Ansouis (W.I.P.- continued)

Here's some progress to report on the composition I sketched out in my last post.

Provence France village painting in progress by Jennifer E Young

After laying in the sky and distant mountains, I set out to establish the broad areas of light and dark in the painting. I'm really trying to think of my composition in terms of underlying masses of light and shadow, and not just a group of individual objects.

Provence France village painting in progress by Jennifer E Young

I'm using a broad palette of colors- my usual red, yellow, and blue, plus cad. orange, cad. red, permanent rose, sevres blue, as well as two earths; gold ochre and burnt sienna (for the tonal sketch) and, of course, white (titanium).

This is as far as I got today- about 2 1/2 - 3 hours' work- before it was time to pick up my daughter from preschool.

Provence France village painting in progress by Jennifer E Young

I'd really rather not allow this to set up, as this is my "first pass," and there is so much more to lay in. I am going to try and work on this again tonight after my little girl falls asleep, but I'm not normally good for much creative work after wearing the "mom hat" in the evenings. We will see. Otherwise my next dedicated painting day will be Friday, and I'm afraid it may be too tacky for my liking by then.

Ansouis/French village painting in the works

France village painting sketch by Jennifer E Young

 Not a great photo here, but I'm doing a bit of mobile blogging and the image editing options on my phone aren't optimal. Nevertheless, I  thought I'd share the rough sketch I've started on a 20x24" canvas of a French provincial village street scene.  Even though I mapped out the composition more or less to scale in advance, it took a little more editing than usualto get the layout the way I wanted it (the first pass had things too centered).

The plan for this painting is to portray a square in the center of the charming village of Ansouis. I have a busy next few days with family, but I hope to be able to get back to this soon. I'll post further developments as they unfold!

The Potted Garden, Pienza (painting complete)

With school out for the Thanksgiving holiday, my studio time has been a little dicey. But now that we are back in session I have managed to wrap up my posting about the Pienza painting from earlier last week. Before I dive into painting the potted plants, I finish up the main architectural features of the painting-- the final touches on the windows and doors, and completing the distant bench.

 Now let's move onto the flowers!

Here is the final:

"The Potted Garden, Pienza" Oil on panel, 12x12" ©Jennifer Young

The hill town of Pienza is lovely for a number of reasons. First, it overlooks the gorgeous Tuscan valley called the Val d'Orcia. Second, like so many of these small towns,  the whole village is oozing with charm and dripping with flowers, just like the scene I have painted. Third, it is the home of Pecorino cheese! Need I say more?

Happy Thanksgiving! Plus, a little studio tour!

On this eve before Thanksgiving, I feel extremely grateful for the blessings of both my personal and professional life.  To my collectors, past students, and readers of my blog and newsletters, I give my heartfelt thanks. Knowing that people have taken such an interest in my art (and my meandering thoughts about it) does my heart more good than I can adequately express! Happy Thanksgiving to you all! One of the many other things I've been extremely grateful for professionally these past few years, is my studio. Since I just cleaned it up, I thought it might be nice to show some pictures of how it looks today (now that I have had about 5 years to break it in.)

The last time I posted pictures of my studio, I had only barely moved in. But, while it may have  a little bit more clutter now than it did initially, it is still a "clean, well-lighted space".  It continues to be a place of inspiration for me,  and now for my little daughter as well. And since I've become a mom, I have thanked my lucky stars these last few years that I have my studio within a stone's throw of my back door. Sometimes the only time I have to paint is in the wee hours, so proximity has been key.

Any way, without further ado, on with the tour!

This first shot is more or less the view straight on as I walk in my side door (the main entry door for me as it leads to the house.) Following this path leads me straight back to my painting space, which sits across from that big brown easy chair and the French doors beyond (just out of view to the right). In that far back corner are storage bins (built by the D.H.) for frames and canvas.

Jennifer Young Studio & Gallery

From this spot, looking slightly to the left, you will see the framing table and flat files. That table from Ikea, as well the room divider, hold all of my framing tools and shipping supplies, small canvas and panels, etc. I got the flat files for a song at a thrift store. Luckily it just so happened they fit under the table nearly perfectly.

jystudio_framingtable

Directly across from the framing table is my computer desk. I also have more storage for frames, shipping tubes, bubble wrap, etc., in the loft area overhead. Nothing too heavy goes up there, as the only access is by that very tall loft ladder!

Art studio of Jennifer E. Young

Here's another shot of the loft, as well as the "side door" that I use to enter. To the left of this area I have carved out a reading nook. This area has kind of become a little annex for my daughter's arts and crafts, but I still can use it for guest seating when I need to.

Art studio of Jennifer E. Young

art studio of Jennifer E. Young

Moving past the room divider now, we come to my painting area. Being my primary workspace, this side of the studio is a little more about form following function. ;-) The sink sits in the far left corner. The "mini-split" we installed for heating and cooling sits on the wall nearby. It  keeps things nice and comfy. I have another one over the windows of my reading nook. In hindsight I really think I could have gotten away with just one of these units in this space. They are very efficient!

art studio of Jennifer E. Young

So there you have it! The nickel tour. Again, Happy Thanksgiving, everyone. I'll be out of pocket for the holiday, but back to posting again by this weekend  Eat well and safe travels!

New Key West auction posted!

Congratulations to Barbara T. for winning this auction!

"The Shady Side" Oil on canvas, 6x8" ©Jennifer E. Young

When things heat up from the tropical sun, a shady veranda is just the thing--especially if that veranda is in Key West, and you can imagine yourself there sipping a nice cool beverage! This little painting of Key West conch houses may help you to do just that.  Now is your chance to win a slice of sunshine for yourself, at a great price! This original oil painting on canvas panel by Jennifer E. Young measures 6×8" (a perfect size to fit under the Christmas tree!) Unframed, it is signed by the artist, lower right. To begin bidding, enter your bid in the auction module in the sidebar of this blog. Here’s how it works:

• All auctioned items are offered unframed.
• The opening bid for this painting is just $100 (a fraction of my retail price).
• Bids increment by $25
• Highest bidder at the auction’s end wins the painting.
• When the auction has ended, I will send the winning bidder a Paypal invoice.
• I ship via U.S. mail within 3 days or less of receiving cleared payment.
• Free shipping in the continental USA!