Sisters - SOLD

A photo taken by Elaine Cross inspired me.  I love these two little sisters.

Lost in the Dance- SOLD

I have ballet on my mind.  My sweet granddaughter, Whitney is taking ballet and she is so dedicated at anything she is a part of.  This particular ballerina is dedicated and totally lost in the dance.  The reference photo came from a photo by Bronwyn Chelius.

Bronwyn contributes to a site entitled, Paint My Photo.  Paint My Photo is a site where photographers and artists meet and the photographers graciously allow you to paint their photos.  There are some amazing photographers there and I am so appreciative of their sharing.

A Good Day

When I attend a week long art colony I find that I cannot paint anything of any value while there.  I come home with a lot of reference paintings but nothing I would really like.  This time was an exception, I painted a Fall scene for the challenge painting on Daily Paintworks.  The colors of Fall are beautiful and taking a walk on a cool morning is the best! 

Art Colony with Dawn Whitelaw

Every year for the past 9 years I have attended The Sarah Carlisle Towery Art Gallery at Children's Harbor on beautiful Lake Martin.  This year I took a class with Dawn Whitelaw.  Dawn is a wonderful portrait and plein air artists in addition to being an excellent teacher.  She is one of the few teachers who will give you constructive criticism and will allow you to try to correct your errors in your painting and then guide you again and again until you understand and "get it".  The first day she completed a seascape demo and then allowed us to chose our subject and paint independently.  She then spent time at each student's easel for one on one instruction.  Several things she said were noteworthy if you would like to improve your portraits:

1.  The camera records, the eyes select - it is not necessary to tell everything.
2.  Turn form with color not light and dark- doing this without a lot of value change.
3.  When making the slight indention at the smile line on a child use a different color not a darker color .  A darker color here will make the subject look older.
4,  Pull large shapes together
5.  The highlight is NOT white

She is an expert at color mixing.  She uses a limited palette of Titanium White, Cad Yellow Medium, Pyrol Red, Ultramarine Blue that she purchases from Blue Ridge Paints (if anyone is interested in purchasing these - email me and I can provide the address.)

The next to last day she provided a portrait demo and because our model did not show up on that day, I was the model!  If you would like to see more of her work go to http://www.dawnwhitelaw.com/ 

Walkin' In the Light

This weekend I spent time with my grandchildren.  Weston (7 years old) wanted me to see some of his new paintings and when I told him that he was very talented he said, "I learned from a great artist, Mimi ---YOU!"  Whitney (7 years old) waited on me at lunch and brought my plate and drink to me and periodically came up to me with spontaneous hugs for no reason at all.   Those hugs made feel so loved and special.  Landon and Miller (both 3 years old) were playing outside and pretending it was time to go bed in their make believe house.  I watched as they both folded their little hands and bowed their heads to pray before bedtime.  Charlie (3 years old) saw that my outdoor "yard art" butterfly was broken and he said, "My Mommas can fix that for you and I will help them."  I realized again how little people walk in the Light.  Sometimes it is Light that we adults do not even see. It is Light filled with wonder, love, acceptance and kindness.   My grands reminded me that I want to walk in  that Light and share it with someone the way they do so effortlessly.

The reference photo came from JulesinKY on morguefile.  Check out her photos.  

It's Cold - SOLD

My husband and I woke up last weekend and spontaneously decided to go to the beach.  That is one of the best parts of getting older and having all your kids grown with kids of their own, you can just do whatever you want to do!  I spent most of the day and part of the next day on the beach watching.  I saw this little girl taking her time warming up to the water.  She was so cute - all dressed up in her cute little bathing suit complete with hair bow and she was excited to be here.  Her Mom and Dad were close by but they did not make it into my painting.

8" x 10" original oil on stretched canvas

A Tiger Named Auburn - SOLD

Those who know me well know that my husband is a huge Auburn fan so last week when I painted the elephant I had to hide out on my deck to paint.  This week he was very happy with my painting.

