For the blog this month, I thought I might highlight some of my latest paintings that are now present on the website. I’ve entitled this post “The Latest and Greatest,” but I’m not sure about the greatest bit. While I love the paintings I’ve done lately, I don’t have a real gauge about how they…
I was recently the happy recipient of a wonderful book, John Singer Sargent: Portraits in Charcoal. This incredibly beautiful book displays the artist’s charcoal portraits with stunning clarity and detail. I was so taken with these masterful portraits that I decided to try my hand at replicating some of them myself. Sargent was an absolutely…
Easter greetings from Ruralgirlgraphics.com! Here at the Upstairs Studio, our hopes are rising on this Easter holiday. We wish you a rebirth of hope in your lives as well. With the coming of spring, the earth seems young again. This tends to give us a “spring” in our step and a lightness in our heart….
I thought it might be interesting to share with you the process I use to create a painting. I will be using my latest completed image, the front quarter panel of a 1961 Cadillac for an example of how I approach my work. My husband is a vintage car lover, and I have become one…
New Year’s greetings from Rural Girl Graphics! We at the Upstairs Studio wish you and yours a very happy and healthy year to come. If this past year taught us anything, it is to cherish your loved ones and spend your time in productive and rewarding activity. The lockdowns of 2020 have forced us to…
Christmas greetings from the ruralgirlgraphics.com blog! Just a note here to extend my warmest greetings for the holiday season 2020. I’m sure you will all agree, this year has been a challenging one. I know I’m not alone in saying that I am a different person than I was last Christmas. So much of what…
Christmas Card 2011, “Sledding Teddy” original watercolor 10 x 8″ Introduction I have been creating my family’s Christmas card for the last twenty-five years. It is a process I learned by doing. In the early years I printed my cards (always black and white back then) with the old tried and true paste-up method. These…
Wedding Day, Pencil, 10 x 8″ Where it all Begins I was intrigued by the question, “What is your favorite painting material?” I have definite preferences, that’s for sure. I am “by trade” a watercolorist. Most of the work I do is in watercolor. I love the wonderful liquid properties of watercolor – how the…
“Liberty’s Child” watercolor on paper 11×14″ Many artists are intimidated by the prospect of creating a portrait of an individual in watercolor. They need not be! Watercolor is a wonderful medium for capturing the ethereal nature of the subject, and very amenable to portraying the subtle changes in coloring that occur in people’s faces. As…
For other posts in this series: part 1 | part two | part three | part four … My experience illustrating children’s books has been a joyful one, though there have been times when it’s tested my mettle. This job is very time and labor-intensive, and you must check your artistic ego at the door….
