Best in...What?!?!?

                                           Best in Show!!!

AANC's Small Works "Best in Show"

 "Pride"

5"x7" Graphite on Paper

  AANC's Small Works 1st Place Graphite

"Unbridled"

5"x7" Graphite on Paper

So, last night was the opening night and judging reception for the Artists Association of Northern Colorado's Small Works Art Show and Sale. I had decided to enter "Pumpkin Harvest", "Unbridled", and "Pride" into the show. The requirements of the show is that each piece must be 8"x10" or smaller. What was neat about this show, is that the art was judged by medium, instead of subject.

Of course, the Oil division was outstanding. The quality of work was unbelievable, and I was just thrilled to have my piece on the wall next to the winning oil painting, lol.

I was very proud of my bestest Art Buddy =LG-Young for taking 1st in the watercolor category, and an honorable mention in the mixed media division!!! It was a big win for her, as we were both shocked at the quality of work that was on display throughout the whole show. There were probably over 50 pieces there that knocked our socks off.

Then came the final award for the night. I was the only graphite artist to enter, with my two pieces, so I wasn't surprised to learn that I took 1st place in my division, lol. What DID surprise me, was that Unbridled took 1st over Pride. I love both pieces, but to me, Pride is just far more of a skilled piece that Unbridled.

As we stood there, next to Unbridled and Pride, the judge says "Now I'd like to award Best in Show to the Graphite piece Pride, by Christine M Torrez!!" ...What??? Wait...

You mean ME?!?!?!?

Recently I had lost motivation and was questioning my abilities. I was feeling a touch of artist burnout, and was letting my self doubt get the better of me. I guess this is a serious sign that I am on the right track, and to quit now would be utterly a waist.  It never fails to amaze me that when I feel like I've hit the end of my journey, a greater being than me sets me back on track, and gives me a good kick from behind to set me on my way again.


Fall down 7 times, stand up 8.

I'm back on my feet again.

Adventures in Plein Air Painting...

...And Pumpkin Patches!

"Pumpkin Harvest"

7"x9" oil on canvas board

Plein air #17

Laura and I headed out this past Thursday with the Thompson Vally Art League to paint the morning away.  We ended up meeting at Osborn Farms, located in south Loveland, Co.  What a fantastic place to paint!  I was drawn to a few shipping crates packed with pumpkins, nestled between two large trees, causing the sun to dapple and dance around the pumpkins.  I've been receiving some great advice from some top plein air pros, and wanted to put their advice to work.  So I used only larger brushes, kept things super simple, and painted as though each brush stroke would be my last. I was also focusing on using better judgement in values.  I think this one worked well..

The funny part of my story goes like this:  about 15 minutes after setting up, and blocking in the painting, I was informed that the farm was expecting  a class of youngsters from the local elementary school to come visit.  All of the artists giggled and we went back to painting.  Shortly there after, about 30 kiddos and their parents all show up.  You can imagine the questions, excited comments, and curious on looking as the group swarmed the area.  I think at one point I had 3 different people tell me what would make my painting better, from including the "great Pumpkin" rising from behind the crates, to adding a large harvest moon and a black cat to the scene.  This was all good and well, until I heard the teacher tell the students that they could pick out their pumpkins from the two crates "over there" after the tour... Wait.. "Over there???"  You don't mean.. Oh, yeah, you did mean... my.. pumpkins...Oh boy, I'd better paint faster!!

By the time I was finished with my painting, the pumpkins were gone, save a few left at the bottom of the crates.  It was heart warming to hear the little ones oohing and ahhhing over their perfect pumpkin prizes in the crates.  I nearly asked if I was gonna get to take a pumpkin too.  After all, there is something quite appealing about a large mound of pumpkins in the sun. 

Side Note:  The art show opening went really well!!  What a great time I had meeting new artist, and getting to see other local artist work.  Though my art didn't place, I did hear that the judge was very impressed by the quality of work that was presented.  I'm thinking I've found a great group to join, Artist Association of Northern Colorado.  My dearest art buddy Laura has coerced me into joining up.   I'll be entering in next months Small Works show, hosted at Reader Cove in Fort Collins Co.  Further out from that, there will be a National Art Show that the AANC is hosting in Fort Collins, and I've just about got a great piece finished for that as well.  I'll keep ya posted as I get closer to these event times.

