Three New City Scenes

As promised, here is the finished painting, "The Loop"

                                               
                                      $300 on Etsy "The Loop" 11 x 14 colored pencil ©Susie Tenzer

I've also posted this on Fine Art America where you can purchase various prints. If you're in St. Louis, see it hanging in Wood Icing Gallery. 

Next to go up in the gallery is this one, titled "Maryland Plaza".  Fine Art America "Maryland Plaza" 11 x 14 ©Susie Tenzer

I love doing these city scenes!  I'm inspired by the light and shadows, reflections in windows, the people and cars moving about.  I'm working on a smaller piece in the same part of town:

I'm just blocking in the bricks and windows now.  I'll post the finished piece next month.

Learning From Ann Kullberg

I browse the internet often, looking at other artists' work.  I learn a lot.  One of my favorite colored pencil artists is Ann Kullberg.  Her website offers workshops and gallery images.  She is a master artist, particularly of portraits.  I have several of her books, but the one I look at the most is Colored Pencil Portraits, Step By Step.  One idea I learned from this book is to push values.  

                                                    The Listener  by Ann Kullberg

This is a great example of one of her colored pencil portraits.  She left the top portion of the pants stark white against a dark background.  The contrast gives it punch!  When I look at my own work as well as the work of others, what catches my eye (no matter the subject or medium) is strong value contrast.

I started a painting with this in mind, using back lighting to create strong value contrast.  I've left some of the street and sidewalk white.  The bushes in the middle will be the darkest value.  I'll post this painting again, and hopefully what I'm learning from Ann Kullberg will show.  Do you learn from other artists?

Photo Finish!

Well, I know it's an exciting title, but I just want to show you what my finished painting looks like next to the original photo that I took.  I've been very busy painting landscapes lately and I love it!  I went to our local botanical garden last month and took this photo:

It's a building named the Linnaen House after scientist Carl Linnaeus.  The doors open to a beautiful indoor garden filled with gorgeous, fragrant plants.  The pools in front of the house are what caught my eye.  I love painting reflections:

                                                   Garden House 5 x 7 by Susie Tenzer

I keep all of my photo references.  I'll post them from time to time, along with the finished work.

I'm In A Mood

It's been one of those weekends.  My husband and I have been talking about some business decisions and I'm exhausted.  You know how when you're in one of those moods you just think about the same thing over and over?  Anyway, this book that I ordered arrived!  I've already read most of it..  I'm starting to feel better!

 

I've been thinking (over and over) that while my colored pencil paintings are good they're lacking in emotion. Watercolor and mixed media artist Gerald Brommer gets right to the point:

An artist who makes pictures that look good but express nothing is like a writer whose words sound good but have no meaning.

Cheers to emotion!  Meanwhile, here's my latest work-in-progress:

Any thoughts about how to communicate through art?

What's So Great About Blogging?

 I really didn't want to write a blog, because I thought I'd run out of things to write about.  It has happened a couple of times, but for the most part I do come up with ideas.  Blogs are easy to set up. You can even write your post ahead of time & set to publish whenever you want at a later date.  There are templates to choose from for the design, colors, fonts, you name it.  It's actually fun.  After I got the hang of it, I added widgets.  I just created a new banner - what do you think? 

 Blogs help artists reach beyond the canvas or the computer screen and make contact with other people all across the world.  Blogs provide any creative-minded individual the opportunity to share their work with the world. Blogging, combined with social media and online art communities offers artists a unique opportunity for self-promotion, expanded viewership, and ultimately, contacts with buyers.  Although galleries are still important, most folks realize that the internet is where it's at.  Blogs allow artists to show works-in-progress. You can receive feedback and criticism before the work is finalized, make changes, and contemplate new ideas and suggestions.  Blogging can help bring the world to your art, and your art to the world.

You're already reading blogs...do you write one?

                                  Two Cherries, 3 x 3 on miniature easel Buy this on Daily Paintworks

How Do You Sign Your Name?

 I've seen a few paintings that don't have any signature at all.  The last time a Monet exhibit was in St. Louis, I learned that the family signed for him.  I thought those signatures looked too perfect (they were a stamp)!  When I began doing my colored pencil work and framing them for the gallery I signed my whole name:

                           
                                                  Three In A Jar 6 x 6 Buy this painting on Etsy

Lately, I've been playing around with my signature.  I looked at a lot of other artists - wow, what an array of styles!  Initials only, last name only, first name only, you name it (sorry for that).  I thought about a qr code:

                                                 
How cool would that be?  But I finally decided on using my initials:

                                                 Blue Butterfly 8 x 8 Buy this painting on Etsy

How do you sign your name?

