Improvements

I continue to attempt to take a true photo of my art work. Yesterday I tramped around the garden with a sheet draped over a ladder. I finally found a good location in a shady area. The most success of the day.  I read a very interesting article this morning in FASO on my quest http://faso.com/fineartviews/80108/i-need-a-good-photo-of-my-artwork and thought to share it with you all in case you have the same quest.
So here is my more successful effort as well as a slightly modified piece of art work.

So this pastel which I entitle- "There is Gold in Them Thar Hills" is going to be on view somewhere in the Colorado State Capitol. I entered it in the "Honoring the Capitol Dome Exhibition" and received notification that it was accepted. It will be on view from the first of October until March 15. I am needless to say honored and delighted.

Ah I would like to make a slight change in some information I gave on an earlier post about the discovery of gold in the state of Colorado. My historian husband noticed I said the discovery of gold here was about 100 years ago. In fact it was around 155 years ago.

I will let you know where this piece goes as  time progresses. So tomorrow it goes to the framers!

Venturing Out

Yesterday was one of those glorious days to be a Plein Aire artist. So my friend Sherri and I took advantage of it and headed out to the beauty  of Castlewood Canyon.

 I was first introduced to Castlewood Canyon this past July. I attended a workshop given by the artist Albert Handell and this is one of the locations we ended up painting. Albert loves rocks and his shared love gave me a renewed appreciation. The other bonus was to learn about the beauty of and existence of Castlewood Canyon on the start of the eastern plains near Castle Rock Colorado. It is a National Park and really quite a wonder. My friend Sherri bought a National Park Pass and we took advantage of that wonderful day to paint.

This is a photo on top of the region before the rim of the Canyon. These pines are tucked in around and on top of the Canyon.

 This is the 18"x12" Pastel which I made of the spot where we were.  We were on top of the canyon under some pine trees. We caught a lovely gentle breeze,just enough to keep us cool while we painted.

Here is Albert giving a demo in oil . He works both in oil and pastel. I will include a link so that you can have an opportunity to see his work. I found him a very good teacher and would highly recommend him to you. He is very knowledgable and has a wealth of good info for the working artist.
http://alberthandell.com/blog

Ritual , lost and Found

I woke this morning to read a post from my friend and fellow artist Jeanne Echternach http://jeanneechternachfineart.com/blog/80391/day-1-of-30. Ah it inspired me for my own personal challenge. 

I am a pastellist, sometime blogger, always wife, mother, sister, daughter, grandmother!, gardener, reader, traveler-- you get the idea!! Now I thought I will do a painting a day this month. Great challenge, --but I won't be around my stuff every day this month. I will be thinking about and building my art practice and I thought I can take that challenge and post that.

So yesterday I finished a pastel and spent the day trying to take my best photo of it. Some say photo it in the bright shade- some say NEVER in the bright shade but always in the bright light.

 Some say with white behind it. So if you were walking by my garden yesterday , you might have seen me leaning  a 19 by 29 inch painting up against chairs, hanging it on walls, in the sun and shade and shooting the pastel with several different settings.
Finally I got one I liked.

This piece is about the Colorado Capitol Dome which has just been re gold- leafed. The gold came from the Cripple Creek mine and then was sent to Italy where it was made into gold leaf.  Most of last year or rather the past 2 years the dome has been shrouded in plastic and fabric as the gold was applied. Now it is on view in all of its glory. Rather perfect for  a state which largely came about for the gold found in its hills about 100 years ago.
Check out more of my pastels at cbuschmannart.com
Hopefully my new ritual will be reporting daily on my art practice, ideas, thoughts and adventures!!
Posting Ritual #1