Rheingau Vineyard

Finally have the paint and brushes out again since the Christmas madness has quieted down.
I'm so looking forward to cleaning up the studio space, and experimenting with colors and techniques before starting any projects.  January is a good time to rest and play!
This is a scene that was started a month ago of a vineyard in Germany. It looked very somber at first, reflecting the cool cloudy rainy weather of the day; I diffused some pinks and yellows here and there to try and liven it up.

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!

Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!

May your season be filled with bright moments and beauty.

A little snowman card painted several years ago-I'm a bit behind on this year's but wanted to make sure Christmas wishes and sentiments were sent.  I am so grateful for all of your visits and lovely comments throughout the year.  Much love and my best to everyone!

Cool news!  My rooster painting from last post got the most "likes" on Lori McNee's Fine Art Tips Favorite Friday contest.  That means I get a free 15 minute phone consultation with her on art, business,  and social media tips.She is so generous with her time, and such a great artist too.
I've posted her link below if you'd like to copy and paste and check out her site.  (It's on Facebook)

https://www.facebook.com/FineArtTips?fref=ts

I will probably have to put the brush down for a couple of weeks here while I help out my husband at the family business for the holidays.
Hope you all have a blessed and merry season!  See you soon!

Watchful Rooster

Sometimes the colors just seem to paint themselves....

Roosters are pulling me in their direction lately with their irresistible colors.

Arches 300# rough cold press paper

Sun washed poppies

I was really in an orangey mood this week-must be all the fall colors and scents going on.  This is from a photo in the neighbor's yard this summer.

No pencil Arches 300# rough paper

I'm revisiting the rough paper after my workshop with Jean Haines.  It really accepts lots of pigment and water and creates lots of flowy looks.

My Collie

This is my first attempt at a full color painting of a dog-my dog, who normally doesn't sit still long enough for a photo.  I got brave enough to try after taking a workshop with Jean Haines and seeing how she does it.  I can't wait to try more; only practice and lots of work will make this come more naturally!

Humming Visitor

It's easy to see why they call hummingbirds "flying jewels".  Their colors are brilliant! I will miss them til next year.

Moony Mushrooms

Walking with the dog past a neighbor's house, there was a patch of wondrous moon-like mushrooms growing there.  I bent over to check it out more closely and thought what a cool painting subject this could be.  She begged me to take them all as she did not like them growing in her yard!

Fall Color

Yesterday was wet and rainy, perfect for painting indoors.  A nice turkey was in the oven, and I could patiently wait for layers to dry while watching the Ryder Cup.  Congrats to Europe!

This was done wet in wet, no pencil sketch.  WN cad yellow, new gamboge, orange lake, cobalt blue, perylene maroon.

The Syracuse Regional Market is a wonderful venue for photos.  I loved this lady in her scarf and the sunshine one recent morning.  I did several studies and this is the best so far.  I need to study and practice faces more so painting them with watercolor will be more intuitive.

These are two small studies from a plein air small works challenge hosted by Maggie Latham on a Facebook group.  So much fun to run out and do small paintings near the house!

Clothesline Festival

Well, the weekend and big art show I'd spent months preparing for was quite a rollercoaster!   Rain and 60 mph winds forced 400+ artist to zip up their  tents and run for shelter. My paintings made it through unscathed thank goodness and we were able to open up again in the afternoon. One poor potter lost everything he had on display and had to go home.  I felt lucky to have friends and family come and support me despite the miserable weather; it was certainly a test of strength and fortitude.  In the middle of it all I just wanted to cry and go home, but after a little food and coffee and a respite from the wind, we set the whole display up again and cheered on the brave shoppers. I realized what a special breed art fair artists are-some people do 20+ shows a year!  Two shows this summer was enough for me; gotta find more indoor venues!

Ready for anything

The sun came out on Sunday and I was able to smile again. :)

Fishing

Working on some studies of fly-ties that a fisherman friend let me borrow.  Their feathers and colors are irresistible-can't wait to do more!

Tomato, Tomahto

Well, the flowers in my garden this year have all fried in the hot sun as soon as they appeared, but these yummy cherry tomatoes are very happy with the weather! Have to paint fast as they get gobbled up quickly. :)

After all that black and white, I was ready to dive into color again.  I can't think of better subjects than roosters for color and fun!

Animal Studies

Last week I decided to try some animals for a change-up from flowers.  I used a Derwent wash pencil, which I love, to do loose sketching.  It was very calming to use just B & W for a change, eliminating all those pesky color decisions!

A friend's Boston Terrier grand-dog

In painting class last week, the teacher said "Do those pigs from the Plank Road magazine". I figured "Why not?!"

Lavender Festival 2012

The 2012 Lavender Festival was a big success!  Despite high heat and rain, several thousand people attended and had a great time.  The weekend in our little town was packed with activity-antique show, polo matches, Ride for Life bike ride to raise money for cancer, Anyela winery tastings,  music in the village, and our Festival.

Hundreds of people braved 95 degree heat to pick lavender, attend a variety of workshops, and visit us artists and vendors.

Happy in my booth under a shaded tree.  I was busy signing prints of the poster that I illustrated for this year's Festival. (You can see it hanging in the background)

Picking frenzy!

Sunday was rainy but it didn't stop this little one!

My son and girlfriend surprised me with a visit from Connecticut.

Now time to get ready for the next show!

