"Studio View" 11"x14" oil on canvas

"Studio View" original painting, 11"x14" oil on canvas
copyright Raette Meredith 2011

I finished this painting on Tuesday, Dec 13, 2011.

This small painting is perfect for small spaces. It is an oil painting on stretched canvas.

The view is from the studio during the morning hours.
The way the light hits the grass between the towering oaks is sublime, and I just had to paint it.
"Studio View" is SOLD

Studio Clear-Out Sale

Studio Clear-Out Sale

Up to 75% off original paintings by 

Raette Meredith

Saturday Dec 3 - Sat Dec 16

8367 Placer Road, Redding CA 96001
"The Silver Cottage" at the end of the driveway

Studio Hours:
t-f 8:30am - 12pm
(closed th Dec 8)
Sat 10am - 2pm

This is a great opportunity to purchase that painting you’ve had your eye on.
These paintings are heading for the “re-paint” shelf!

Discounted works include large and small scale flowers and landscape paintings, faerie books, cards, prints and more! 

Consider an heirloom portrait of your ancestors for the Holidays.
These portraits are one of a kind and will be enjoyed for generations to come.

Treat yourself or someone you love to original, local, made in America art for Christmas!

Special guest artist:

Doug Laird – Wood and Metal Art

featuring decorative birdhouses and yard art!

Color added to the grandma's portraits!

Just finished Grandma Justyne and Grandma Mary Jane's portraits! Now it is time to start Grandpa's.

Grandma Justyne Laird
16"x20" oil on canvas
copyright Raette Meredith 2011
(private collection)

Grandma Mary Jane
16"x20" oil on canvas
copyright Raette Meredith 2011
private collection

I'm learning a TON while painting in oils, and I have to say, I love it, even though it takes forever to dry, it is well worth the wait!!! I see many more oil portraits in the future!!!

It's Grandpa Eddie!

Just finished Grandpa Eddie's portrait.  I think I will still have some tweaking to do but for the most part it's done.

"Grandpa Eddie - late 1940's"
oil on canvas 16"x20"
copyright 2011 Raette Meredith

It's a week of color

I finally began adding color this week to the Mask painting that I started in September. I can't believe it took a full month for the paint to be dry enough for me to begin adding color! That was a surprise to me.

Meanwhile, while waiting, I started two portraits and finished a 16'high by 48' wide mural, so over all it was a pretty productive month and a half.

The painting is not finished yet, but it is about 80 percent finished. Next I need to add the final touches - like making the feathers look airy and make the metal areas really look shiny. It is very close though...

"Parade of Masks" - unfinished - oil on canvas - copyright Raette Meredith 2011

I will be showing and demonstrating my portraits for Art Hop tomorrow night at the Peddler's Mall from 6-9pm. I will begin adding color to one of the two portraits, and hopefully will be able to talk to a couple of people about murals and commissioned portraits.

Time to be done for the day!

Waiting around for paint to dry

Okay, for the first time in my life I have more than one painting going at a time. The oil paints take FOREVER to dry, so while I wait, I start another.

I started this one yesterday and worked it a little more today - it's of my Grandma Mary Jane when she was young. This is another under painting that is patiently awaiting the addition of color. So far, the Mask painting has been waiting to dry for 2 weeks, and is still a little tacky. I put a softly blowing heater in front of it in hopes that it will speed up the drying process. I will put the one of Grandma Justyne in front of it too.

Okay, so here it is.. There is a detail photo following the full-size photo.

Feedback is greatly appreciated.

"Grandma Mary Jane"
 under painting - unfinished
 oil on canvas - 16"x20"
 copyright Raette Meredith 2011

"Grandma Mary Jane" - detail
 under painting - unfinished
 oil on canvas - 16"x20"
 copyright Raette Meredith 2011

Portrait - Grandma Justyne

"Grandma Justyne" oil on canvas 16"x20"x2"
copyright 2011 - Raette Meredith
--unfinished--

Okay, this is my first portrait and it's of my grandmother when she was in her late teens. I am guessing that the photograph was taken right after she moved from New York to Los Angeles, California, around the 1940's. I think she had the photo taken in hopes of becoming a movie star.

