ALL THE WILD HORSES

 our class, OPEN STUDIO is over now with all the instructions and videos up for an entire year. something, i'm sure many of us are going to take advantage of.

 this OPEN STUDIO CLASS has blown me away!! one would not believe the outpouring of information and self that misty mawn has given...INCREDIBLE!!!

 this started out as an abstract and i suppose you might say it still is. it was PURE PLEASURE while being involved with this...it started out with markers, then paint, ink and paper. and then i figured out how i wanted to finish it...(something that can take me months sometimes)

...with horse transfers. after taking these photos i sealed it with dorlands wax :)

it is 11" X 14" unframed, and is going to be popped into my etsy.

BE SURE TO ENLARGE

HAPPY SUNDAY

XOXO



tHAT'S pROGRESS...i gUESS! hmmph...

 a happy funny thing happened to me a couple of months ago.

i walked into our placer arts center, asking for my portfolio, so i could update it and make changes...something i have yet to do, whew!

 the woman in charge flipped through my book and later i painted this at her suggestion for the front cover of the February Arts Perspective Magazine...she said, not to get my hopes up, so many people apply for this and few manage to make it...i said, no matter, whatever is meant to be...

 well, then i got a phone call from the publisher who said i WAS chosen for the front cover in february. WHOO HOO, i was floating around for awhile. and then....

i popped in to the arts building asking when the mag is coming out.

"oh wanda, i am so so sorry. it was all ready to go to press and our funds were cut so drastically this year that we have had to re-vamp our entire system. in fact we are going to have the mag on the internet from now on. your little painting will still be on the front cover, only smaller. it WILL be in color as there are many pieces that will be in black and white". (so very sad for the entire institution, not just for wanda)

so...when they get it together, they are having more than one problem you can guess, i will let you know so that you can look it up, if you care to. boo hoo...life happens.

and here is a wip, DREADLOCK GIRL...i did it for an excercise in misty's class and someone suggested i take her further...duh, i shall! :)

HAPPY ARTING MY FRIENDS AND LOYAL FOLLOWERS!

I have enjoyed the recent e-mails immensely as well!

XOXO

LEARNING and then learning more...

 The very beginning...well, now hmm, no this was about midway:

with one small lesson, abstract painting..

 ...then further along, i have decided to leave the painting for a background...

 and i shall be adding other ideas into this background...first is a transfer of horses, i love this look and who knows whats next...i promise to share the finished product, but i have no idea WHEN!

we were told to sketch, sketch and then more, these are simple non-shaded sketches with water added to them, it is definitly helping me see better

this was a 2-color study

and i have wayyy more sketches

...and i had to laugh at myself and you can laugh too...i didn't even know how to draw a BOX, imagine that, so i sent for a little booklet and practiced some :)...then my after school kids, showed me numerous other ways...duh, why didn't i think of that in the first place? makes life interesting!

closing with another beautiful sunset to share with YOU!

CREATIVE ABSTRACT WRITING AND PAINTING...

i know this has looked like the dead zone around here...

 ...still working and studying and painting with misty...

out tumbled the WORDS...

PRECIOUS TIME!!! VALUABLE FRIENDS...

 i have so much more to share...but my computer reception is bonky.

these little ditties are like starting to learn to paint and draw all over again!

 i am taking misty mawn's OPEN STUDIO on line class, and SHE is keeping us busy, by the MINUTES!!! no time to lollygag around.

 and then in between class and life, this is a WIP...

i feel a little house series coming up :)!

i shall share that, i have learned much in about one day to fill a lifetime of art from misty!

and there just aren't enough hours to share it all...but i want to say this, coming from a self-taught artist as many of us are...

i feel i've learned backwards, but its A-OKAY...

the VALUE OF SKETCHING AND DRAWING is underrated...

it has/is teaching me to paint and see better...i get so excited over these revelations, i promise not to go off on this subject, in all good ways!

i hope all my friends are CREATING AWAY with WILD ABANDON (or just painting away!)

XOXO

P.s. i have not visited around the net, misty is driving us hard!

THE LITTLE RED HOUSE...

 This started out as an intuitive painting, again. And it was many things before this came to me. It is so astounding and surprising what comes from our imaginations when we let it flow.

 After applying regular paint and then open acrylics with a palette knife, i picked up a brush, didn't like it, then another and another...hmmmm....

 I went back to the palette knife and then another palette knife, and fell in love and dug in! Richard my husband made a special frame for me out of smashed copper piping...it found it's home surrounding the little neighborhood :))

I feel so blessed to have found this absolute painting passion in my life. And i am so fortunate to have many persons involved with myself and this endeavor. i never knew that one could feel so profound over this gift.

i hope that you too, are exploring your gifts, stepping out of the box OFTEN, and loving life for all it throws us!

wanda xoxo

FIBER ART!!! with a little painting thrown in...

my entry into CLOTH PAPER SCISSORS postcard contest...it had to be at least 50 percent cloth. i loved doing this, i love attempting new excursions. and what better time than the new year!

 the magazine peeps suggested writing them encouraging words on the back of the postcard, not that they need it. i adore this mag!

 i finished a scarf last night after purchasing someone elses, hand spun...getting to my own soon, just need to give them some colors to float in...yummmy!

 i'm not real sure what i am going to turn this into...i have toyed with a pillow top, a funky scarf, or a baby blanket...we'll see if i can stop knitting long enough...i just become obsessed in the winter time to knit up a storm!

...and there are no storms here in northern california yet. not even rain, it's been close to 70 for days and i am NOT COMPLAINING. yes we need snow and rain, but i can't do anything to change that, so...am basking in this spring time weather!

                                                      HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!!!

MUSIC

                                           ...i started out with an intuitive painting using some colors i am in love with together! for the first time in my life i actually wrote them down for reference. then painted with left over paints on some other papers (the norm for me) THE colors are: Golden; pyrrole red, naples yellow hue, green gold and then (sky blue claudine hellmuth)

                                                           ...then a couple of days later, i decided to paint a portrait with the same paints just to see what might come from it...well, i fell in love with the soft easy look, not sure if she is retreating or emerging...no matter...she's simply done and listening and melting into the soft music :))   annnd...i popped her into my etsy a few minutes ago :0

HAPPIEST when sharing...

                                                           HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!
                                                                           XOXO
                                                          SOLD! thank YOU, patricia!

OUR STORIES...

Black matte

White matte

i am going to attempt adding some new pieces of my work onto etsy fairly often. but i won't post each and every one on my blog, or that might get a little old. so...for today, this is the one i just added, thought i'd share as it's one of my favorites. SIMPLY STATED: ENJOY, my friends. xo

SO HAPPY TO BE ON VACATION from work...so i can REALLY work...with that brush of mine...

                                                           3 HAPPY MESSES...

                                                       WAITING...

                                                    for my brushes!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

                                             she's wrapped in plastic, in these 2 photos

                                                   she is an 8" X 10" with a mat applied...and went into my ETSY!

Whimsical Winter Hangers!

Little Hangers, i just posted in my ETSY shop...all the measurements and information can be found there! This seemed a good way to get my paint on today...gearing up for some much larger pieces to work on!

                                                                            SOLD!
                                                                      Thank YOU!