A Lavender Day

Painting plein air at one of my favorite places-Lockwood Lavender Farm.  Every where you turn, there is another scene to paint. I forgot my chair, but luckily I had a beach towel in the car so I painted picnic-style with supplies spread all over.  Great fun!

July Garden

I have a friend down the street who is a weekend garden nut with her husband. I've painted different parts of their plantings before-this is the latest one.  Next time I'm going to put her in it.  Watch out Mary Ellen!

Upcoming Lavender Festival

Things are gearing up for the Lavender Festival July 14-15!

Here is my winning poster featured in Plank Road magazine's summer issue that just came out.  I'm so honored to have this be featured in this great magazine, and very happy that the proceeds from the sales of the poster will go to the SPCA animal shelter.

Check out the link below for current info and photos from last year's event.

http://fingerlakeslavenderfestival.blogspot.com/p/lavender-festival-photos.html

Herons Everywhere

I've been doing studies of blue herons just because it's such a thrill when we catch them sitting so warily in a marsh or lake nearby.  Now I'm seeing pictures of them everywhere and on live webcams, and a friend has sent me photos he took this weekend.  My dining room table is once again covered with works in progress!

the first two are on Fabriano 300# paper

the color here is lighter than the painting for some reason, but I like this guy because it's from a photo taken in the Adirondacks last fall.
Arches 140#

Taking a Walk

Painted for a friend from a photo from her beach vacation with her daughter.  They are very close, and I just loved this picture of them together.  They truly go hand-in- hand through life together, and the little one is growing up fast!

Bees and things...

Working on some new summery paintings.  The nice weather and all the new blooms makes it easy to get inspired and capture  the early flowers.  (and bugs, bees, etc.)

Artisan Barn Sale

The barn fair was so much fun!  It was a beautiful day to drive out to the country and see what area artists and crafters had to offer.  I think I spent any profit on other artists' wares! Happily, one of my original paintings went to a good home.  It's always a good feeling. :)

Part of the profits from sales went to a local Parks and Recreation playground project.

 My displays were propped up on barn walls, tables, and any extra barn pieces we could find.

this fabulous former dairy barn is used for fundraisers, weddings and parties all summer and fall.  The generous owners have refurbished and decorated it for many community uses.  I felt lucky to be a part of this venue.

As I was walking around the neighborhood on a recent spring morning, a shower of crab apple blossoms fell around these bright tulips.  Of course, this could be snow.  It's been that kind of spring!

To top off a great trip, I got the great news that I won this year's poster contest for the Skaneateles Lavender Festival.  This is especially nice because the proceeds benefit the SPCA animal shelter.
The link below shows the artwork.

http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fbit.ly%2FcqdVH8&h=XAQHI8D1o

Vacation Journal

It's been a busy month!  The highlight was  our epic 2 week family vacation to visit two of our boys living in Europe this year.  I had been saving this little watercolor paper journal I made just for this trip. One side is little mini studies of scenes from Germany, Belgium and Amsterdam.  The other side I'd like to make one panoramic scene; haven't decided what that's going to be yet.  There are so many scenes to choose from it's hard to pick.  My big idea of painting outdoors every day didn't work out-it was 40 degrees and windy, plus we were really on the go every minute.  The photos work fine though and it's almost done.  It'll be a great memento of our time together.

Weisbaden

Working on a scene for my son in Germany. We're going to visit next month where he's teaching; this is a walkway next to his school building.

 this was looking too "stiff" so I decided to try again.  It was started with a pencil drawing.


 here I outlined with a brush and lightly tinted water, and used a lighter, patient touch with fresh color.

I'm liking the colors much better-just needs some more depth and details. But there are things about the first one I like more, like the figure and shadows. You just cannot paint the same way each time! I could paint this 3 more times and none would look alike. I would probably do this once more, driving myself crazy, but we're going to visit soon and I have more scenes to paint!

Phantom Happenings

Our high school had a fundraiser to offset costs of the drama production "Phantom of the Opera".  Ten local artists created a Phantom inspired art piece to be raffled off at the last run; tickets could be purchased at each performance.  It contributed to the buzz of the whole evening and energies were running high!  I was happy to be involved and be able to contribute to such an exciting event!

 You place your tickets in the bag that corresponds with the painting you'd like to win.  The organizer printed our bios for each painting and they were included in the program.

My watercolor version of the boat scene.  Mist and darkness and candles were my inspiration. So fun!

Eagle in watercolor

After a whole lot of pencil and wash work, it was time to plunge into color for this bird.  This was not the easiest subject because eagles tend to look so mad all the time; they're not your cute little bluebird or cardinal pictures.  But who can resist their beautiful, majestic, full white heads of glorious feathers?

©Christy Lemp Momma Eagle watercolor 7" x 10"

Eagles

I'm addicted to checking in on the Decorah eagles!  This is a live stream webcam of a pair of eagles in their nest that are now diligently taking care of three eggs.  It's a facinating live study of these magnificent, caring, watchful birds.  I need to donate a piece to an upcoming Audubon fundraiser and thought they might make a good subject.

 Spent the better part of two afternoons sketching the eagles.  They kept moving of course, so I had multiple sketches going at once to try and catch their poses.

Finished (I hope!) wash pencil drawings on watercolor paper.  Maybe eggs and hatchlings to follow.  If you want to watch them just google Decorah eagles.  Enjoy!