Yellow Butterfly ~ Happy New Year

5x5 watercolor on Italia 140 lb. cold press paper begun yesterday and completed today as my final painting for 2019.  Just as a butterfly flies away we say goodbye to a long and eventful year with hopes of a better one unfolding.  Have a happy new year all friends and followers!
COPYRIGHT 2019 Kay Smith

Splendor in the Glass

15x11 watercolor on Arches 140 lb cold press paper finished today.  I've titled this one "Splendor in the Glass".  New specialty drinks for those wanting to imbibe, the red one is a cinnamon whiskey with lime.  I think I'll have iced tea, though, and stay at home.  I want to wish all of my followers and friends a very happy new year.
COPYRIGHT Kay Smith 2019

Holstein Heifer

8x8 watercolor on Italia 140 lb cold press paper done over Christmas holiday from one of my refs featured in WetCanvas December challenge.  I omitted several other cows and simplified the landscape to focus on the Holstein heifer.
COPYRIGHT 2019 Kay Smith

Emperor Penguin

15x11 watercolor, which was a demo for North Light Books PQR: Birds & Butterflies (2008) along with a house sparrow illustration/demo. This imaginary fellow is enjoying his cold domain, lifting his head to heaven so thankful for his snowy world and wishing you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.
COPYRIGHT Kay Smith

Untouched Powder

5x7 watercolor snow scene at dusk showing pristine white powder untouched by animals or humans.  Four birch trees stand guard in front of evergreens in background.  I painted this imaginary scene on Lanaquarelle 140 lb hot press paper with Daniel Smith paints:  Permanent rose, Prussian blue, sap green, quin burnt orange and gold, carbazole violet and burnt sienna.
COPYRIGHT 2019 Kay Smith

Quilted Tree

10x8 watercolor pieces cut out from old failed works then adhered to white heavy cardstock. I used a black fine tip Sharpie pen to draw "stitches" zigzag marks to mimic sewing for this holiday quilt tree.
COPYRIGHT Kay Smith

Mule Deer Sends Yuletide Greetings

9.75x7 watercolor on Fabriano Extra White 140 lb cold press paper done over this past weekend from one of many deer photos.  I like this backside view of the mule deer surveying its fall going into winter domain.  In the imaginary background I've added aspens and fall foliage including red and orange leaves.  There's a nice backdrop to the freshly fallen snow in the middle ground.  The cold sky is darkening with a pending threat of rain or more snow.
COPYRIGHT 2019 Kay Smith

Santa's Snacks

8.5x5.5 watercolor and ink line on Masters sketchbook paper done awhile back.  Candy canes and chocolate chip cookies with a cold glass of milk await Santa, when he stops by to leave gifts and enjoy a quick refreshment for the road.
COPYRIGHT Kay Smith

Rascal Rabbit

6.75x9 watercolor on Bristol board 300 series/100 lb. done today, a whimsical rabbit sketched using STA Lictin pigment liner 0.05.  He is wishing you all a Merry Christmas!
COPYRIGHT 2019 Kay Smith

Wintertime Trees

7x3.25 watercolor on Canson 140 lb cold press paper done today, an imaginary winter scene and evergreen trees in the snow.  A broken area of frozen water is in the foreground while birds fly overhead.
COPYRIGHT 2019 Kay Smith

Yellow Watercan and Blooms

7.25x5.75 watercolor on Italia 140 lb CP paper done today, an imaginary garden scene complete with old rusty watering can or watercan filled with flowers such as poppies, etc.
COPYRIGHT 2019 Kay Smith

Raptor Above Snow

7.25x4.5 watercolor on Canson 140 lb cold press paper completed today for an online challenge.  Participants have 2 hours to select a photo then paint it.  This one was finished in about 30 minutes.  Ref courtesty Susan (tyree) on WetCanvas.  Just a hint of blue snow shadows below the raptor hawk bird who is out looking for his next meal. 
COPYRIGHT 2019 Kay Smith

Spruced up for Winter

14x10 watercolor on Kilimanjaro 140 lb cold press block, American Journey/Daniel Smith paints, done with cold weather in mind and on its way with a pale lilac sky.   Bare branches peep out behind the snow laden spruce tree and the old Victorian porch in this scene.
COPYRIGHT 2019 Kay Smith

Sunflower Head

8x11 watercolor on 140 lb cold press paper sketched yesterday then painted today using a large brush wet on dry.  The top part that is darker is where a bird had pecked itself some seeds from this almost spent sunflower head.
COPYRIGHT 2019 Kay Smith

Christmas Chihuahua

8x5.5 mixed media that began with ink sketch as seen below on Strathmore Visual Journal for mixed media yesterday.  Next I used Sharpie colored markers and watercolor to finish this Christmas chihuahua.  COPYRIGHT 2019 Kay Smith.

