memory drawings

 Memory drawings x 3, April 30

I am thoughtful and thoughtless as I really remember few key bits and blank out on the rest of the information. 

Like the jacket tied around his waist. I knew it curved but only when I looked at it a 3rd time I saw that lovely shape dropping below the rest.

I wonder if I will begin to see more as time go along or if my brain only has capacity to retain so many bits of information at a time. 

WAG Store consignment of my artwork

 Yesterday I had an appointment to see Sherry Van Went at the Winnipeg art gallery shop. I had previously contacted her about selling working the gallery and we finally met. With masks on and staying 6 feet apart, we chatted about by PaperWorks. 

She was extremely thoughtful put on her white gloves and took her time thoughtfully looking through my art to choose ones she thought would work or the store. 

For me, it was interesting to see everything spread out, the full series. My paperwork for often just contained within the sketchbooks. 

I have not been represented by a store before. Oh Well ...except for the store at the Mendel Gallery in Saskatoon. I don't think the Mendle exists anymore. Back then I had a business with my partner called Clank. We sold welded metal candleholders and bookends. 

I was very tired afterward because it was emotional to put my stuff out there. Sherry chose ones but I will wait and see if the public chooses to buy some. A real-world test to see if my work has salability. I would love to have my work in people's homes and places of work. Hey yes! My work is saleable because people keep direct messaging me on Instagram to buy it even though I have been too lax to post it in my store. Thank you to all those people who are collecting my work out there I greatly appreciate it!

rework it #1

My Dragon's Hoard

I have hundreds of paintings in my house. I don't think everybody has this many paintings. Strangely I have a very few on my walls they're all in plastic boxes in the basement. I analyze paintings so seeing them when I am trying to rest is not restful. I am going to start reworking some of the ones that I want rework, older works. I am a different painter now. I used to use acrylic and now I am using oil paint. My skill set has grown as I have been teaching painting for years. Problem solving others paintings builds skills.

This is the first one that I have re-worked. Originally it started as an in class demonstration. I always loved it's strong boldness. It's graphic quality made by the simplification of shapes and the strong brown black against a bright yellow. But I could see lots of pencil outlines underneath the transparent yellow and it just never seemed quite finished even though I really liked it.

Here is my rework I just added tons more stuff:

I tucked 3 baby goslings under the wing.  

I patterned the wing.

I added more fluffs from the nest coming forward.

I added landscape with water.

One of the biggest changes my work and the last couple years is that I like to put distance in my painting to let the viewer have freedom and escape into it. I used to like flat surfaces that would block and be a wall but now I like this false distance, a meditation part of a painting. I have the river curve around the bend, I have the perspective of the further shore being paler and tree lines reducing the distance.

I hope this is a good idea. I hope I not wrecking all my old stuff but when I have so many paintings I really I think that some of them could be better. If not better just feel finished to me.

My Dragon's Hoard of my past paintings. Hey that's a good title for this!🐊

flower garden bouquet

Today I continued painting the robin, darkening the tummy, reworking the breast patterns, going over the branches making dark purple lines in the shadow and lavender and green yellow lines in the light and then speckling little spots of lichens and bark patterns.

I don't usually do this outlining stroke but I was teaching it the other night so I am trying to stretch myself. I was trying to build this confused high contrast area in the very bottom a weighted part of the painting and then lift it up with light airiness floating way out the top.

Then because it was so futzy to work on the robin and I just ordered 25 new eight-by-ten gesso boards, I splurged and started a new painting. I found a photo of a bouquet from someone's mother's flower garden on paintmyphoto.com. It is so full and sloppy and lots of roses. Midway through the phone rang and Delta art of Edmonton said that Ampersand hasn't fulfilled any of their orders since November seven months ago. They only had seven to sell me. I don't know what I'm going to paint on when I run out. I think I will switch to canvas paper wait and see what happens.