An Elephant Named Bama

It is football season again.  I know nothing about football so I spend my Saturdays painting.  I have alot of friends who love elephants and who they stand for but my husband is not one of those people so I have been hiding out on the downstairs deck painting this guy.  I like him.  The painting is one of my larger pieces 24" x 30" and is oil on stretched canvas.  He can be purchased from my website at paintingbythelake.com

Price $250

Little Dreamer

I have always loved the picture of the daughter of my young friend walking along the water's edge at the beach.  She looks like she is really experiencing the joy of walking in the water and the beach. She also reminds me of dreaming ----good things----not a care in the world.  I love the wonderful way children remind us to enjoy each moment and continue to dream........

I actually painted this same picture several years (2010) ago and can definitely see a change for the good and improvement in my painting style.  After years of studying with different wonderful artists, many visits to art galleries and painting, painting and painting, I think those things have paid off.  At least I am more content with my style.  Recently, my husband gave me a book to read entitled, " Outliers" by Malcolm Gladwell.  A common theme that permeates the book is that greatness requires enormous time.  He considers that the key to success in any field is simply practicing a specific task over and over - he suggest the 10,000 hour rule.  That translates to 20 hours a week for 10 years.   I have several hours to go :)

My Blankey - SOLD

All my grands have a favorite blanket they like to wrap up in.   In fact, I have one too!

Floatation Preparation - GIFTED

I had a young friend send me the greatest message today that she got from C.S.Lewis, "When you painted on earth - at least in your earlier days- it was because you caught glimpses of Heaven in the earthly landscape.  The success of your painting was that it enabled others to see the glimpses too."

I do think the ocean is a glimpse of Heaven and I would be so thankful if my paintings brought a glimpse of Heaven to anyone.    What a great thought!

This summer I spent some time at the beach with some good friends and I admired this lady from the shore.  She was happy and enjoying her day in the ocean.

If you like this painting and would like to have it - Good!   I am giving it away.  Please go to my Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/ArtistMarciaHodges) and like my page and share on your FB page (if you have one) and in the comments under the picture write the word Share.  This Saturday I will draw the name of the winner....check back on my page on Saturday.   (If you do not have a FB page just leave me a note here. 

Little Digger - SOLD

I took this photo of a little guy at the beach this summer who was working so hard on digging and not getting anywhere.  I have a lot of experience with little guys - this one reminds me of one of my 4 grandsons.

Happy Anniversary - SOLD

Every woman loves flowers

This 8" x 10" oil on stretched canvas can be purchased at paintingbythelake.com 

Namaste - SOLD

This little hummingbird came from a reference photo by Valavan Manohararajah.  I am looking for photos to paint as I am committed to painting something every day as often as I can.  I am getting out early before work and then painting in the evenings when it is cool outside after work.  This one is a little different but I like the way he turned out.  I am also trying to be more consistent with my morning yoga.  In Yoga, the gesture Namaste represents the belief that there is a Divine spark within each of us that is located in the heart chakra. The gesture is an acknowledgment of the soul in one by the soul in another. Nama means bow, as means I, and te means you. Therefore, namaste literally means "bow me you" or "I bow to you." This little guy looks peaceful and is viewing the bird of paradise flower as if to say "I bow to you."

Ladies' Man - SOLD

This guy is struttin'. 

Superman - SOLD

What else is there to say?

Crusin'

  It is 91 degrees at my house right now and I think this little fellow has the right idea.

This is a 7" x 9" oil on canvas panel - I would love for him to have a home.  You can purchase here:

paintingbythelake.com

Photo reference supplied by:  Nicole B

Mine ! - SOLD

I love watching the hummingbirds outside my office window.  In fact, I have even resuscitated two of them who tried to fly through the window.  I used a tiny syringe filled with sugar water and they were both able to be revived.  I guess word has gotten around the hummingbird community that I have sugar water because now they will come to my window if their feeder is low on food and they will just hover there until I replace their food.  Last weekend my granddaughter, Whitney and I were on the porch in our big white swing and a hummingbird flew by and landed about a foot away and just stared at us.  I told Whitney, "he wants more food."  We filled up the feeder and watched as he and 3 others started fighting over the new supply of sugary, red liquid.    This is the thing, the feeder can accommodate 4 birds but each one wanted to be THE ONLY ONE.  They can actually get aggressive and knock each other away.  When I saw this photo reference by Michael D Utin on Paint my Photo it reminded me of one of those aggressive little hummingbirds, the stance and the facial expression said it all!  "Mine!" 

Ummmm....there might be a life lesson here somewhere.

