Palm Fronds

12x9 watercolor botanical in monotone using only sepia pigment on Canson 140 lb cold press paper, a close up view of inside a palm and its leaves.  I featured this one in another online challenge and think it would make a great print as well or look stunning in an all white room.
COPYRIGHT 2020 Kay Smith.

White Coffee Cup on Red Cloth

11x8.5 watercolor on Stonehenge 140 lb cold press paper done over the weekend for another online event I was hosting.  This simple white cup about half full of coffee looks like an easy still life subject but it was anything but! Multiple ellipses and curves to get just right so many washes were painted before finishing.  Sepia was the perfect hue for black coffee.
COPYRIGHT 2020 Kay Smith

Siamese Secrets

9x9 mixed media on Magnani 140 lb cold press paper done today.  First I sketched the cat's outline with a chopstick dipped into black India ink.  Carb Othello pastels in flesh tone, white, yellow ochre, brown, gray, black, and orange yellow used to apply the Siamese's fur.  The same chopstick was used for whiskers when done.  I was missing Jezebel, studio Siamese, today and decided to use a photo of her (although her nose was not that long like a purebred) and the pastels.  Those were given to me when a friend's wife passed away and is a nice set of them plus colored charcoal pencils just waiting to be useful again.
COPYRIGHT 2020 Kay Smith

Koi Kraze

8x8 watercolor on Masters 140 lb cold press done today from my koi pond photos taken in Midland at Alldredge Gardens recently.  The white koi were the largest I'd ever seen and so neat with their speckled bodies.  Colors used to paint the water were sepia and indigo blue with cerulean blue first in the tiny swirl areas.
COPYRIGHT 2020 Kay Smith

Vacant Lot Wildflowers

4.25x2.75 watercolor on Bristol board 300 series of Mexican redhats and others growing down the street in a vacant lot.  This was brush only, no pre-drawing with pencil today.  I first did an underpainting with Naples yellow and cerulean blue and when dry put the blooms into the composition.  Blades of glass were last and darkening the undergrowth with sepia and sap green in this west Texas wildflowers scene.
COPYRIGHT 2020 Kay Smith

Pots of Pansies

5.25x8.25 mixed media, a row of clay pots and imaginary pansies in my junk journal.  I used Magic multicolor pencils to sketch over a page that had splatters of walnut ink, then watercolor + gouache. 
COPYRIGHT 2020 Kay Smith

Adult Bald Eagle

5.5x4.25 watercolor on 140 lb cold press Fabriano paper, painted last Saturday 6/20/20 which was National American Eagle day but did not get to post this bald eagle until today.  They were nearly driven to extinction by poisons and poachers by 1972.  Pesticides such as DDT collected in fish, the carnivorous bird's main diet.  Their status was upgraded from endangered in 1995 to least concern, a US Fish & Wildlife success story.  Our national emblem since 1782, these majestic eagles are most abundant in Alaska and Canada and have a life expectancy up to 28 years.
COPYRIGHT Kay Smith

Sea Lion

10.25x9 watercolor over ink line with Micron 01 pen done last week for an online challenge, ref courtesy Morguefile.  I've not painted a sea lion before and enjoyed exploring this one with its tiny ears and big muzzle.  This is done in one of my sketchbooks.
COPYRIGHT 2020 Kay Smith
 

Doe a Deer

7.75x5.25 walnut ink on Bristol 300 series paper, a deer I've sketched before in ink but not on slick Bristol. No pencil drawing was done beforehand only a wooden chopstick.
COPYRIGHT 2020 Kay Smith.

Beef Pasture

8x8 watercolor on 140 lb cold press paper done today for another online animal challenge on WetCanvas. Ref courtesy rainowl.
COPYRIGHT 2020 Kay Smith

Abstract Inks

7x11 alcohol inks on paper, an amazing abstract done as a demo.  This work is SOLD.
COPYRIGHT Kay Smith

White Tomcat

3x6 watercolor on 140 lb cold press Canson paper sketched today in pencil then painted.  This white tomcat has a few orange marks on his head and leg, a very handsome fellow.
COPYRIGHT 2020 Kay Smith

Koolaid Summer

11x15 watercolor on Saunders 140 lb cold press paper, a sunny imaginary still life of red items:  Strawberries, watermelon, and KoolAid sugar free on an outdoor picnic table.
COPYRIGHT 2020 Kay Smith

Barred Rock Hen

4.5x5.25 watercolor and Brusho wc crystals on 140 lb cold press paper done yesterday.  First I wet the feathers area then dropped black Brusho into that, letting the crystals mix and mingle.  Red areas were watercolor using red and red orange.  Background was a mix of indigo and sepia.
COPYRIGHT 2020 Kay Smith

Orchid Cactus epiphyllum

12x9 watercolor on Canson 138 lb paper finished yesterday of an orchid cactus bloom with a desert sky background in this imaginary succulent scene.  I am trying out the new Canson for mixed media paper but this work is not mixed with any other media.
COPYRIGHT 2020 Kay Smith

Bunch of Baskets

9x12 mixed media on Canson mixed media paper 138 lb cold press, done over the weekend.  Sketched in watercolor pencils first I next added water to those but colors were not as strong as could be, so watercolor was laid on top.  White gouache + ultramarine blue mix was the background pigment combination, and when dry I went over parts of the baskets with a white gel pen.
COPYRIGHT 2020 Kay Smith

Flag Day!