Anyways, thought I'd paint it. She looks so strong,young, and hopeful in this photograph. She had her whole life in front of her.
I am using the underpainting technique. I will add a few more highlights this week as I spot areas that need them, then once it is completely dry I will add some color.

I'd really love some input.

Happy Painting!

Raette

Using a new technique

Experimenting with new techniques keeps painting exciting in my mind. I have been using acrylic paints for my paintings ever since 2003. The thing that I love about acrylics is the immediacy of the work. I feel inspired, paint, and usually finish a painting within about 8 hours time. After a full day of drying and attaching hanging wire to the paintings, they are usually ready to hang and display. This allows me to have new work at every show.

Some of my art friends and clients recently asked me why I haven't been showing work as much in town. The reason is that I am learning a new technique and have different reasons to paint.

After, 9 years of painting with acrylics, and perhaps age has something to do with it, I am taking things a little more slowly. I am still of course inspired by nature and light every day, but for my new paintings I am more focused on painting illustrations. Not illustrations for books (though that would be really fun too), but instead illustrations of a feeling or emotion.. blah blah.. you have read that in previous blog posts by me so I won't go there this time.

All that to say, there is a heck of a lot more planning involved in my new paintings than there ever was before. I now begin with a concept sketch - usually something that comes to me at the edge of a dream. My sketchbook is riddled with ideas for paintings. These sketches are really really rough.. usually I am the only one that knows what the lines mean.

Once I have the concept figured out, I download or take photographs that represent the various components to the painting.

Next, I choose the color theme for the painting - which of course morphs as I paint and new ideas come.

Now here's the new technique. I am switching to oil paints. They just feel awesome moving around the canvas - it's addicting. I thought I'd try the Vermeer technique, (I think I have that right), and ancient technique that the masters used. Basically what this means is "Under painting". So, I paint the entire painting in grey scale, sepia, whatever.. in this first painting I am using grey scale.

Once the under painting is completely dry I will apply the color. The purpose of under painting first is to maximize composition and contrast, lighting, etc... This way, when I go to apply the oil paints, I am not as concerned with the composition, and I will use less paint.

One thing I really really really love about oils is that I can leave the paint out over night, even for several days and it is still ready to use when I come back to it. All I have to do is clean my brush!!!! SOOO COOL!

So, here's where I am at right now. So far I have about 30 working hours into the painting, if not more. I never thought I'd ever say that.

"Mask Parade" unfinished oil on 40"x30" canvas
by Raette Meredith - copyright 2011

So, if you are wondering why oil paintings cost so much more, that is why.. there USUALLY  a lot more time put into the painting, especially if you are using this technique. I am really excited to see how it turns out in the end. Does it make a difference, etc....

What do you think?

I am still working out the composition, etc.. will post progress photos along the journey. The painting is a commission for a local performer, music and theatre instructor. I would disclose her name, but I have to ask permission first.

The photographs I used for the composition were used with the photographer's permission also and I will disclose her name once I have permission from her to do so. I am using three of her photographs and some imagination for the composition.

Happy painting!!!

Raette

(I apologize for any typos that you find - I only claim to be a professional painter, not a professional writer! :)

Spring Again

Finally I have removed all excess responsibilities in effort to make more time to paint. So I send the kids off to school, am caught up with laundry and finished my book. Now that I cleared my plate so to speak, I am sitting here, in my quiet house looking for things to do, when I know that I am supposed to be painting. But I don't feel like it. I know that if I wait to feel like painting the canvas will go untouched and I will grow less and less motivated. I complain to my sister about my dilemma and she reminds me that I don't have to commit to a full day of painting. It's weird how I know that setting the time for one hour is the solution but hearing it from my sister it finally clicks. I guess I just needed to hear it again.

I know that if I start painting every single day, even if it is just for an hour, eventually inspiration will return and I will once again look forward to painting time. I will not look at that canvas with a blank stare, paralyzed, unable to move forward. I also know that once the creative mind kicks in it will in no time be splitting at the seams with ideas and creativity. Spring will return in my mind.

