Daisies
Peonies
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In a French Flower Market
Sunday, November 13, 2016
Painting in Nancy Medina's Workshop
It was June 2016 and I found myself in a class I have been dreaming about for a long time. This was the Nancy Medina Workshop in New Braunfels, Texas. Today I will show my three works done during the course. Starting with a smooth gesso-covered canvas and beautiful transparent colour , I gradually built up to the more opaque bits. I did well in class and do hope that I have absorbed enough to continue in this bright and clean style of flower painting.
Saturday, October 22, 2016
Painting in Texas with Nancy Medina
I entered the hotel breakfast room, and there she was, petite, sweet Nancy Medina! For seven years I have hoped to meet her in person one day and to paint with her. The visit was made possible by my very kind children, who lives in Katy, Texas. Of course we had a lovely meeting and then went off to the course venue, the quaint New Braunfells Art Society building.
From the moment Nancy steps in front of a class, her professionalism shines through. Everything around her is pristine and organised. She speaks clearly, gently repeating terms as she goes into her presentation. We get used to her special terms and way of expression. I can start painting now, and I still hear her voice: "Make it darker, make it darker!"
The first thing you learn is to divide the palette into transparent and opaque colours. Watching Nancy work, you gain respect for those background layers, the colours which will eventually shine through everything, bringing light and depth into a painting. What follows is an album of our painting workshop.
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| Blogger friends, social media friends and now meeting up in real life |
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| All surfaces (and the floor) was filled with fresh flowers and lovely displays |
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| This is the palette that Nancy starts out with every morning. Look at the delightful opaques on the right which she pre-mixes! They are used at the closing stages of the painting. |
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| A display of Nancy Medina DVD's for sale |
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| Out of a blurry background of transparent colour, the daisies are born |
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| Wonderful things happening before our eyes! |
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| So appealing! |
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Nancy arranging flowers under the spotlight. In a surprisingly short time, a completed masterpiece by Nancy Medina!  OK, Girl, it's your turn now!!! NEXT TIME: PAINTING IN TEXAS (it sounds like: Walking in Memphis!) And to end with: Here is a live-stream lesson with Nancy Medina that you can watch just now! |
Sunday, October 16, 2016
Hibiscus Flowers, Then and Now
In the 1990's I lectured a course "Flowers in Watercolour". I loved it and tried to make a painting a day. After we moved to the West Coast , a new interest developed, this unique area where I lived. 200 posts of paintings and stories that cover our stretch of coast.
And then one day...a person moves on or in my case: moves back! I am back with my first love of 25 years ago, namely flowers. In this post I look back at some of my hibiscus paintings. I will show a recent one first, and then visit the archives!
Fleeting Moments Hibiscus 2016
500mm x 400mm
Oil on canvas
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HIBISCUS IN A SILVER TEAPOT 700mm x 600mm Acrylic on canvas board This painting was made in the 80's and I now wish that I have kept it for myself.  Watercolour Hibiscus 1998 400 mm x 500mm |
This year, I have been thoroughly spoiled by my children in Texas, who invited me to spend three months in that lovely hot climate! In my next blog I will tell about the great opportunity that came my way: flower painting with Nancy Medina, my friend on the blogs and social media for a long time.
Wednesday, January 13, 2016
Painting Nasturtiums
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| SOLD |
I continue my series of posts on painting flowers, by looking at nasturtiums, showing older works as well as recent work. One can have these tiny bright flowers available at various times of the year and they grow most easily from seeds. Where I live in a nature reserve, they can easily take over the natural habitat, so I do not plant them, but go out to collect some from friends or in places where they grow wild.
In this post I show paintings done over the past few years. You will notice that I paint with the flowers close by to inspire me. One thing that I love to do, is work with 3 or 4 paintings to create sets.
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| A medley of small nasturtium paintings |
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| A set like this can fill a colourless corner with light and brightness. Contact me at m.theron@wam.co.za to order sets |
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| SOLD This is my latest nasturtium painting. By using the blues in the background, the bright colours of the leaves, petals and buds are emphasized. It also provides a clean contrast for the little Delft vase. Hello New Year Nasturtiums by Marie Theron 150mm x 210mm 5" x 8" |
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| It is important to do sketches of your subject and to learn the parts of the flowers. Where I sit at the moment, I look upon a wonderful large bush filled with hibiscus flowers. In my next post I will show new as well as past work on the subject of hibiscus. |
Friday, January 1, 2016
Painting Poppies
Aren't they the most uplifting of flowers? In our warm country the vase life of poppies is not very long, but what joy they give, pushed into a jug or tumbler, as informal as possible. Where poppies are, there will be colour!
We often had them as painting subjects in my watercolour courses. Once again, like with most flowers, I made sure that my students held a poppy in their spare hand while making the initial drawing. That is the only way one can discover the beautiful intricate folds of the petals, the splendid capsule form in the centre with stamen like the rays of the sun, and the grey-green stems.
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| Freshly picked poppies in various stages of popping open. Photo: Marie Theron #artmatters |
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| This design of "poppies blowing in the wind" appeared as a card in book stores during the 1990's |
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| This is probably my oldest painting of poppies ©Marie Theron 1991 #artmatters |
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| Aquarelle pencils are such nice tools for getting the detail of poppies. I enhanced the drawing with white designer's gouache. ©Marie Theron 1991 #artmatters |
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| A large watercolour 1993 ©Marie Theron 1993 #artmatters |
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| Another large watercolour 1993 ©Marie Theron 1993 #artmatters |
Noticing my poppies in watercolour, a friend gave me a commission to make an acrylic painting. It was a hit, and I stepped away from watercolours! I started the new era of 2000 as a painter and no longer as an art lecturer. I still love teaching, so please feel free to ask tips on anything.
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| The painting that started my career in oils and acrylic painting #artmatters. |
An apology: All the poppy paintings on my page has been sold. However, you may want to consider some lovely prints, available HERE, ON THE BLOG OF CAROL NELSON
Later this year I will attend a workshop with Nancy Medina in Texas. HAVE A LOOK AT THE VIBRANT POPPY PAINTING ON HER BLOG or THIS LOVELY SET BY NANCY
Later this year I will attend a workshop with Nancy Medina in Texas. HAVE A LOOK AT THE VIBRANT POPPY PAINTING ON HER BLOG or THIS LOVELY SET BY NANCY
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