Happy Birthday painting

 

Yesterday was my daughter's 17th birthday! I woke up at 7 to bake her a white cake her favourite and one that I have made almost every birthday. Well there was a time when all she wanted was ice cream cake but now she's back to the white cake. It took 12 egg whites! 

In the evening I taught a Zoom class on how to paint Robins and simplify the patterning of the background. My Robin I made like it was in a birthday party with confetti like colours and patterning all around. I chose this Robin from paint my photo website. I loved it because the bird is open mouthed eating the berry.

 It's a work in progress I'm trying to concentrate on and finish it. I seem to be starting lots of work these days and slow down when finishing. There's such freedom when I start a new work and such fussiness when I end it.

When I came out of my class at 9:30 I saw this on the kitchen table, what a fun surprise! My two daughters had iced the birthday cake!

Land-Body 1

1

East Point Saturna Island BC

rainy and had to return another day to finish

30 min in the rain and 3 hr in the sun painting

July 7 and July 16, 2019

6" x 8" oil on panel 2019  Brenna George

 I am in the seam of the rock locked in place. I feel weighed down with open freedom way above me. The green oval rocks locked in place in the cliff radiate around me. The rock is scratchy sandstone. I use a bristle brush to make scratchy strokes. 

In front of me is an amazing view of the ocean. I find it hard to just pick just one point of view to paint. The deep ocean with seals swimming looks like a more appealing choice than staring at a sandstone cliff but I chose it and I stick with it - geology is lovely too.  A cliff swallow's nest is above where I paint. The second time I come back the babies are gone. A lot changes in 9 days.

 It is so fun and inspiring to have others to paint with and kind of them to jumpstart my project by painting alongside me.

 The first-day, Robin S. of Instagram feelsbyseals 

 and Jasper my nephew 

 When it rains it is so dangerous getting out. The sandstone becomes slippery and slopes right into the deep ocean with strong currents. Jasper my nephew is wearing runners with bad treads falls and scrapes his wrist.

 On the second day my son, Marshall paints with me. I set up the new easel and pallet that I bought especially for him, now our painting gear matches. He paints fast and thick. He is covered in blue paint when he is done. 

6" x 8" oil on panel Marshall George 2019

Couples - Belle and the Ghost

There is a playmobil ghost and a disney Belle figurine that have been sitting together on my mantle, casually put there by the kids but I kept thinking about them. This is the start of my idea for this series. I began to think of them as a couple, an unusual couple and this led to thoughts of other pairings.

I liked this idea because it seems like a natural flow from my last series where I made plants into romantic novel covers. I see these as being a snapshot or a novel cover into the imagined relationship of these people and animals.

Belle and The Ghost, 9" x 12" oil on canvas 2017

With this painting I work with the idea of solid and transparent and make a solid body and a ghost body. I like her long gloves that have her hand reaching to touch his heart. Her dress I imagined had a subtle plaid pattern in yellow and I love the fluid brushstrokes of those lines. I am thinking about life and death and loving being alive to the fullest because death is there beside you and you touch upon that idea but with gloved hands. Also there is just the fun thought of a women being in love with a ghost that she can see and talk with.

Couples - Mr. Dressup and The Fairy Godmother

I was thinking of the nicest people and how they should be together. I loved to watch Mr. Dressup draw. His house was so clean and calm. He had a great sense of humour and was very kind. I loved the non-scripted chatter between him and Casey and Finnegan - who was silent but communicated too. The Fairy Godmother never had a big roll but seemed to not judge but help out if one was in trouble.  She was very smiley too.  I think they would have a playful relationship. It is interesting that the photos of the puppeteer of Casey and Finnegan, Judith Lawrence, looks a lot like the Fairy Godmother.