Yes!

My daughter asked me to paint this for a friend of her's who loves being out on her boat.   Another version of "Intimate Landscapes".

My Hiding Place

I have a friend of many years.  We put our husbands through graduate school together and we watched our families grow with children.  Our children played together and now we watch our children's children.  Truly the circle of life and friendship.  My friend is Marsha Thomas.  I have always known Marsha to be a great artist but if has been recently that I have noticed her photography skills.  She has a gift for choosing just the right shot and her photos are so expressive.  The painting group I belong to had a challenge for this week to paint an "Intimate Landscape".  I asked Marsha if I could use one of her photos of her sweet granddaughter, Hope.  Thank you Marsha!

Besties - SOLD

I thought I had a great idea.  I have noticed some burlap canvases at Hobby Lobby lately and I thought those would make such a great texture to work on.  It has a very rough texture and I like the color so I thought it might be nice to have some of the color show through the painting.  

There are times when someone will ask me to paint a painting similar to one that has already sold.  I never paint the same painting again but there are times when I try to accommodate the request by painting a similar one.  I can honestly say I will NEVER paint on burlap again (unless the price is right, of course).  The burlap soaks and soaks up the paint and you have to keep applying, keep tweaking your colors and then apply again and again.  The texture is very rough and because of that the strokes are very hard to control.  When I come up from the deck where I have been painting, my husband will always ask me, "Well, how did it go?"  My answer is usually, "I learned something today."  That is truly the case with this one.  

Heather on Sunday Afternoon

The challenge from DPW this week was a photo of a lovely young lady sitting on a blanket under an umbrella reading a book.  I have been recuperating from pneumonia this week and have not felt much like painting so I am late submitting this but working a little each evening helped me move around a little in the evenings after the sun went down and helped me feel like I might be normal one day soon.  (Well at least as "normal" as I can be.)  This is an 8" x 10" on a canvas board and can be purchased at  http://www.dailypaintworks.com/buy/auction/249723

Croquet on the Lawn - NFS

We have some very good friends who actually have a croquet area in their yard.  I found a reference photo by Lynne Fearman that depicted several ladies playing croquet in their finery from the 1800's.  I painted this card for my friend to celebrate our croquet games. 

Painting a Portrait - Step by Step

Recently one of my friends asked me to paint a portrait of her children (who are now grown) and she wondered it I would chronicle the steps of the painting in pictures.  I have really enjoyed this little exercise because it forced me to think about the steps I use.  I first "live" with the photo for several days or weeks...I take the subject with me on trips and I study them while I am sitting on the couch reading or watching TV.  I create a plan in my head and try to remember that I am not a realistic portrait artist but I strive for a "likeness" and "personality".  Then I decide how I want to start the background and what underpainting I might use.  (You can see from the photo I was outside on the deck so that the color was correct.  Natural light is my friend.)   Because the photo had some pinkish areas in the background I toned my canvas with a color close to what I wanted to peak through.  Then I drew the image on the canvas trying to establish where the darks would be versus lights.  Next I started laying in the darks and stepping back and trying to establish a pattern that appealed to me.  

I then started on their faces and personalities.

  By the time I finish, I feel like I have a connection to the subjects.  I feel like I know them.  Below you can see the photo and my finished painting.

Albuquerque Museum Visit

My scheduled has been so busy that I have not posted in a MONTH!  Recently I visited the Albuquerque Museum in Albuquerque, New Mexico.  This is a wonderful museum.  They happened to have an exhibit honoring Vivian Vance that was so interesting.  I remember her as Lucille Ball's wise-cracking sidekick but I had never seen a picture of  her when she was younger.  She was beautiful. 

Lion Queen

Painted for the challenge to paint a lion....my husband rarely comments while I am painting but today he said, "Stop, stop now."  Hope he was right.......

This painting is an 8" x 10" - $100 via email or my website paintingbythelake.com

The Path to Mimi's House - SOLD

There are those wonderful times (I know every artist has had them) when your Muse appears and you just know you have a painting that is going to flow through your brush before you even set the brush to the canvas.  You see it in your heart and you you just know it will appear.  It has a little to do with the artist's skills but a lot to do with the gift God sends.  It might only be for the artist but hopefully it will touch something in others as well.  I have kept this picture of the daughters of a dear friend of mine just waiting for the moment.  Hope you enjoy.