Frosty Flier finch

4.5x7.25 watercolor on Canson 140 lb cold press paper completed today. Red color is mostly restricted to head and upper chest, contrasting with cold gray-brown nape, back, and wings. Pale sides show distinct brown streaks, lacking red tones. Females lack bold face pattern and have more diffuse patterning overall.  We see these, often confused with purple finches, at the feeders in New Mexico.  I tried a new experiment for the icy snowy background first covering it with a wash of white gouache, letting dry, then painting in the positive brown branches.  When that dried, I went back over with another gouache glaze and finally splattering the white for snow.
COPYRIGHT 2019 Kay Smith

December Redheaded Woodpecker

7.25x5.5 watercolor on paper completed today, a joyous fellow who has a berry or seed pod in his mouth.  This book page is slick and easy to paint on.
COPYRIGHT 2019 Kay Smith

Poinsettia Points

4.75x6.25 watercolor on Canson 140 lb cold press paper sketched yesterday then painted today for another weekend drawing event on WetCanvas.  The greens and reds are complementary colors and really stand out in this season.  The poinsettia's red leaves are very pointed and form the top part of the plant.
COPYRIGHT 2019 Kay Smith

Japanese Street

8.5x11.5 mixed media on matboard finished yesterday, a street scene in Japan.  Magic colored pencils used to sketch followed by Caran D' Ache watersoluble wax crayons and acrylics as top layer.  Since I lived in Japan several months this subject matter was just perfect.  The women talking under their parasols gives this a cozy and friendly touch.
COPYRIGHT Kay Smith 2019.

Female Bushtit Bird

4.5x7 watercolor on Italia 140 lb cold press paper completed yesterday from my stash of numerous bird photos.  The female bushtit bird's coloring blended right in with the purple and pink sage floral.
COPYRIGHT 2019 Kay Smith

Resting Camel

5.5x8.5 colored pencils and watercolor on Masters sketchbook paper done over the weekend for another online 2 hour challenge.  Ref courtesy WetCanvas for the weekend drawing event.  This resting camel was not quite an hour.  I suppose the other 2 camels and the 3 wisemen were on a break.
COPYRIGHT 2019 Kay Smith

Hang to Dry

6x9 watercolor on Canson 140 lb cold press paper done over the weekend, similar to another backyard laundry scene I painted years ago.  Several wash items of clothing were changed in this version.  Many people have contacted me wanting prints of that one and Artspan was unable to get a large enough size, hence the updated version.  Everyone remembers the smell of fresh clothes drying on the clothesline.
COPYRIGHT 2019 Kay Smith

Merry Green Rusty Truck

9x5.25 watercolor on Bristol board 300 series/100 lb. done last week for an online challenge; ref courtesy WetCanvas.  I cropped the old rusty green truck with its wreath to focus only on its front then added an evergreen tree in the snowy background, omitting buildings, etc.
COPYRIGHT 2019 Kay Smith

Poppy Cup

9x6 watercolor and Brusho on Canson 140 lb cold press paper done today.  I did a blind contour pencil sketch for the poppy and made up the rest as that's about the only way to get looser lines.  Brusho was applied first in Orange to its petals, and two greens were used for the foliage.  Background is indigo and ultramarine blue.
COPYRIGHT 2019 Kay Smith

December Evergreens

4.5x3.5 Brusho and watercolor completed yesterday, a miniature abstract on which I brush sketched some tall evergreens. The background was made using leftover Brusho in reds and greens.  Positive shapes of the trees were done with a #1 script liner brush using Undersea Green by Daniel Smith.
Larger size is below.

COPYRIGHT 2019 Kay Smith

Wisconsin Farm

7x11 watercolor on Kilimanjaro 140 lb cold press paper painted yesteday using White Nights paints. This is Jenna H's farm on a recent snowy night; she is a fellow moderator on WetCanvas.  Probably this one is my second or third nocturnal scene/landscape.
COPYRIGHT 2019 Kay Smith

Bobby and His Mule

9x12 watercolor on Canson 140 lb cold press paper done last week using White Nights pigments, painted while it was snowing in New Mexico.  The mule seems to be sure of where they are going.
COPYRIGHT 2019 Kay Smith

Owl and Yellow Leaves

9.5x7 watercolor and colored pencils in Ecosystem sketchbook done last weekend for another weekend drawing event online.  Participants have 2 hours to select an image and paint it.  I cropped an owl photo including only some branches and autumn leaves for a 35-40 minute endeavor.
COPYRIGHT 2019 Kay Smith

Brusho Poinsettias

12x9 Brusho watercolor crystals on Bristol board 300 series/100 lb. completed today.  I am still learning how to use the crystals and this time after doing a colored pencil sketch in red and green and sprinkling them, I put several hues into a flat palette and added water.  This made a stronger solid color.  Look closely and you can see some of the crystals spots.  I used 4 or 5 different reds plus Vermilion; it is SOLD.
COPYRIGHT 2019 Kay Smith

Cardinal Pair

8x8 watercolor on Italia 140 lb cold press paper done a few days ago using White Nights paints. It was snowing where we were in the mountains so easy to imagine this pair of lovebird cardinals watching out for each other nestled into a snowy pine tree.
COPYRIGHT 2019 Kay Smith

Mother Cat and Baby

5x4 watercolor on Canson 140 lb cold press paper using new White Nights paints. This was done a few days last week before Thanksgiving.  I love the color of the almost white mother cat with minimal stripes on her head and her baby who was more vividly marked.  Green eyes were captivating so I made the background to complement them in this double pet portrait.
COPYRIGHT 2019 Kay Smith