Ready, set, paint...

I started work yesterday on a new painting that I hope to finish by the weekend for my latest challenge with Pablo. Due to the upheaval in my personal life, I haven't been getting much studio time in lately and my palette has been sitting untouched for longer than I'd like to admit. However, some years ago I discovered a great way to store my palette, so when I opened it up this afternoon, it was in perfect condition and ready to use. Here's the scoop:


I wouldn't dream of discarding paint after each painting session -- it's too expensive -- and this method of storage keeps it fresh and workable. I fill the wells in the palette at least half full or even a little more, then spray the paint lightly with distilled water and stir each one (with a toothpick) to spread it out in the well. I cover the palette (cover not shown here) when I'm not actively painting and I spray the paints with distilled water if they start drying out while I'm painting, and also before I cover my palette and put it away at the end of a painting session. When I pull it out to paint the next time, I stir any of the paints that appear to have separated, but generally don't have to spend much time on that.


The secret to this success is a Masterson Artist Palette Seal. Before I found this solution for paint storage, I used to keep my palette in a large plastic zipper bag. It was helpful, but a bit bulky since the bag was much larger than the palette. Still, by providing an extra barrier, it helped keep the paint moist.

I prefer my old Creative Mark palette over all the others I've tried, so I modified the Masterson box by slicing off the posts, as you can see in the small inset photo. With that adjustment, you can store any palette up to 12" x 16" x 1" in the Masterson box. (Although the working area of most watercolor palettes is 12" x 16," the edges of some palettes make them just a bit too large for the storage box. Measure your palette carefully if you're thinking of trying this setup.)

If you have a favorite way of keeping your palette ready to go, please share that in the comments.

Happy painting!!

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Kreativ Blogger Award for Brush-Paper-Water

Paul Kasmir has very generously bestowed the Kreativ Blogger Award on me for my watercolor showcase blog -- Brush-Paper-Water -- but because I restrict that blog to features on other artists, I am going to accept it over here. This has been a great week for that blog in other respects as well -- it's now had more than 11,000 visits and the number of subscribers increases each week. On top of that, I discovered that Technorati ranks it as one of the top 100 art blogs. So thanks, Paul, for your enthusiasm and your vote of confidence for my efforts.

One of the conditions of the award is to list seven things about yourself, and also pass the award along. I'm going to reveal those seven factoids in a second, but instead of limiting myself to only seven bloggers, I'm going to suggest you visit all the fabulous blogs on my blogroll. I have a great collection of incredible artists on that list and you won't be disappointed!!

Now, on to those little details you've all been waiting for...

1. I love the smell of Winsor-Newton's watercolor paint Rose Madder Genuine. Even during the years I wasn't painting, I kept an old tube of it around for an occasional sniff. Very benign!! No need to call the DEA, folks!!

2. I love the name and the color -- Chartreuse.

3. When I was a child, I used only red crayons for several years. I suppose mental health professionals would have their take on this, but I'm quite sure it was because I was so enamored of the intense red tulips in my Grandmother's garden.

4. Godzilla and the Michelin Man are engaged in a perennial face-off in my studio. Oh, Godzilla thinks he's tough, but the Michelin Man just puts his hands on his hips, puffs out his chest, and stares Godzilla down. HA!!

5. When I was at my parents' home a few weeks ago, I found the Christmas exchange gift I got in 4th grade!! I don't think we coined the word "packrat" but we certainly tried our best to live up to it!!

6. I went to the site of the Haunted House that we used to visit when I was a teenager -- a moonless night was guaranteed to be scary. It's now a county park and nothing of the house remains these days. Sigh.

7. But I did see lots of fairy rings at that park. Contrary to superstitions held worldwide in the past, fairy rings have no supernatural source -- unless you regard fungi as alien creatures!! Fairy rings are simply circles of mushrooms which grow ever larger as the center of the ring becomes unable to sustain them due to loss of nutrients or changes in the soil chemistry.

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This week at Brush-Paper-Water...

Sunlit Afternoon, 30" x 22"
watercolor
Jeannie Vodden

Jeannie Vodden was recommended to me by a longtime art friend whose judgment on matters of art has always been reliable. As I looked at Jeannie's website the first time, I knew that my friend had chosen wisely once again. Jeannie's love of textures is beautifully integrated into her wonderful paintings, whether figurative or still-life, and her work presents a strong impression of the magic she finds in our daily lives.

Please buzz over to Brush-Paper-Water for a look at more of Jeannie's work.

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This week at Brush-Paper-Water...