Singing in the Cattails - GIFTED

 This painting was a gift in a give-away on my facebook page.  Fun!

This painting is an 8" x 10" oil on linen panel.  The photo reference came from a wonderful photographer, Rodney Campbell. You can find many of his photos on MorgueFile,  Flickr and facebook.

Colette - SOLD

I am so honored when a friend ask me to paint for them.  This was especially special to me as this is the daughter of my friend's husband.  This young lady is actually in her 20's but my friend had a portrait done of her when she was around 2 years old and wanted to present it to her husband on Father's Day.  What a wonderful idea and great present that signifies what Father's Day is all about.  I have just finished this painting so I find that I have to "live with it" for a couple of days and critique myself to make sure I have done the best job possible.  Happy Father's Day to all fathers out there ---soon!

Red Truck - Mike Rooney's Art Class - SOLD

This weekend I took an art class with Mike Rooney in Atlanta.  It was a Plein Air class and we met at the Goat Farm in Atlanta where there were interesting buildings, old trucks, chickens and yes, goats.
The class consisted of nine wonderful artists, it was offered by Binders Art Supply and took place  Friday - Sunday.  Mike is a wonderful, inspiring instructor. and his presentation on values and color mixing was one of the best I have  ever heard.  His teaching style is full of humor, personable and loaded with information.  At the end of every painting sesssion Mike offers a critique of every student's work.  These critiques provided a great opportunity for learning along with suggestions to assist each of us with  improving our paintings.  Because Mike is a spokesperson for Jerry's ArtArama, you can find several instructional videos by him on youtube.  One is found here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NWa3pTDV9ug    The videos are very short,  informative and easy to follow.  Check them out and his wonderful work at : http://mikerooneystudios.blogspot.com/     I cannot recommend his class more highly!

The Old House

Sometimes I am not sure what draws me to a certain scene but i loved this picture that Carol Theologo provided.  This old house reminds me of my grandmother's house where I played when I was a little girl, too many years ago.  Maybe because 3 of my grandchildren have been visiting with me all weekend and I want them to remember coming to Mimi's house when they get as old as Mimi, I was drawn to this.  Whatever the reason, I enjoyed painting today after the little people left because it is always so quiet when they are gone, so I turn up the music and paint - that way I do not miss them as badly.   I hope all of their memories are good ones. 

New Wine for Old Wineskins

This weekend the challenge was to paint a vineyard. This is the first time I have ever painted a 5" x 7" painting using large brushes.  I am trying to use larger brushes and learn to see more color in ordinary scenes that create interest.  At the same time I am trying to use tertiary color schemes.  I like the way this turned out.  Now to go pour a glass!

Hiding in the Cornflowers - SOLD

Rodney Campbell is a wonderful photographer who captures the most amazing scenes.  This is my interpretation of his photo.  A little hummingbird hiding in the cornflowers

Rose Challenge

I try to complete the weekly challenge for DPW so that I can expose myself to different subjects.  This week the challenge was to paint a rose bush.  I am so insecure when painting roses because I see some artists who can really paint beautiful, realistic roses!   My third grade teacher told me I could paint roses and I have always remembered that even though it was many, many years ago.  I tried to pull from that encouragement when I entered this challenge.  I was surprised that I saw a little blue in the picture that was provided and so I painted by background with an undercoat of blue - I did find that I liked the way it showed through. 

A Rooster Named Ricky - SOLD

I loved this colorful picture that I found by Villager Jim.  Villager Jim is an awesome photographer who graciously shares his photos on Paint My Photo.  The man is amazing.  I am moved each time I look at his work.  All of his subjects are full of life, light, color and emotion.  I hope you like this rendition of his rooster named Ricky. 

My Favorite Chair - SOLD

The Challenge this weekend was to paint your favorite chair. My favorite chair is on the deck. I would love to have a green thumb but I do not.  However, in the summertime I can plant ferns and geraniums and they seem to thrive.  I do not touch them, only water and add plant food.  I love to sit on the deck with the flowers all around and watch the hummingbirds come to visit the feeder. 

