Summer Watermelon, Lemons and Grapes

9x12 watercolor on 140 lb cold press Canson paper, done yesterday from an older drawing.  Previously I had painted it in abut 5x7 format, sold it, then again a bit differently on a half sheet watercolor paper measuring 15x22, and sold that one.  With this last piece I let colors mingle and run and changed the background using American Journey's Blue Bice, my new favorite pigment, quinacridone gold and some arylide yellow.
Image is COPYRIGHT 2014 Kay Smith.

Bodie Ghost Town

6x9 watercolor on 140 lb cold press paper, done this past weekend while out of town.  Photo courtesy Li Newton of WetCanvas, who was the host for weekly drawing events, a 2 hour timed art session.  My attempt here was about 1.5 hours.  Bodie, a ghost town, is located in California.
Image is COPYRIGHT 2014 Kay Smith.

Ritzy Ranunculus

9x6 watercolor on 140 lb cold press Italia soft paper that I painted this weekend.  Using one of my pink ranunculus photos, I decided to jazz it up a bit by adding water, letting paint run upside down, then repeating the process for a loose splashy look.  Splatters were done when dry.
Image is COPYRIGHT 2014 Kay Smith.

Macho Man

8.5x6 watercolor and ink line on Color Sketch paper, drawn and painted on Friday after leaving town.  Although this rugged looking man is imaginary with his piercing eyes and unclothed body, there's nothing better than a hairy chest and a day or two stubble beard.  I used heavy black ink Sharpie for his hair and facial shadows.
Image is COPYRIGHT 2014 Kay Smith.

By the Sea

16x12 watercolor of a white wicker chair, fresh lemon squares and hydrangeas on a porch by the sea.  In this scene one can imagine sitting quietly on a summer afternoon savoring sights, sounds, and smells of the waterfront.  This work is SOLD.
Image is COPYRIGHT Kay Smith 2010.

Apple-cations

22x13 watercolor with colored pencil sanding into wet areas, a demo for a workshop I held in 2010.  Using a fresh apple, these three shapes were drawn then painted with negative painting happening in the background of leaves and stems.
Image is COPYRIGHT 2010 Kay Smith.

Cathy's Garden Chair

11x15 watercolor garden scene painted from life during my visit to the UK in 2010.  This is Cathy's garden and the most beautiful plants I ever saw.  This work is SOLD.
Image is COPYRIGHT Kay Smith 2010.

Fresh Onions

6x12 watercolor on Strathmore 140 lb cold press paper, painted today using Daniel Smith paints:  Quinacridone gold/burnt orange/magenta, transparent pyrrol orange, aureolin, UB, alizarin crimson, green gold; American Journey Blue Bice.  Drawn from a fresh bunch of garden onions, this simple vegetable still life in secondary colors might make you hungry!
Image is COPYRIGHT 2014 Kay Smith.

July Watermelon - Ready for a Picnic!

9x12 watercolor still life I set up then photographed of a ripe red one on white paper plates complete with spoon, salt and pepper although we never use seasoning.  All is sitting on lightweight bamboo lap tray.  In the photo, I had a newspaper with July 4th ads showing underneath, but when painting today decided to eliminate text and just put in dark blue lines.  Maybe now it is a tablecloth! I cut this melon up and served with balsamic vinegar/blood orange sprinkled with feta cheese.  Note the melon's reflections in the silver spoon.
Image is COPYRIGHT 2014 Kay Smith.

Yellow Daisy

6x6 watercolor done a few days ago, my last sheet in Masters sketchbook #2.  The first book was a gift from friend and fellow artist Leada Wood.  It had 80 pages I painted on as did this one for a total of 160 images.  Most were done daily.  Some were drawings or sketches while others were ink line, mixed media, dry media or watermedia.  Lots of them have sold and make nice small works to frame and put in that little spot where you need 'something' to go.  But alas! I have bought another Masters from Hobby Lobby so will commence to opening it and drawing something interesting.
Image is COPYRIGHT 2014 Kay Smith.

Mason Jar Poppies - ACEO

3.5x2.5 watercolor and ink line using Pigma Micron 01 pen and Daniel Smith paints on 140 lb cold press paper.  This was drawn a few days ago and painted yesterday.  Who doesn't love old canning jars with a few blooms inside? This is an art card, or ACEO (artist cards, editions & originals) miniature painting.
Image is COPYRIGHT 2014 Kay Smith.

Sunflower Bucket

18x12 watercolor on Canson 140 lb cold press paper, painted a few days ago.  This is a combination of more than one of my photos and the use of old metal bucket obtained at hubby's family reunion.  The dark background and sunny splash of yellow on the bucket front was done on impulse to see if it worked.  I used a direct painting method wet on dry.
Image is COPYRIGHT 2014 Kay Smith.

Bear Attack

8.75x11.5 watercolor on matboard drawn and painted today for another monthly WetCanvas challenge in the animal and wildlife forum.  I did not use any color reference, only black and white and made up the background.  In the foreground is a dead tree the bear is searching around.  Photo courtesy lisilk/WetCanvas.
Image is COPYRIGHT 2014 Kay Smith.

Strawberries - ACEO

2.5x3.5 watercolor miniature of fresh berries, drawn from life on a white napkin with green flowers.  This art card or ACEO as they are also called, has watersoluble colored pencil sanded into the wet areas for texture and interest.
Image is COPYRIGHT 2014 Kay Smith.

