All Dressed Up

“Experience is not what happens to a man. It is what a man does with what happens to him.”
– Aldous Huxley

 
All Dressed Up
4″ x 5″ Watercolor

I did this little bird from a reference photo from WetCanvas‘ Just Chaos.  She is a great photographer and has been to every zoo in California.  I painted this little fellow and he just had too much detail for my liking, so I brushed some Daniel Smith iridescent silver watercolor over the details and I liked him better.
At this time, WetCanvas has 8,424,395 images in their Reference Image Library.

About Aldous Huxley

Aldous Huxley, the cerebral English writer and social critic, is best known for his dystopian novel Brave New World, about a theoretically ideal society that stamps out individuality. He was born in Surrey in 1894. His teen years were difficult: His mother and sister died when he was 14 and a few years later, he became nearly blind. After early success with fiction, he switched to essays and screenplays, moving to California and becoming a kind of guru for the 60’s counterculture movement. He died in 1963.

Merry Old Basset Hound - November 3, 2009

"Can anything be sadder than work unfinished? Yes, work never begun."

– Christina Rossetti

Merry Old Basset Hound

4" x 4" Watercolor

I'm kinda proud of this little fellow. I am still learning, so when I have this kind of success I get a little giddy. I found this dog in WetCanvas' Reference Image Library (RIL).

The RIL is created entirely by member submissions. Images that are uploaded are available to paint from. I logged out, to see what you would get if you are not a member. You don't get to the actual photo. If you are logged in as a member, you will get a small resolution photo and most of the time (depending on the photographer's upload) a large res version. Today, there are 8,119,407 images to choose from. WOW!

I have never had a single art class. I have learned everything I can do at present, from hanging out with other artists. There are some very willing teachers at WetCanvas. Of course, next weekend, Nov 13-14, I am going to have my first class. I am so excited to be taking an acrylic workshop from Don Tiller, in Port Townsend, WA. I have been a fan of his since I saw his work in Artist's Magazine.

I think it's going to be fun to see what happens to my creativity, when it is fueled by such an inspiring teacher. I am thrilled to have this opportunity.

About Christina Rossetti

Christina Rossetti, the Victorian era English poet, is known for the melancholy themes in such poems as "Goblin Market" and "When I Am Dead." She was born in 1830 in London to Italian-born parents. Her father was poet Gabriele Rossetti and her brother was the painter/poet Dante Gabriel Rossetti. She rejected two marriage proposals because, although she loved both men, neither shared her religious devotion. According to her brother, she wrote effortlessly and rapidly. She died in 1894.