Your Website: An Important Art Tool

The first thing I did when I jumped into my art career was get a website.  Lucky for me, my daughter the computer genius made my website.  We narrowed down what sort of pages I wanted.  I set my goal for the website, which is to display my work.  Some folks sell their artwork on their website and give information about their technique (not me).

If your goal is to display your work, you ought to have these five pages:

•  A home page: this page gives an overview of the website and lets visitors know what’s in store for them. You can include news items such as upcoming exhibitions.

• A bio page: toot your horn!  Talk about collections your work is in, awards you've received, your solo and group shows, and other “credentials”.

• An artist statement page:  the artist statement can be a stand-alone page, or can be included as a section of the "About the Artist" page. The decision is yours, and will depend on how much focus you want to bring to the statement.

• A contact page: this page lists all of the means of contacting you. 

• A gallery page: there are as many ways of presenting artworks on the web as there are website designers. In general, the gallery page will contain thumbnail images of your artwork. 

If you have a website, take a fresh look with some of these ideas in mind.  If not, consider getting one!

 Meanwhile, check out my new piece available on Etsy.

                                        Grape Reflection 8 x 10 colored pencil all rights reserved
                                        by Susie Tenzer   BUY THIS PAINTING

When Creating Art Sometimes You Have To Just Walk Away

I learned this from golf:  when you're in the middle of a swing and it just doesn't feel right, stop and start over.  It's hard to do.  Recently I posted a painting with two ducks and some fish  that I spent three weeks working on.  Last week, though, I stepped back from my drafting board to check the tonal values and I knew it was time to quit. One of the ducks looked stiff to me.  The water wasn't showing any movement.  I couldn't get the fish to disappear underneath the water.  I realized I'd used the more textured side of the Stonehenge paper. So, even though I invested three weeks of my precious art life in this painting, I'm glad I quit.  I learned I love the smooth side of Stonehenge because of the way it takes color.  I was trying to change the photo too much and it just didn't work for me. I just finished a new painting and I love the reflection of the grapes in the silver bowl.

Grape Reflection by Susie Tenzer, 8" x 10" colored pencil (all rights reserved)  Buy this painting

I'm participating in a blog hop this week.  What's that?  It's a fun activity where you can visit a lot of wonderful blogs.  Click on the Blog Love Therapy below & start hopping!  See you in a couple of weeks, I'll be out of town visiting my adorable grandkids.

Art Galleries Are More Than A Place To Sell Art

My colored pencil art is sold at Wood Icing Gallery.  Hard to believe I've been there a year!  I remember when I first went in to show my work to the gallery owner, Heather Haymart.  I threw about 15 pieces into a folder, headed out to the gallery.  I spread them out on a table, not sure whether or not they were good enough.  The art around me in the gallery was high caliber - many of the artists are juried members of various organizations.  Happily, Heather liked my paintings and I began my lovely association with her gallery.  I work every Wednesday and it's a pleasure.  I get to draw all day and talk to nice folks who come in to look at art.

The gallery also sells wood refinishing products, including Wood Icing and Annie Sloan Chalk Paint.  I love the camaraderie among the artists.  We sometimes come together as a group for discussions about art and art marketing.  Every one is supportive and friendly.  I've heard about artist egos, but none of that here!  If you're in St. Louis, come visit me at the gallery.  I'll be drawing and we can chat!

Mistakes Are Good

                                        Follow The Leader 
                                       by Susie Tenzer 11" X 15"
                                     

Aren't they?  I finally finished this piece and it took me a bit longer than usual because I made some mistakes.   I took the photo on a cloudy day at a lovely Japanese garden in Seattle.  My grandkids were throwing food out to the fish from the bridge we were standing on.  What a commotion!  The fish splashed, the kids laughed and I knew this would make a good painting.  When I got home I made some initial decisions, such as moving the duck and fish closer together than they appeared in the photo.  I also decided on the color palette, cool blues, greens and a pop of orange for the fish.  The lily pads were challenging because at first I made them too yellow-green.  Their tone was also too bright in comparison to the gray blue water.  I got about a quarter of the way through the lily pads when I decided I'd better erase!  I spent the better part of a day, carefully erasing with my battery eraser.  Stonehenge paper can take quite a lot of abuse, though.  I began again, laying a gray green undertone.  Now the effect looks like the cloudy morning that we experienced.  My mistake caused me to pause and think carefully about what I wanted to show.  I learned a lot from this painting - mistakes are sometimes good!