Mr. Dressup and The Fairy Godmother, 9" x 12" oil on canvas 2017

I am riding this balance between real and drawing using outlining and shading so they are real people who have roots in drawings and drawing. I softened the background to have them magically pop forward. I researched 70's wallpaper to give it a subtle 1970's vibe and I put those colours in the background because these are my childhood characters. I lowered the neckline of Fairy Godmother's dress because it was god awful unflattering. Now she wears a low cut hoodie style dress.  The wand sparkles I repainted many times and then finally settled on bold chunky white strokes to make it the brightest spot of the painting so it would glow.

Mystery Botanicals Wrap-up

I am stopping the one a day Mystery Botanicals. It was great to paint in the Fall but it had a natural end with the weather getting cold, the variety of plants lessening and I just got a bad cold.

Thank you for all watching, liking and commenting. Best to you all. Brenna

Mystery Botanicals #34

Mystery at Lighthouse Point

While I paint I watch a cat 6 feet from me catch a mouse from our wood pile. It took the mouse in it's mouth and trotted home with it.

There are a few tiny flowers left in my yard. I use my rigger brush to make long flowing grass strokes and then balance icy blue vine leaves on top of them and through it all the tiny yellow dandelions poke their heads up. It is like a large wave of life is about to crash over them.

mystery botanicals #34 Mystery at Lighthouse Point, October 10,  2016 oil on canvas 9" x 12" overcast , 2h

Mystery Botanicals #33

Grateful

Thanksgiving dinner day! The house smells wonderful and outside is cold.

The cat owners, a family with 4 boys, saw the found cat poster. We gave them their cat back. It was a happy reunion as the cat was held in the teenage boy's arms and licked him. I am grateful we had time with the kitty, that I have time and supplies to paint and that I have a family to spend the holidays with.

These are garlic seeds they taste good when they are fresh. They hang like pine cones and the minty green background makes a holiday feeling. I like the downward droop of lowered expectations and the thin stems that cross two characters together.

mystery botanicals #33 Grateful, October 9,  2016 oil on canvas 9" x 12" sun and overcast mix, 1h

Mystery Botanicals #32

The Allure of Mrs. Plum

This is our plum tree it has gone all pink. I have not painted just leaves in this series until today. They are just so flat I an not sure they will have enough interest on their own but the plum tree leaves are such an amazing pink that I jumped in.
 
This painting is pink. The two in focus leaves point at each other while their respective partners are unaware.

mystery botanicals #32  The Allure of Mrs. Plum, October 8,  2016 oil on canvas 9" x 12" sun and overcast mix, 2h

We still have the cat. We put up more posters today in case the rain washed out the others. We bought a harness and leash because the cat is getting cabin fever. Here is my daughter giving the cat a walk.

Mystery Botanicals #31

Unsuited

Today I thought I might stop the series because of the weather of snowy rains. This uncertainty made me unhappy and jittery all morning until I decided to continue. I am still curious of where this series will go with the fall landscape inside of me and in my yard. Must build a better painting hut the plastic is too noisy and hits me and my painting. The plastic flew completely away at one point and I felt so naked.

The grey sky chunks around in solid blocks so weighty on top of everything. The vines smear into each other and arch across the surface while our main characters are awkward, prickly and trying to get to know each other in difficult circumstances.

mystery botanicals #31  Unsuited, October 7,  2016 oil on canvas 9" x 12" snowy rains, 1 h

Mystery Botanicals #30

Unfavorable 

The blustery fall conditions continue so I paint fast in the 6 degree weather before I shut down from the cold.

Sticks jut upward. That is all that is left of the black raspberries. The purple clouds tumble across the sky. Everything is fast and simple. This is a stark work where two figure stand side by side in adverse conditions.

mystery botanicals #30  Unfavorable, October 6,  2016 oil on canvas 9" x 12" overcast, 6 degrees, 1 h

Mystery Botanicals #29

Adventure in Blustery Valley

The afternoon is windy and grey. As fall progresses there is less to paint. My subjects will become more minimal as flowers, seeds, leaves and fruit fall and join the soil.