Bright Eyed - SOLD

Spring is here!  I hope everyone had a wonderful Easter weekend!  I found this cute little rabbit photo on Paint my Photo by Donna Klarenbach.   I made a  few additions to the photo but this little bunny reminds me of Spring.   

The Kingfisher - SOLD

I painted this 8" x 10" oil for a challenge on DPW by Brenda Ferguson. The challenge was to "Paint Your Bliss"  - turn up some music and just paint what makes you happy.  This was hard for me because I painted my bliss this week when I painted Reese and Jackson....I love painting children but I also love painting birds and I went outside, turned up my music and also had the birds singing in the background.  This came about from a photo reference provided by Dave Webb on Paint My Photo.  I had fun pushing paint around until I felt like it was completed.

A Little Body Language

Sometime I come across a picture that just makes me want to paint.  This was one of those - the body language here makes me laugh and I asked the mom of Reese (the little girl in the picture) if I could paint this.  I love painting children but I find that I have to remind myself that when painting portraits the goal is to produce a "likeness" not a photograph.  Rosalind Cuthbert states that the question of what makes a good likeness is impossible to answer.  " If ten painters gathered around a single sitter their differing styles might produce radically different images, each of which might also be a good likeness. " I also like what Chris Saper says in the book, Painting Beautiful Skin Tones with Color and Light.  She says "Think of a portrait as a painting that just happens to star a particular person.  Without the interpretation of the artist to simplify information and decide what is important for the viewer, there's no need for a painting at all.  It would be faster and easier just to take a nice photograph and be done with it."   So if any of you are struggling with portrait painting....remember these words and be kind to yourself. 

The Old Boat

Recently Daily Paintworks had a challenge to paint in a Mid-ism style. (The painting on this site entitled Beach Time was in response to that).  One of my friends from that site, Stanley Epperson told me he saw elements of Mid-ism in all of my paintings and he asked me if I had a conscious style.  I would like to think that I paint in a "Painterly" style.  Bob Rohm has a wonderful book entitled, The Painterly Approach.  In his book, Mr. Rohm states, "Drawing is a linear approach to creating a painting with an emphasis on the exactness of the subject contours and form.  The painterly approach is a shape and mass approach.  There are almost as many variations and combinations of these two as there are artists."  I want to paint with a painterly approach,  not create an exact copy of a photo or scene but I strive to create a painting that the viewer will respond to emotionally.

I have been developing my own style for awhile and today a friend came over to paint with me.  She is a wonderful artist and tends to paint in a very realistic style.  She asked me to help her paint in a more "loose, painterly manner".  We had a little art lesson and so much fun!  I had her use a black canvas and we both used acrylics.  We chose a very simple scene of an old boat docked on a beach.  The reference photo came from Alun Davies and Paint My Photo.  Her painting turned out great and very different from her usual style.  Mine is shown here.  This is an 8" x 10" on a canvas panel. 

I Had Rather Play Soccer - SOLD

This little girl has decided she is not a dancer but she had rather be playing soccer.  She is deep in thought about the dilemma.  I am submitting this to DPW for another addition to the challenge to mix and paint with radiant orchid.  I think I got a little closer this time. 

William and PePaw - SOLD

There is nothing sweeter than the love of a grandparent and grandchild.  As grandparents, we can spoil our grandchildren, we can lavish them with love and praise and anything they want.  And in return, they keep us young and centered and give us the chance to have "do overs".   We might have done something different as parents if we had the wisdom we now have years later.  More than anything they allow us to love deeply in a very unique way.  There is nothing better.

Butterflies are Free

I am a part of a painting group where photographers provide photos for artists to paint called "Paint My Photo".  I have met wonderful friends there and have used many of the photos for inspiration.  One of the photographers is named Rodney Campbell.  He also posts many wonderful photos on Morguefile.com.  The group had a challenge this month to paint a butterfly so I chose one of his photos. This is an 8" x 8" oil on linen panel and can be purchased for $50 on my gallery page at:

 http://www.dailypaintworks.com/fineart/marcia-hodges/butterflies-are-free/213413

I'm Back - SOLD

I painted outside today.  The birds are back and my favorite are the hummingbirds and they told me this week to fill up their feeder.  This is a Eastern Bluebird.  The reference photo was provided by
Marcus Moller.  This is an original oil on a linen panel 8" x 10".