I'm taking a short break from the watercolor showcase as our family gathers to remember my father. Look for a new feature in two weeks.

A full life...

Ken Beck, 1921 - 2009

My favorite photo of my Dad is this one taken in about 1934. He's wearing his Lucky Lindy helmet, a style popularized after Charles Lindbergh made his historic trans-Atlantic flight. His direct gaze is representative of how he lived his life.

Dad passed away Saturday after battling cancer for many years. He lived a full life – one filled with hard work and dedication to his family and friends. A gifted woodworker, he generously donated his skills to help family and friends over the years. He was also a handyman extraordinaire who always found ways to improve his surroundings. And he had a silly streak that made him very fond of wordplay, goofy songs, Wily Coyote cartoons and Seinfeld. I'm going to miss him.

This week at Brush-Paper-Water...

Grand Canyon – Cache Creek, 14" x 18"
gouache over acrylic
Kay Duffy

Kay Duffy is another longtime art acquaintance whose energy and love of experimenting with new materials and techniques keeps her art lively and fresh. She is well-known for her traditional transparent watercolors of plum and cherry trees during their ethereal spring bloom (once a common feature in the local landscape and a signature of the Santa Clara Valley), but she is equally at home creating innovative collages and painting landscapes of her travels to places such as the Grand Canyon and Yosemite.

Please visit Brush-Paper-Water to see more of Kay's work.

All in good time...

Snail Mail, 6" x 6"
watercolor
Chris Beck

I just got word that my painting, Snail Mail, has won an award in an international competition. I can't say any more about it now, but I'll let you know when it goes public. This painting came about when Pablo Villicana Lara and I were invited to join a challenge posed by Jelaine Faunce and M. Collier back in March using a plain white envelope as the common denominator for our paintings. I had a great time with this subject -- one of the snails in my collection of vintage tin toys almost crawled off the shelf to volunteer its services!!

This week at Brush-Paper-Water...

Orange Iris, 30" x 22"
watercolor
Sally Bookman

Sally Bookman is well- known for her charming watercolors of local scenes -- street and harbor views, beach and cafe scenes -- whether in California or abroad. But she also excels at capturing the luscious quality of flowers, from views of a whole section of a garden to closeups of individual flowers. And she manages to fit all this into a life already full with her work as a realtor, raising her family, and volunteer activities.

Please jump over to Brush-Paper-Water to see more of Sally's work.

This week at Brush-Paper-Water...

Magnolia, 15" x 22"
watercolor
Fábio Cembranelli

When I first found Fábio Cembranelli's work, it was his lush impressionistic florals that grabbed my attention, but I later discovered that he's equally at home doing landscapes. He conveys the moods of his varied subjects with great skill and artistry and opens a delightful window on his world. We met about a year ago on Brushspace, a social networking site for artists, and he was one of the first artists I contacted when I started the showcase blog. It is my great pleasure to share his work with you.

Please link over to Brush-Paper-Water to see a few of his paintings and then be sure to visit his blog to see more. It's also well worth your time to jump to his website via the link in his blog and take a moment to look at Demonstration 1 for a step-by-step demonstration and explanation of his painting technique.

From the depths of the vault...

Starry Sky, handmade paper with inclusions, size unavailable

Back in the early 80s, I became fascinated with handmade paper. I spent my summer vacation that year taking a papermaking workshop at Sievers School of Fiber Arts on Washington Island -- just off the tip of Door County in Wisconsin. The instructor that year was Gisela Moyer, who had just received her Fine Arts Degree in papermaking. She went on to a successful gallery career, including ownership of her own gallery, before switching to outdoor festival sales about 10 years ago.

Just this weekend, I stumbled across slides of some of the pieces I produced that year. I've lost track of Starry Sky, but Lakeshore Dunes still hangs in my parents' home.

Lakeshore Dunes, layered handmade paper, approx. 8" x 10"

For these workshop projects, the emphasis was on creativity, not archival materials. As you can see, there is discoloration in the final works, particularly in the layered piece -- in part from the raw materials and in part from casting the paper onto hardboard covered with muslin. That permitted the production of pieces with some depth and also resulted in rapid drying times so we could get quick feedback and inspiration for additional works.

I later began a series using watercolor dyes to tint the pulp and create more colorful finished pieces. Unfortunately, the dyes available at that time were fugitive, so any works that were framed and displayed have faded almost to invisibility. I know I have a stash of unframed works, but their whereabouts are a bit of a mystery right now. I'll take a few pix and post them if I manage to unearth them.