So yesterday, following my sister's advice, I got my water pail ready and Netflix loaded, set my timer and painted for one hour. I can't say that it was all that comfortable but I can say that when I woke up today, I actually looked forward to my painting time a little more. Again, I set the timer, but this time I ended up painting for two hours. I can feel my critical eye returning (that's a good thing) and the motivation is beginning to stir.

I didn't get a ton done today, but I did paint. It was a good day.

Mom, Money, Art

The ultimate struggle for me as an artist is the juggling of priorities. I believe this is true for most artists.

I have three major priorities right now, in this order.. Mom, Money, Art.

First I am Mom. This is the most important role I have, and I only get one chance to raise them. Now that my kids are 14, 9, and 8 my job description has changed. My kids have interests and schedules that are more busy than ever. Okay, so after 1pm, I belong to them entirely. I drive them from this activity to that activity, wash uniforms, and help with ever increasingly difficult homework.

My second priority, which is tied to the first is Money.... As much as I'd like to blow this one off, and just have my Kids and Art to think about, this is not the reality I live in. I enjoy work, and earning as much as I can is not an option, it is necessary for survival right now. I dream of a day when the money we have coming in from one source is all we need, but that is simply not the way it is. Frankly I enjoy work, and praise God that I am able to earn doing things that I love. I build websites for artists, have a online magazine called ARTAZINE to help promote art instructors, artists, and galleries, and I paint murals.

My third priority, the one that nourishes my soul is painting. I love painting and always will, and if I don't paint, even though I stay busy and I love my ability to earn, I feel like I am not fulfilling my role here on earth. There is an emptiness that aches until I paint again.

When I first started painting, the subject didn't matter to me. I painted flowers because they were pretty, and tried to find a commercial outlet for my work. I tried to match home decor and trends. Although my these paintings sold, I still felt like they didn't "say" enough.

One day I had a crazy emotion and felt that restrictive pull that shuts down my ability to verbally communicate. An image popped into my head and I painted. Fearful of judgement the painting sat in my studio for about two years, unseen by anyone but me. One day I showed the painting to a trusted family member and artist. He told me that he is more interested in this painting than any of the more than 100 that I had previously completed.

The painting is called "Speechless". Comments are more than welcome.

"Speechless" detail

This was the sort of response that I hoped for, although I half expected him to confirm that he thought I was crazy. I want my paintings to communicate at a depth beyond words. Maybe they will reach someone out there.  Sure, I will occasionally paint an inspirational flower or scene, but I really believe that I have this gift for a reason and I think that reason is intended for more than interior decorating.

Someday I pray that my priorities will be Mom, Art... but until then I am ever grateful that I can still use my creativity to earn.

Relaxing while I can

So what is this relaxing thing? I'm really really not used to sitting still and listening to silence, but I am beginning to like it.
Next week things get hairy again. School starts for me full time. I have no idea what I am doing. I have always wanted to earn my college degree, so I am going for it.
I volunteered for 2 1/2 years at the Shasta County Arts Council for a small AmeriCorps Vista stipend plus college tuition. My term is up (okay, I ended it early to save my brain), but I still earned two full years of scholarship money. So now's the time to use it up.
I start at CSUChico on Tuesday. I am taking 5 classes.. Ohhhh, my. That and being mom and painting is complete insanity. I know, but really, 4 semesters, only 4 months long each will not kill me. I'll just be counting the days toward summer, spring and winter break.
Actually, I'm pretty excited. I've been waiting a long time for this opportunity and will be happy to chalk it up on my resume.. If I live to see the end! :)

So I'm starting as a Business/Marketing major. We'll see if I can hack it. If not, I may have to switch around back to art. So far, I am still hooked on the marketing idea.

Last night I was asked to paint on live TV. Okay, it was our small public access station here in Redding, Channel 11, but what a priviledge! I was thrilled! I really like to paint in front of people. Below is the image I painted, called "Above". For those of you who were there and curious, I told you what it was about. For the rest, I would like to know more, what it means to you. If anything at all.

Anyways, it was inspired by a dream.

I started the painting at 4pm and signed my name (finished) at 8:30pm. Phew!
The painting is 24"x36", acrylic on canvas.
"Above"

Below is another painting from the same series.
It is also 24"x36" acrylic

"Brink"


Soo, that's it for now.