The Raven

8x5 watercolor on Winsor Newton Cotman paper done this last weekend while out of state, another weekend timed drawing event.  Photo ref courtesy EP/WetCanvas.
Image is COPYRIGHT 2014 Kay Smith.

Flying Pelican

9x12 watercolor painted this past weekend while in the mountains on 140 lb cold press paper for a recent online image challenge; photo courtesy WetCanvas/Jess Shippee.
Image COPYRIGHT 2014 Kay Smith.

July Geraniums

8x5 watercolor on Winsor Newton Cotman paper 140 lb cold press; Daniel Smith paints, done Saturday from life.  With this loose red geranium one could get caught up in what is a quintessential summer annual.
Image is COPYRIGHT 2014 Kay Smith.

Sit for a Spell Adirondack Chair

 6x6 watercolor and ink line on Masters paper done today with Pigma Micron 01 pen; a comfy spot to sit and enjoy summer!

Ink sketch done last week on a day that I didn't have enough time to do anything substantive, an imaginary Adirondack chair scene, about 3x5 on notepad.
Images COPYRIGHT 2014 Kay Smith.

Stock Market Longhorns

15x22 watercolor on cold press paper 140 lb, painted as a demo in 2010 for the Snyder Texas art group.  This work is SOLD.
Image COPYRIGHT 2010 Kay Smith.

Flamingo in the Grass

Now no one loves to paint these colorful tropical birds more than I do. It is a thrill when visiting Las Vegas to go by the Flamingo Hilton to the back of the hotel and watch them for hours around their koi pond, preening themselves as if performing in one of the stage shows. This painting is mixed media (colored pencil, watercolor, acrylics) on 8x11 gessoed matboard. It was a timed exercise that took 5 minutes to draw and 55 to paint. Blades of grass were scratched out in semi-dry paint using bevel end of my 1" sable flat brush.
Image is COPYRIGHT Kay Smith 2010.

Hold Your Horses

9x12 black Tombow pen ink sketch done previously. This is on Bristol board 100 lb, regular surface, using no pencil. I start with black areas first and when all are sketched, I use a #1 script liner brush with water to make grey areas; white of the paper is left as is. This work was done in 2 hours and later I painted a half sheet watercolor, a color version, of the two dappled grey draft horses.
Image is COPYRIGHT Kay Smith 2013.

Backwoods Bluejay

5x7 watercolor on cold press 140 lb paper of a backwoods bird enjoying its environment.
Image is COPYRIGHT Kay Smith 2010.

Carnation Carnival

11x15 watercolor on Strathmore 140 lb cold press paper, done from a black & white photo (no color reference).  First I spritzed limited palette colors of arylide yellow, cobalt blue, and permanent rose on dry paper.  When that dried I then began pushing warm high key colors that reminded me of sherbet.  The plain ordinary carnation is my birthday flower and it usually plays second fiddle to the rose or other more stately varieties with reputations.  This is a repost from 12/9/10 and is COPYRIGHT Kay Smith.

Apricot Irises

11x7.5 watercolor on 140 lb cold press Langton paper, a demo begun yesterday for one of my art classes, then finished today.  This is a scan so colors appear more orange than they are.
Image is COPYRIGHT 2014 Kay Smith.

Little Blue Iris ACEO

3.5x2.5 watercolor miniature blue iris with white apron, drawn and painted yesterday, another art card or ACEO (artists cards editions and originals).  I had been thumbing through my stack of iris photos and was particularly inspired by its colors as we just celebrated July 4th Independence Day on Friday.
Image is COPYRIGHT 2014 Kay Smith.

Laguna Beach

5.5x8 watercolor on Strathmore Visual Journal 140 lb cold press paper, a beach scene I painted last week in my hotel room while everyone else was in the bar or gambling.  I don't paint that many landscapes unless the area is interesting and familiar.
Image is COPYRIGHT 2014 Kay Smith.

Wicker Chair and Blooms

24x18 watercolor painted today on Canson 140 lb cold press paper, wet on dry using large round brush.  There's something special about my old white chair next to fresh flowers.  I've painted the chair mint green, then lilac, and may put its white back.  Of course our blooms were not this prolific but if you are a painter you make up your own little corner of the garden.  Come on over and sit a spell!
Image is COPYRIGHT 2014 Kay Smith.

Wild Hibiscus

5.5x8 watercolor on Strathmore Visual Journal 140 lb paper, done a few days ago while on a trip to Albuquerque NM.  Image courtesy WetCanvas (Susan) and featured on weekend drawing event where participants have only 2 hours to chose a photo, draw, and paint it.
COPYRIGHT 2014 Kay Smith.

Poppies Afire

8x5.5 watercolor on Strathmore Visual Journal for watercolor, drawn yesterday then painted today using a different technique.  I'm not sure I like it so let me know if you do or don't.  This work is now SOLD.
Image COPYRIGHT 2014 Kay Smith.

Oneta's Big Sunflower Face

14x10 watercolor on cold press paper, an older work that I drew from one of my sunflowers growing on the farm.  This work is SOLD.
Image is COPYRIGHT Kay Smith.

Ram Skull

11x15 watercolor on 140 lb cold press Saunders paper, an older work in which I used cut Frisket pieces over a wash, rearranged, repainted to give an overlapping of color shapes.  This piece is SOLD.
Image is COPYRIGHT Kay Smith.