marco.  There, we set up camp for the day.  In between guiding students, I managed to quickly sketch a scene and added a touch of watercolor for interest.  Today, I pulled out that plein air sketch in my studio and gave it some final touches!  Feels so good to call it done!

    

"Campo Sant' Angelo" by Helen K. Beacham Fine Art
Image size:  12"x9" (Available unframed for $550)
www.helenKbeacham.com

Below is a picture of the Campo where you can see the leaning tower at the far end.  There are many leaning towers in Venice although none are as bad as the one in Pisa!  On the left, you can see the other side of the building that I sketched (and do you see the tree?).  

Campo Sant' Angelo
Photo courtesy of http://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Venezia_flickr01.jpg

www.helenKbeacham.com

Come paint Venice, Montreal, Maine, Charleston, and Magnolia Plantation with me!

Find details HERE.

SEE MY LATEST POST HERE.

Breaking the rules.

One rule that artists are taught is to never center your focal area.  

Use the "rule of thirds" instead.  

But have you also heard that rules were meant to be broken?

"Last Chance" by Valerie Craig, oil 10x8
See her website HERE.

This little gem won the "Best Plein Air" prize in the Oct/Nov 2013 contest sponsored by OutdoorPainter, The Home of Plein Air Magazine.  Well done, Ms. Craig!  The depth created in this little piece is tremendous.  The gray is alive with all of the warmer colors touched into it.  Just terrific.


www.helenKbeacham.com

Come paint Venice, Montreal, Maine, Charleston, and Magnolia Plantation with me in 2014!

Find details HERE.

SEE MY LATEST POST HERE.

Move over, Fingerless Gloves!

Almost finished with a commission in time for Christmas, and my mind can get back to blogging about art.  I read something today that I'd not heard before.  When I paint plein air in the cold, I wear fingerless gloves.  But Aldro T. Hibbard had a MUCH MUCH MUCH better idea that I plan to try out first chance I get! Bob Bahr writes about how Marc Dalessio does it HERE.  

In a nutshell, take a sock, poke a hole through it, stick your brush through it, and hold the brush "normally" with your hand inside the sock.  Brilliant!  You get much more control over your strokes than with gloves! Marc Dalessio says he even sewed a pocket into the sock, so that he could insert a hand warmer into it. Brilliant again!!

Photo collection of Rockport Art Association
And courtesy of http://www.outdoorpainter.com/news/put-a-sock-on-it-painting-with-hibbards-mitten.html

www.helenKbeacham.com

Come paint Montreal, Maine, Charleston, and Magnolia Plantation with me in 2014!
Find details HERE.

To see my latest post, click HERE.

Plein Air Trio!

This morning, I and Anne P (whom I've been mentoring weekly for about a year) headed for Shepard Park near my house.  As we were unpacking our gear, we heard this plaintive meowing coming from a side yard.  We had our legs and tripods caressed for the duration of our time in this kitty's neighborhood!

Miss Kitty...(she never DID tell us her name).

This side yard (with the hammock) captured my interest.  As I was sketching, the owner came out of the house, headed for her morning walk!

Close Up of the hammock - my focal point

My drawing's done and my first wash is taking a while to dry in this humid air.  Even the painting has that misty air feeling to it.

Here's Miss Kitty and Anne (looking through her viewfinder).

Thank you...we DID feel welcome!

Come with me (Helen K. Beacham) and Kelly Medford to paint Venice this October...

Click HERE for details!

See my latest post HERE.

Tippette #29 - Plein Air - How to get started

Tippette = Snippet of a Tip (in watercolor).  One per day...during April...right here!  Tell a friend!

Plein Air - How to get started.

Friday, I conducted a 1-day workshop at Four Holes Swamp (Halsey Tract) near Ridgeville, SC (we stopped for lunch at DUKE's BBQ in Ridgeville...well known & loved by locals and visitors). 

Many artists are afraid to paint "en plein air" (outdoors).  I like to expose (pun intended!) more and more artists to that very important aspect of painting.  Many students get spellbound by the beauty in front of them and don't know how to get started...what section should I focus on?  How can I decide what to paint?

One of my students used a homemade viewfinder.
It's made out of foam core and the opening is cut to a proportionate ratio to our 9x12 paper (3:4)

The first thing we do is use our viewfinder (either store bought, or homemade) to scan the scene. We use it both horizontally and vertically to give us many options.  

Using store bought viewfinder..you may draw on it with a dry erase marker.
See details on how to buy one below.

Here I'm using a viewfinder that I bought online (click HERE)...mostly as a demonstration to show how you can easily draw things in perspective.  With this product (which is made of plexiglas AND has a grid on it), you may draw on top of it with a dry erase marker to get the main shapes into position.  Tip: Squint when you look through it so that you don't see a double image!

Fast and easy "dry erase" drawing on my plexi viewfinder, along with a couple of thumbnail sketches.

At this stage, I typically capture the scene with my camera from the angle I'm painting from (if you use your camera or phone to capture the scene, you may also use that as an instant viewfinder, providing you keep the proportions in mind...if your phone screen is not the same size proportionally as your paper, make adjustments accordingly).  If the weather changes and I have to leave the scene, I've got what I need to complete my painting in the studio.  Then I quickly do a few thumbnail sketches to determine what my plan of action will be that day.

My Eric Michael's EN PLEIN AIR PRO EASEL setup.

I start laying down my washes of color (on Friday, I also sketched into the painting with a pen, after the first layer had dried completely...I don't always use pen and ink, but I do always start with a pencil sketch).  Here, below, is my work-in-progress (about 60% done), along with the research photo.  I'll now do some negative painting to pop out some shapes, and I hope to successfully finish the painting (which I'll show you in a future post).  I'm off to a good start.

Work in Progress (Helen K Beacham)

Reference photo taken at the scene while painting.

     

Come with Helen K. Beacham and Kelly Medford to paint Venice this October...

Two Spots Left!

click HERE for details!

www.helenKbeacham.com

30 Paintings in 30 days!

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As artists, we've all read about (or know someone) who has committed to painting x number of paintings  in x number of days.  Today, I committed to painting 30 paintings in 30 days!  It sounds manageable, right?!

Good thing I woke up with a bit of extra energy today.  Wish me good luck!  Off I go!

Painting Charleston, SC....this month's challenge allows studio painting as well.  Will post some of both!

www.helenKbeacham.com

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Plein Air this morning.

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Participating in a plein air painting session in downtown Charleston today with 45 other painters.  It's actually the OIL PAINTERS OF AMERICA group, but this weekend's organizer (HILARIE LAMBERT with LAMBERT GRAY GALLERY) invited me to join in with my watercolors!  Went to a cookout with the group last night so I got to meet many artists from around the country that came in for the event.  We'll be set up North of Broad this morning and South of Broad after lunch.  At 6pm, our paintings will be displayed at Lambert Gray Gallery with a reception for the public.  Will post pics later!

One of a bazillion gorgeous settings in downtown Charleston to paint today!

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