I set up and paint for 30 minutes and then it rains. I go inside and wait. As I wait I look at my painting and I love it. It is full of gusty wind, a rain cloud filled sky and thin vines that change colour as they progress. If I work it more it will just be different. I choose to keep it.

mystery botanicals #29  Adventure in Blustery Valley, October 5,  2016 oil on canvas 9" x 12" overcast, windy 30 min

The Flowers of Fright, The Grasses of Gore, The Twigs of Terror and The Leaves of Lingering, all great names that my 12 year old daughter thought up for this painting or I can use them for other ones she says. She made up this one Adventure in Blustery Valley as all of I could think of at this time of night was so bad, The Hermit and the Forbidden Pleasure

Mystery Botanicals #28

Promise me a Whirlwind

The forecast is for a lighting storm and rains. I set up my plastic hut but it flaps in the wind so noisy and hitting me constantly. Half way through I take in down. I need to build a solid transparent movable hut but not today.

I paint the whole work drawing with the brush. It is so full and tight it looks good but I want an open bit and a closed bit because I don't want to trap the viewer. I wipe off the top half and sketch it in lightly. I like the wild abandon feeling of it like a storm is just approaching.

mystery botanicals #28 Promise me a Whirlwind, October 4,  2016 oil on canvas 9" x 12" overcast, windy 1.5h

When I pack up the rains begin.

Mystery Botanicals #27

Professor Pear and the Road Ahead

The wind keeps the wasps away so there is only a few to paint.

The solid shapes arc upwards and away. The leaves are pink. I have this swirling everybody in the picture attitude, so in goes the grass and the leaves.

mystery botanicals #27  Professor Pear and the Road Ahead, October 3,  2016 oil on canvas 9" x 12" sunny 3.5h

I like the look of the wet paint with the sun. It is so slippery looking.

Mystery Botanicals #26

The Reckless Apparition

So tired after the late night at Nuit Blanch, also picking up my daughter from Pathfinders camp and taking the found cat to humane society to see if it has a micro chip.

I am grateful for the time to paint. I make a woshing ghosting image of the dying pears and the energy of the zipping wasps. I am so brave to make work about this subject which must not be named.

mystery botanicals #26 The Reckless Apparition , October 2,  2016 oil on canvas 9" x 12" sunny 2h

Found cat at in car outside of Humane Society. If when scanned and it has a micro chip my daughter must give it up . But Ack no chip and 7 month old boy brown tabby comes back.

Mystery Botanicals #25

Professor Pear and the Situation of Surrender

Nuit Blanche is on tonight so I will go and see all the art others have made. I still have images in my mind from the last two Nuit Blanches. My favourite was the car full of water, dripping and spilling onto the street.

There is a hot spot among the pears where all the wasps are. They eat, fight and fly. I make a yellow work. This painting talks about death. I think of the Dutch masters paintings about mortality using fruit and flower still lifes that mix full bloom beside decomposition. I am afraid of death.

mystery botanicals #25 Professor Pear and the Situation of Surrender, October 1,  2016 oil on canvas 9" x 12" sunny 4h

I needed a new photo for google because I have aged since the last one so I had Rick take this one when I was painting. I look a bit like a fuzzy bear.

This bird was right in front of me chomping on an insect.

Mystery Botanicals #24

Professor Pear and the Time Devours

When I look at this scene I am hungry for pears and wish I had picked more of them before they fell.

I know I have only a short time to paint today so I am surprised with myself when I realize half way into it that I am painting 17 pears. Egads how will I ever finish. I try to draw the pears with lines but they want to be sculpted in. I just make everything very rough and only put a few wasps in and then. Oh pull me away it is time to pack up.

mystery botanicals #24 Professor Pear and the Time Devours, September 30,  2016 oil on canvas 9" x 12" mix of sun and overcast 1h 20 min

so reflective, maybe you can see more of it in this shot.