Video: Cacti Celebration. Painted: April 8, 2010

Painting ACEO: Cacti Celebration on April 8, 2010.

Although I already have this silent, time lapse video on my Flickr (http://www.flickr.com/photos/diannna-art/4512261838) it is now also on YouTube.

Video: Bunny Silhouette: Painted March 19, 2010

Painting the 8"x10" Bunny Silhouette on March 19, 2010.

I have been painting for over two years, but had not made a video of me painting in real time until creating this one. This video is of me painting (rather rushed) a bunny silhouette. It was my first time trying to paint a bunny at all. I believe this is the fastest I ever painted. I was very aware that the camera was recording and did not want the video to be too long.





Transcription:
I think it's more fun watching the colors mix on the canvas itself.
Makes the inner child do a little happy dance.
Pretty much coated.
I don't like any of the canvas showing through..
I don't mind the texture. I just don't like the.. white of the canvas.
I guess it's a.. habit now, to try to hide every little square.
It's like a minute little waffle.
Ok, the horizon will be somewhere around there.
(To the paint clinging to the tube) Let go.
I like to make it curve along the edges and paint on the outside.
This way if I hang it on the wall, look it from a different angle.. it's still going on.
..Be one of those things that no one really notices, but it amuses me.
That's pretty much how I do a really simple sky.
Looks like a windy day.
Think I'll add a slight touch of purple*, just for fun.
Probably hardly anyone will notice that later, (chuckle) but I like it.
So this is.. Mars Black. It's pretty thick. I'll have to get a new one soon.
..Get another brush.
When I was little I used to watch Bob Ross on public television.
Can't paint anything like and I don't have any fun commentary like him.
But, every once in a while I paint a tree and I think, 'Happy little tree!'
Today I guess it's a happy little silhouette.
Though it's dark because it's a silhouette, I think it'll be happy.
It's an eight by ten canvas and I like holding it underneath.
Knowing my luck, I'm probably breaking some rule about how you're supposed to paint.
Probably line of sight or something.
But, I'm still at a stage where I'm painting for myself, for fun.
Some of my family and friends are amused by it. Which, is bonus. It's nice.
I like a really sharp edge. Can't always get it to happen.
But that doesn't stop me from trying.
Really is thick black paint. I guess I've had it too long.
And right here.
Well, I have a certain holiday on my brain. That should become obvious.
Try not to waste paint, I'm grabbing it from the other brush.
(chuckle) My first attempt at painting a bunny.
Drew one on a piece of paper nearby. Proof that my animal drawing skills aren't that grand.
But cute in my mind, sure. Bunny tail. (chuckle)
It's looking totally out of proportion.
But when it comes to painting, I guess sometimes you do better than other times.
Trying to make this a little darker. He's looking up. Little bit of the nose.
Kinda looks like a chocolate bunny more than a real one. (loud exhale, chuckle)
Gotta pick up some paint here and darken it up.
I like to do finer details with my left hand sometimes. Easier that way.
I like the little bit of light showing through, the paws. (sigh) Hmm.
Looked like he hurt a paw. And.. I'll have to try it again sometime.
Maybe paint over this one.
Bunny!
That's a problem**

*Dioxazine Purple
**Refers to trying to put the painting down while all the edges are wet.

ACEO: Extinguished Candle: Completed September 12, 2010

ACEO: Extinguished Candle
Originally uploaded by diannna-art
Acrylic paint on 2 1/2" x 3 1/2",
246# Strathmore Acid Free acrylic paper.

I doodle windows and candles often, but due to being intimidated by having to attempt to draw straight lines.. I have not attempted to paint a window until now.

I painted the background the day before blending upward with Primary Yellow, Primary Red and Primary Blue. The red and the blue were much darker than I planned.. so I threw in a bit of Titanium White to make it easier to see the planned silhouette. I blended for quite a while and worried it would become too muddy. Finally to remove some deeper valleys created by my brush strokes, I swept the surface from yellow up to the blue with a cosmetics brush (blush brush) I use only for my acrylic paints. It created a slightly wood-grain-like look that I was pleased with.. so I left it alone to dry for a few hours.

Later, I returned with Mars Black and painted the window frame. At first, I tried to keep things much thinner.. but it kept growing as I had difficulty making the lines look uniform. I accidentally smudged the paint many times and had to go back to correct my mistakes. But, there finally came a time when it looked like a window and I left it to dry for the night.

I had thought that painting the handle of the candle holder was going to be more difficult than it was.. but by turning the art card and moving slowly, it worked out. I planned on having the candle unlit but waited until everything else was dry before attempting the wisp of smoke.

With the wisp of smoke, I tried a bit of white and it looked too bright. Gray looked too out of place.. and I worried that black might look too dark to look like smoke. However, after many attempts the paint started to dry and become difficult to use. The paint became increasingly difficult to get onto the art card. Just before I was prepared to put more black paint on my tray I gave it one last try. The paint only partially went on the art card as I moved my thin brush.. and it produced a rather wispy result. Usually when this occurs, I paint over the line once more to thicken the appearance. In this case, it was perfect just the way it was.. making the candle look as if it was just extinguished.

I feel that it is a sleepy sunset. One can imagine someone blowing out the candle, putting aside a book they were reading and preparing for sleep.

ACEO: Midnight Jack O'Lantern: Painted September 4, 2010

ACEO: Midnight Jack O'Lantern
Originally uploaded by diannna-art
Acrylic paint on 2 1/2" x 3 1/2",
246# Strathmore Acid Free acrylic paper.

September has only just begun, but already Halloween keeps coming to mind. I love Halloween.. especially carving pumpkins. A relatively new tradition of mine is carving pumpkin pie as if it was going to be a Jack O'Lantern, and then eating it that night. So the image of a carved pumpkin is key to how I celebrate Halloween.

I never really thought my trees looked spooky, until I painted two near a glowing Jack O'Lantern. The glow from the carved pumpkin breaks my usual silhouette, but was a lot of fun to try. The night sky is a mix of Dioxazine Purple, Primary Blue and a hint of Titanium White to make the horizon a little lighter. The silhouette is Mars Black. The glow from the Jack O'Lantern is a layer of Titanium White with two shades of orange (Cadmium Red Deep Hue and Primary Yellow mixed together)

ACEO: Tree Silhouette: Painted January 3, 2010

ACEO: Tree Silhouette
Originally uploaded by diannna-art
Acrylic paint on 2 1/2" x 3 1/2",
110# Georgia Pacific smooth cardstock

When I first started to mark the names and dates of things I painted.. I was not as organized as I am now or as organized as I hope to become. In January 2010, I learned about ACEO's and this is the first one I ever created.

I painted this piece to experiment with smaller, more intricate brushstrokes than what was needed on 16x20 or 8x10 canvases. It was a fun and soothing experience as I imagined the peaceful hour of twilight.

Just to see what would happen.. I asked my husband to put it on eBay. We posted it for very cheap and at the end of the auction, there were a couple of bids and it sold for just over one dollar.

Now I use the image for my web banners and avatars.. but I realized I never actually posted it on my Art Diary. So, I decided to correct that.