Cheers!!

Taking the next step...

..And putting my work in a local show!

August Morning

8"x10" oil on Canvas

Plein Air

It's been so many years since I've had any work in an art show. 19 years to be exact!! Aww, come on now, I'm not THAT old, am I?? Heheh... Anyway, I took 2nd place in the Larimer County Art show when I was 15, with a charcoal drawing of a grizzly bear. I gave it to my best friends brother.. I wonder if he still has that piece? It's not that I haven't wanted to compete as of late, it's just that I rarely have available piece to enter (Not that that's a bad thing either, lol).

However, my bestest art buddy Laura (who happens to be a member of the Artist Association of Northern Colorado), had informed me that I should enter the upcoming exhibit "Capture the County" at the Old Firehouse Bookstore, in Old Town Fort Collins. It just so happens that I produced a decent painting that has been sitting on my mantle for the last month or so, and I wouldn't be too ashamed to share it with the general public. *giggle*

The show will be open to the public from October 1-12th, and it will be a judged show. I've gotta go get this baby framed and see if I can scrounge up the entry fees by Sept 28th. It is an exciting feeling, thinking about going public with my oils. I mean, I'm public as far as the web goes, but to put it out there to be judged... wow..

Keep your fingers crossed, and I'll be back with an update soon!

Cheers!

Happy Accidents...

...And the Shadow Dragon lives!

While I appreciate digital art, I seldom find myself able to make such things with my computer. I do have a few digital pieces under my belt now, including one very professional logo for my Aiki Jitsu instructors system. However, yesterday while uploading a photo of my recent graphite drawing of an oriental style dragon, I decided to invert the values to check my shading, and to be sure it still looked right. I was completely blown away with what popped onto my computer screen! My daughter, who was sifting through years of uncatalogued photos in my filing cabinet drawer, told me in excitement that I should post the newly discovered version to my Deviant Art site. Happily, I did, and with great success I've had more views on it in one day than I have on many of my original pieces that have been on that site for years! LOL....

Just goes to show what a little dumb luck and a good drawing with strong values can do.

A Work in Progress...

"Last Call"

I haven't been out to do a good Plein Air Painting in a few weeks, but don't think I haven't been doing any art!! I've got a great studio project going on at the moment, a commission for a family friend.

If you'll notice in the picture, the reference photo is in the upper right hand corner. My client is from the coasts of Florida, and he's been landlocked in Wyoming now for 10 years or so. He's got a lot of love for the ocean, and misses it greatly. I myself have only visited the ocean a few times in my short life, but I'm madly in love with the idea of living on the beach. There is a strong emotional connection with this piece for me.

I've put about 27 hours worth of time into this piece so far, I think I have about another 10 to go before finishing. It's on a 30"x40" stretched canvas. All in all, I am really enjoying this piece, and it's going by so quickly and smoothly.

I'll keep the updates rolling in as I near the end of this fun journey. Tag along if you wish. :)

Epic... Painting...

..Fail!

I often use the term, "They can't all be gems", and boy did I paint a dud this past week. Unlike Friday's attempt for on site painting, my previous two Plein Air paintings turned out rather nice. If you'll notice the nice piece up above, that's my view of the Cashe Le Poudre river running high in May. I had become so enthralled by my surroundings, and so connected to where I was, that it just flowed out of my hands. I really didn't have to think too much about it, nor did I concern myself with any "what ifs". I just painted.

What I've always known, yet am coming to really realize, is that it's very hard to capture a scene when there is little emotional connections. With my art buddy Laura ( please see Lauragyoung.blogspot.com for a veiw of her beautiful plein air painting from the day) in tow, we headed out to City Park. It was one of those days where we wanted to paint, but really didn't know where to go. We ended up on Sheldon Lake, and found a neat little area that overlooked the lake, viewing the foothills and mountains. There to the right of me, was a cool little duck island just about 30 feet off shore. and out ahead of me on the lake sat a little red lifeguards boat at a small dock. There were lots of billowy cumulus clouds hanging over head, blotting out the sun. I told my self, "yeah, this will do". And so we began to paint.

