Tips from Texture Workshop

Tips from Texture Workshop

Botanical subjects have no end of challenging textures, from fuzzy buds to craggy bark, so I was delighted to be able to take a two-day workshop on “Painting Realistic Textures in Watercolor” by Denise Walser-Kolar to shed some light on the topic. The workshop was hosted by the Pacific Northwest Botanical Artists at the University […]

The Spring Rush

The Spring Rush

When you love native plants like I do, spring is hard…in a good way! It seems that everything blooms at once, and when you choose one plant to focus on, that means the rest must wait for another year. In order to crowd more plants into my spring agenda, I decided to make some quick […]

Don’t Stagnate…Rejuvenate!

Don’t Stagnate…Rejuvenate!

I’ve been catching up on responsibilities…and playing…after the intensity of preparing and submitting my six paintings to the Society of Botanical Artists Exhibition in London. I’ve posted all of them on my blog over the past year, but if you want to see them all together, they are on my botanical art facebook page here. […]

Luminous Mouse Colors?

Luminous Mouse Colors?

Grey is one of my favorite colors…I know that sounds odd but after all I am a native of the Pacific Northwest where most of the year its…well…pretty grey. I enjoy the occasional sunny day but sunny weather for too long of a stretch becomes oppressive for me. I begin to yearn for the comfort […]

Douglas Fir Cone on Vellum

Douglas Fir Cone on Vellum

It’s nice to paint something that will sit still for a change. I didn’t know how much flowers and leaves move around until I started on my first botanical drawings. I would draw as accurately as I could for awhile, then take a short break and lo and behold, when I came back my drawing […]