Custom Bridal Bouquet Portraits

Your wedding bouquet in a painting!  People tell me they love to give this gift.  After the wedding, you'll be able to enjoy your beautiful bouquet for years.  Mothers and mothers-in law will love having portraits made of their flowers, too.  I use colored pencil on archival paper.  The image size is 8" X 10" which will fit nicely in a standard 11" X 14" frame.  The paintings come unframed and cost $250.00.

Sure, you'll have photos of your bouquet, but nothing beats the beauty of an original artist's rendering.  Here's an example of one of my favorites.  I draw from a photo which I enlarge.  I love to draw details and larger images allow me to see details clearly.  After I transfer the image to the paper I map out the initial base colors.  Next, I layer from 6 to 12 colors to achieve vibrant, rich tones.  Colored pencil is a slow process!  It takes about two weeks to complete a painting this size.  It's very satisfying to know how happy my clients are when they receive my painting.  They know how much care has gone into the creative process.      

Custom Bridal Bouquet  8" X 10" by Susie Tenzer

BUY on Etsy:  http://www.etsy.com/listing/75339605/custom-bridal-bouquet-painting

Original Colored Pencil Painting, Dancing Peppers

Why do I call this a painting when it's a drawing?  To me, the word painting is more recognizable as a work of art than the word drawing.  It immediately seems to raise the bar.  Many pastel artists also use the word painting to describe their work.  I really enjoyed doing my latest painting, "Dancing Peppers".  When I set up the still life I was mindful of creating deep shadows.  I played with the placement of the small peppers on the table, so the reflections would be seen in the silver bowl.  I shot this photo from above at an angle which is my preferred shot.  I tried something new on this piece, Caran d'Ache NeoColor water soluable crayons as a base layer on the peppers in the pot.  I used them so I could cover the paper quickly and apply a few less layers of pencil, hoping to save time.  I like the results, but I love the layering process even though it's very time consuming.  So far, I like the red and green crayons as a base layer; the yellow, not so much.  I recently tried a gray crayon for a back round in another painting and I was very disappointed.  Have you experimented with different materials in your art or craft?  Sometimes I feel as if I'm wasting time - after alll, I could be working on a new painting using my tried and true method.  Experimenting with new ideas is good for me though, it keeps me thinking outside the box (or in my case, paper)! 

 Dancing Peppers 8" X 10" colored pencil on Stonehenge archival paper.  Purchase this painting:     http://www.etsy.com/listing/76513390/original-fine-art-contemporary-painting

Wow, is that really colored pencil?

     Everyone who sees my artwork asks that question, so I decided to use it as my tag line.  Some people say it looks like watercolor or oil painting.   I tried everything from oil painting to screen printing.  Colored pencils, though, are perfect for drawing precise details in a realistic style.  My favorite subjects are simple, everyday objects.  I use bold, bright colors and I love to incorporate shiny, reflective surfaces.  My paintings (I prefer to call my artwork “paintings” similar to pastel artists) are done on archival paper.  I layer many colors, often six to twelve layers, until they are vivid and saturated.     

     I was born and raised in St. Louis, Mo.  I’m married, have two adult children and three (with one on the way) grandchildren.  Although I began my college career in art, my degree is in education.  I taught for over twenty years.  I didn’t do anything artistic for a long time, but the itch returned a year ago.  Facing my 60^th birthday, I felt it was now or never.  My goal was to see if I could truly be an “artist.”  My daughter created a web site for me, www.susietenzer.com.  I started a Facebook business page:  www.facebook.com/SusieTenzerArt and Twitter: www.twitter.com/susietenzer.  I opened a shop on Etsy www.susietenzer.etsy.com and Artfire:  www.susietenzer.artfire.com.   I sold my artwork at a local boutique and had a painting juried into a gallery show.  I became a juried member of the Missouri Artisans’ Association (the Best of Missouri Hands).  What a whirlwind year!

      It was serendipity.  On Etsy, I met a lot of talented artists.  Several months ago I met Mary Nasser http://www.marycnasser.com/ who connected me to artist and gallery owner Heather Haymart http://www.heatherhaymart.com/.  Heather invited me to show my work in her gallery, Wood Icing http://www.chesterfield.woodicing.com/.  What a thrill!  I truly feel I accomplished my goal of becoming an artist.  Did you see the movie, “City Slickers” with Billy Crystal?  He said it’s all about finding the one thing that’s important to you.  

Spill The Beans

Well, I decided to jump right in and start a blog, I'm pretty proud of myself!  I want to thank Mona from the Etsy Promotional Frenzy Team for encouraging me.  I thought my latest painting, Spill The Beans, would be an apt beginning to my blog journey.  After all, I do plan to spill the beans, as they say.  In my posts I hope to tell you about colored pencil art and my trials and tribulations with the medium.  So here goes...

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