Colored Pencil by Yaquina Bay

3 wonderful days spent in Newport, Oregon with artist

Kristy Kutch

Newport, Oregon is a really nice beach city with a beautiful bay.  The weather was a bit chilly for a Southern California girl, but it was really pleasant.  

The harbor and wharf area are loaded with tourists during the summer months. But walking in the early mornings  there were just a few walkers and runners.

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The wharf is filled with fishing boats all bringing in the local catch to sell in the markets and restaurants.  

We ate at a great restaurant/fish house called Local Ocean.  Excellent Food!

From the time I checked in at the Holiday Inn Express and found a row of kisses on the bed, I knew it would be a great three days.

A couple of local artists hard at work!.

All the students/artists were a really friendly bunch of women.  On the first day of class, we all went out to lunch and got to know each other.  Artists always have the best life stories to tell, we all hit it off immediately.

Mom and daughter team hard at work!

Kaye was full of surprises.  She shared some of her art with us from Beaded Hat Pins to Denim Sequined Jackets.  Thank you Kaye for the Hat Pins, I will think of you each time I look at the pretty glass beads.

Lila, besides being an artist is also and author.  She wrote a book of her move from California to Oregon in 1963 with 3 children and their 35 foot trailer entitled Dust In My Bathtub.  I am halfway thru the book and have to laugh at all their escapades.  

What a fun lady she is!

Kristy had so many techniques and tools to share with the class.

Kristy wasn't kidding when she said to bring an extra bag to take home all the art supplies she gives away to her students.  This is only some of the goodies she gave away and raffled off.  

Me and Kristy Kutch on the last day of class.

Thanks Kristy for a great three days in Yaquina Bay, Oregon

Botany Workshop at the Huntington Gardens

Huntington Gardens

Botany with Jim Folsom, the director of the botanical gardens.

What a great day we had at The Huntington.  Jim Folsom is a wonderful instructor and incredibly knowledgeable of Botany.

It was so exciting entering the lab at The Huntington.  There were racks overflowing with  fruits and vegetables.  

Beautiful flowers were brought in for us to dissect and view under the microscopes.

All the microscopes waiting for the students to open up and start playing!  Each student had two different types of scopes to use throughout the day.

Jars of specimens filled the tables.  By the end of the day, plants littered all the tables and Jim's worktable was so filled with specimens, he just kept pushing everything into organized piles.

Beautiful Poppies!  It was such a shame to dissect them.

Alyse and I enjoying learning about the Botany of the plants we draw for our assignments.

What a great day, can't wait to take more Botany classes at the Huntington!

Fun, Fun, Day!

SBA Assignment #3 Leaves

So for this assignment, we were to make a green color chart.  Now remember, I am completing this course solely in colored pencil so my color charts look much different than the water color students.  Much easier to mix my colors and each time I get the same results.  Don't know how the watercolor students duplicate their colors each time.

Composition pages

Composition is one of the hardest thing for me to get right.  I took all my leaves and starting laying them out on the paper, taking pictures of the different compositions.  

Too many leaves all lined up like soldiers

Mixed them up a bit.  That big leaf is too big.  The eye keeps going back to it.

This one is better, but forgot my Monocot leaf.

I did like this composition,, but when I tried to draw the Monocot, I realized I couldn't get it perfect.

Final Composition!

My instructions called for all different varieties of leaves.

Sketchbook pages

One of my sketchbook pages, not complete yet.  I get them started but haven't finished them up.  This assignment required one for each leaf, plus the green color chart and the composition pages.  I will have to go back at a later date and finish them up.  

Final assignment

Tutors Notes - Here is an abbreviated version of my tutors comments: 

You have chosen some very interesting leaves for this Assignment.  My only criticism is that your green leaves are all a similar shade.  A really bright, yellow/green leaf wold have added even more interest.
Some of your leaves are 'touchable', especially the Bougainvillea, but sadly one or two look a little flat.  Just a tiny bit more evidence of a light source would eradicate this.

A selection of leaves offers a wonderful challenge ass far as composition goes, as there are so man;y smaller shapes to fit comfortable together.  This is really well done, with some upright, some hanging down and the ones with the curves placed cleverly so the viewer is led gently through the work.

This has got to be the best example of near perfect labeling I have ever seen!  Please do it every time - you will make me so happy!!

Labeling on back of artwork

I could not be happier with my final mark of 9.49..... not sure how I am going to top this mark:) 

Now to keep working on Assignment #4 Flower Heads