Featured Artist - Sharon K. Shubert

I'd like to tell you about a wonderful published artist from Texas, Sharon K. Shubert. Sharon has her fingers into just about everything, she does acrylic painting, watercolor, collage, digital design, sculpting, Poetry, Pyrography, decoupage, and the list goes on. She is also an active member and moderator of WWAO (World Wide Women Artists), a juried international group of ladies who promote and sell quality artwork online.

Sharon is a very talented and generous artist who I greatly admire. She has been showcasing daily Etsy Treasuries on her website, (frankly I don't know how she finds the time for all she does.) She has also started featuring a Weekly Guest Artist on her website, which gave me the idea of featuring her.

Sharons' Website http://www.redladyarts.com/

Etsy Shop http://redladyarts.etsy.com/

Sharons' Blog http://sharonkshubert.blogspot.com/

These are just a few of my favorite items she has for sale at her Etsy shop and website.

This is a Mixed Media Collage with Love Bird and Heart

I love these guys!

Pumpkin People Set Polymer Clay, Mixed Media

Blue Heron Fauve Influence Painting

Are You Our Mother OOAK squared 4x4 mixed media

I hope you take the time to check out her website, Etsy shop and blog. Her sweet spirit and love of life and nature comes through in her work. I am sure you will fall in love with her beautiful artwork too.

Rascal aceo

Here's my latest painting, entitled Rascal aceo. My brother-in-law was live trapping squirrels to release else where, when he accidently caught a racoon. My mother-in-law called to tell us about it and to ask my husband if he could go to Tim's and release him since Tim wasn't home. I had been wanting to see a live racoon in person for quite a few years, so I was very excited when this opportunity presented itself. We quickly grabbed the cameras and jumped in the car. When we got there, here this cute racoon sat, stuck in a cage, so we quickly took a few pictures of him, trying not to freak him out more than he already was. Boy did he keep his eyes on my husband the whole time, following his every move.

While standing as far back as possible, Paul used a crowbar to open the cage. I was sitting safely in the car at this time. Once the cage was open, Paul quickly ran to the other side of the car to get more distance between him and the racoon. The racoon slowly came to the door of the cage, looked around, and then took off to a wood pile. It was very exciting to see him be released. Thank you Tim.

I have this painting for sale at my etsy shop, http://luvs2paint.etsy.com/

Three Butterflies

I know the sketched canvas doesn't show up real well through the acrylic glaze, but I have 3 butterflies on flowers. Here are the photos that I am working from.

I love that excited feeling that I get when my painting is planned and ready for me to pick up the brush. That's my favorite part, starting the painting. The sky's the limit. My least favorite part is planning out the painting. Sometimes the idea comes quickly and the sketch goes smoothly , I like that. But too often I just am not sure what I want to paint, so that becomes a real struggle. Even though I have tons of ideas for future paintings, it may not feel right at that time. It has to feel right, that's when I can put my heart and soul into it and its like magic, for lack of a better word.

Spread Your Wings

I feel like I got quite a bit done today, and that feels good. I finished up this painting. I Sketched out my next painting on a canvas and got some marketing things done.

The colors in this pic didn't come out quite right, but I like how the painting turned out. The titles of the paintings have actually been coming to me much easier- yah!

I am hoping to start my next painting tomorrow.

My new Lens

I created a new lens on Squidoo.com today. Here's the link to it.

http://www.squidoo.com/lensmaster/workshop/beginning2paint#

I also copy and pasted it here if you don't want to click on the link. But....if you click on the link you can help my rankings, you can rate my lens, add a comment, etc.

WHERE DO I START?

I remember when I first started painting, I always wondered what was the secret? What am I suppose to paint first??? Do I start with the sky, you know, the background, and then work forward from there? This is for acrylic and oil. (I'm not tackling watercolor, because even though I have done some watercolor, it's like thinking backwards for me, and I am not as proficient in this medium as the other two.) So, when I paint using acrylic or oil, what do I paint first??? Well, I have learned that there is really no magic answer, no mystery to solve. Generally you can start where ever you want in the painting. And different people have different preferences. The main thing to remember, is that when painting, for the most part, you place paint next to paint, not over an already painted finished area. That was the key. This is where negative painting comes into play.

OK, SO WHAT IS NEGATIVE PAINTING???

I would read the Artist Magazine and anything else I could get my hands on, and would find the mysterious phrase, 'negative painting', but they never explained what that meant. Well, in a nut shell, negative painting is painting the area around an object. So lets say I am painting a tree. Ok, got the tree in, but what about the area around the tree and the sky holes within the tree? That's negative painting. So I can either paint the skyholes and sky first, or paint the tree first then later paint the sky and pop in some skyholes. I do it both ways. For me, it helps to have the skyholes drawn out on the canvas, so I have a plan or blueprint. Or, I am painting the bird in this painting, that's the posative painting, and everything else around it is negative painting. So it kinda switches up, depending on what you are painting. I have outlined the skyholes in this painting in fuscia. (I tried making the picture bigger in photoshop, but when I uploaded it here, it remained the same. Hmm, something else to learn.) Now there are times you do have to paint over paint, like when you put in a winter tree, small branches, blades of grass, etc.

MY PERSONAL PREFERENCE

Well, I like to get into the painting and start with the center of interest. Now, that's just what I usually prefer to do. One major reason is because I have a muscle weekness, and I need to rest my hand somewhere, so it works best for me to paint from the center of the painting out. This way I am not as likely to rest my hand on the wet painted area. I hate it when I do that. Ya, I do that...too often sometimes. I should probably mention that when painting, I turn my canvas sideways and upside down. whatever I need to do to get to that area I am working on.I know I can use a mahl stick or artists bridge, but since I don't have one, and it is way down on my priority list, this is what I do. :)

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