2 hours later, I found myself struggling to complete a dark, muddy, over-worked and over-thought mess. The perspective was off, the colors were too dark and the scene was very "elementary quality". Le Sigh....

After taking some time to reflect on this painting (of which is not photographed nor will be shown for good reasons), I've really come down to the emotional connection which I feel I really lacked. True, the lighting made things tricky, being that the sun was disappearing and reappearing throughout the session. It gave me very little contrast to work with. And I made some beginner mistakes as well, not toning my canvas first (amazing how that threw my painting off.. the gesso was absorbing the paint and caused me to over layer everything), and not penciling in the scene better. My next mistake was not mixing my colors properly. I'll be sure to bring a better color pallet with me next time as well. But what really mattered was that I myself was not fully in the moment. I was too disconnected with my art. Lack of sleep the night before, the onset of a head cold, and various stresses made for a much more challenging day.


The one good thing that came out of this whole day, was that I now have more insight to what I need to make produce a better painting. Perhaps on my next outdoor adventure, I'll be sure to cut through the mental blocks, be better prepaired, and make sure that I'm going to have a much better emotional connection with where I am.

But hey, They can't all be gems. :)

Go Play Outside...

...As my mother used to suggest.

So I began a new adventure yesterday, outside, with my oil paints and easel in tow. My bestest art buddy, Laura ( ), had given this "Plein Air" painting thing a whirl a week ago. It looked like a great challenge, and I really wanted to try it out. So off we went, to an old barn that sits on the edge of my neighborhood. This barn has been calling out to me for nearly 6 years now. Every time I passed it, I felt like I needed to capture it on canvas. Course, oil painting outside seemed like something only "real" artists would do. I'm much more comfy in my little corner in the basement, painting from photos and silk flowers. Which is odd for me, because I'm an outdoors type girl.

I'll admit. I was really worried about this at first. I tend to doubt my abilities, and I worry that I'll be ill prepared for painting away from my studio. Plus, I had no music to listen to, lol. But, with the support of my dear friend, and with the sun shining warmly, I was coaxed out of my dark little basement.. LOL, ok, so for those of you who really know me.. It wasn't that hard to get me outside, not at all.. And now it's gonna be harder to keep me inside. What an amazing rush it was. I set a new land speed world record for starting and finishing a piece in under 2 hours... in ANY medium I've ever worked in!!! But I'm getting ahead of myself.

I worried about not having the correct colors, but I only allowed myself to bring good strong primary colors, and Titanium White. I did bring Linseed oil, but never used it. I brought only 4 brushes, as opposed to my 20 some brushed in my studio. My portable aluminum easel was perfect for my outing, and I used a total of 2 sheets of paper towels. My only complaint was not having the correct paint pallet to hold my oils. I used a large wax paper pallet that was not wind nor hand holding friendly. I can fix that easily though. :)

My next worry was "What if I blow this, and my piece really sucks??" Of course, that's a constant worry, outdoors or not. I've gotten used to feeling confident enough to show anyone and everyone my stuff, good or not. But that little voice is always in the back of my mind. How I hate that little voice. That same voice often tells me "you could have done so much better" after a few days of "art separation" (That's the time period between finishing a piece, and going back to look at it again). Guess I shouldn't hate it so much.. It's what keeps me creating more, and creating better.


Well, 2 hours later, and worries pushed aside, I was absolutely thrilled with my little painting. I'm addicted, hooked to the outside world of landscapes and nature. I don't know exactly where we artists go when we immerse ourselves into a project, but I was amazed to find such tranquility and bliss inside my own little world. Sure, we laughed about the little bugs that wished to be apart of our painted worlds, and the sunburn I received was stellar. However at the end of the session, I felt kind of like I did when I was growing up, spending a day outside in the fields playing and chasing the wind. It was an awesome feeling.

Laura and I have set goals to create at least one Plein Air painting per week, if not more. We are headed to some of the most beautiful places in Co. to capture our world on canvas. While I still have several studio paintings to start and complete, I can't wait to "Go Play Outside!!"