See that dark round speck on the side wall of my kiln? Well something got on the element and burnt through it during my last firing. So the kiln didn't get hot enough at the top and now I have to get a new element and repair the kiln. It's always something.
But here are a few things that came out of the last firing. Some plaques for Margaritaville, and odds and ends for the gallery.
Some experimental sushi type dishes, faces and pineapples.
Some special order flip flops that had to match the fabric swatches. They have holes in them because they are going to be attached to a curtain valance. The drapery lady said she would sent me a photo after she got them installed.
And some mugs for the gallery and some mugs for Margaritaville. I am going to North Carolina to celebrate my Dad's birthday and when I come back I will have to get that kiln fixed because I have orders to do.
When I first came to Key West you would occasionaly see a sailor in his whites. I can't tell you the last time I saw them. I wonder if they even wear whites anymore? So this is a nostalgia kind of painting. For people familiar with Key West there is a dead giveaway as to which old town Key West street he is traveling.
I decided to revisit a previous painting. I decided to change the size and the color, somewhat. Behine the easle are two barn style doors that open and give me a lot of light when I paint. But the photo looked better with the doors closed. This is the painting in progress. I think my coffee is getting cold. See my pink cup in the foreground?
Here is the finished painting. ( I wish I had done a better job of cropping the image, that dark line at the bottom is not part of the painting.)
This acrylic study is the basis for the oil painting below. The acrylic is loose and abstract. I like it for it's freshness.
This oil painting still isn't resolved and I'm not sure how to finish it, so it will have to sit for awhile and rest. In the meantime the acrylic has made it into the gallery.
I have no excuse for being gone from "blog land" for so long. I have been busy, but it hasn't seemed like I have been doing anything really blog worthy. However, I did buy some really inexpensive paints and have been doing some experimental painting.
They are very fluid acrylic paints, and while they are not great paint, I don't feel bad about using a lot of paint and not being sure about the results. They are Lukas brand acrylic paints and you really get a lot for not much money. But some of the colors seem "off" and chalky and you have to tweak them to get the color you want. For example, I couldn't mix a decent black and I had to use a store bought black on the above cowpainting. I use a large sheet of plexi for a pallette and really pour out a lot of paint.
I also bought a big box of 16 x 20 canvas. The plan is to use these supplies up doing lots of experimental work. Most of which will probably just be for my own education. I was happy with the cow painting and it is hanging in the gallery.
This is the finished piece. I'm happy with it.
This is what the sky looked like while we were painting (the class is out doors). If I ever put two twin clouds like that in a painting they would just look fake.
Last Friday's firing had the recently discussed chip and dip pieces, some fish spoon rests for Margaritaville Key West's web site, some coasters and a special order plaque.
A customer came to me about a month ago with a special request. She wanted the above saying on a plaque that could be outside in the weather and she wanted it a certain size. Other than that I could do what I wanted. I came up with this little scene to go with her text. I hope she likes it. It leaves via UPS tomorrow for her house in Tallahassee.