15x11 watercolor on 140 lb cold press paper depicting our USA flag flying in a gentle mountain breeze.  I took the reference photo at Alto Lakes, New Mexico at the Century 21 office.  With a large pot of red geraniums this was painted 10 years ago.  No matter what name is used to describe it, Old Glory, Stars & Stripes, the Red, White & Blue, the American flag still proudly waves over this land.
COPYRIGHT Kay Smith

Dragonfly Day

9x6 watercolor and Brusho wc crystals on Fabriano 140 lb cold press paper just completed a few days ago from one of my backyard dragonfly photos.  Wings are more colorful than real life due to the Brusho.  Splattering with a large round brush was added when dry.  This flying insect is the challenge subject for today on All Animals Watercolor Facebook page.
COPYRIGHT 2020 Kay Smith

Peonies and Lemonade

8.75x11.75 colored pencil sketch and watercolor on white matboard completed yesterday, a still life of dark magenta, white, and yellow peonies in vase.  Lemonade jug and canning jars also seen on the striped tablecloth.
COPYRIGHT 2020 Kay Smith

June Lovebirds

4x6 mixed media (ink line, watercolor) over old backing sheet of Canson 140 lb cold press paper.  Marks are made with all media, too, such as acrylic markers and alcohol inks.  Stencil stamping was done with sepia and sap green along bottom and right side.  Since today is my wedding anniversary I thought the lovebirds appropriate.
COPYRIGHT 2020 Kay Smith

Pentas Bucket

15x11 watercolor on Canson 140 lb cold press paper done today of white and dark pink pentas in old rusty bucket.  This was photographed on my front porch in June several years back after attending hubby's family reunion.  The pentas bucket was in an auction they have every year and I've used it endless times.
COPYRIGHT 2020 Kay Smith

Hibiscus High Voltage

9x9 watercolor painted on Fabriano 140 lb cold press paper done over this past weekend from one of my hibiscus photos named High Voltage.  Background is imaginary of various colors with mostly abstract qualities that play up the pale yellow hue of the petals.
COPYRIGHT 2020 Kay Smith

White Floral Abstract

5x4 watercolor, alcohol inks, and acrylics on paper done over the past weekend, just playing with colors, shapes and overall design.  You can maybe see some negative painting within it.
COPYRIGHT 2020 Kay Smith

Cowboy and His Horse

9x12 ink using black Tombow brush pen on Bristol board 300 series done last week.  With no pencil drawing beforehand, only dark areas were put in first then water added for greys; white is the white of the paper.
COPYRIGHT 2020 Kay Smith

Black Cat Magic

4.75x3 watercolor over ink line sketch with Micron 01 pen done today.  I sketched the black cat on a scrap of Canson 140 lb cold press paper that is or was used for putting under smaller works, so various lines and color marks appear along with ink stamps.
COPYRIGHT 2020 Kay Smith

Viv's Hydrangeas

9x14 watercolor on partly gessoed matboard, a floral array painted from using a black & white photocopy of fellow artist Viv's, in New Zealand, hydrangeas.
COPYRIGHT 2020 Kay Smith

Summer Days Bouquet

22x24 watercolor on Fabriano 140 lb cold press paper completed a few days ago, a floral arrangement based upon the smaller alcohol ink one done recently.  The glass vase holds a variety of blooms, eucalyptus leaves and Chinese lanterns.
COPYRIGHT 2020 Kay Smith

Old Romance

6x8 watercolor on Fabriano 140 lb cold press paper completed today of a romantic still life with old antique books, pearls, a red rose and a burning candle.  Look closely to see the bottom book and pearls reflection in the glass tabletop.  This is my entry for this month's miniature forum on WetCanvas.
COPYRIGHT 2020 Kay Smith

Bike Shadows

12x9 watercolor on Canson 140 lb cold press paper using my ink sketch done first .  Using no photo reference I quickly laid in a background wash of primaries arylide yellow, ultramarine blue, and permanent rose.  When dry, I used dry brush technique to put in flowers (parrot tulips mostly) and do details on this blue bike.  Its shadows were very important so that area painted with a mix of alizarin crimson and ultramarine blue.  The blue bike's color is cobalt.
COPYRIGHT 2020 Kay Smith

Botanical Plum Blossoms

12x9 watercolor on Canson 140 lb cold press paper done last week, the second of two commissions using ink line and wash method.  The background was painted to resemble cream colored parchment. This work is SOLD.
COPYRIGHT 2020 Kay Smith