An Original Painting of a Unicorn, a Surreal Kitten Art Print, & ACEOs!

"Snowy Night" Original 5"x7" painting here

5"x7" print here

ACEO 2.5"x3.5" Limited Edition LE 1st of 25 here

This week I am listing "Snowy Night" my original unicorn painting.  It is my first completed painting of 2014!  It's also inspired by a photograph by Shawn Parker.  I also have additional giclee art prints here.  This week my theme is four legged friends

Most of my art is also available on my website at http://www.lisarusso.com; however, I like to offer some art on ebay at a lower promotional start rate for the duration of the auctions...

"Make Time to Cuddle" Original Painting SOLD

5"x7" print here

ACEO 2.5"x3.5" Limited Edition LE 1st of 25 here

This is my featured print for the week.  I also have additional giclee art prints on ebay here.  This week there is a black cat with an angel, a fairy cat and a fairy dog, abstract unicorns and a less abstract unicorn, as well as a horse.

Sogetsu Ikebana Japanese Flower Arrangements at Descanso Gardens Part II & Mermaid WIP

On one of my visits to Descanso Gardens, they had a show of Sogetsu Ikebana.  It is a Japanese art of flower arranging.  The emphasis is on expressing the spirit of the moment.  I found the arrangements beautiful and compelling.  These pieces were contributed by the group Yokou.  Here are some of my favorites.  I especially liked the pieces with birds of paradise in them, but there were so many wonderful pieces!  This is part II of II, part I is here.

I am linking this post with Inspire Me Monday

http://www.create-with-joy.com/

Here is a work in progress view of my mermaid with clownfish painting.  The flash went off, so it's a bit brighter then it is, but I think you can see some of the details of the clownfish that haven't shown that well in all of my shots.  I am working on the mermaid's face.  She still needs a bit more attention to her shading, then a wash, and then her features; however, I may not be able to do all of that in one session.  It depends on how much time it takes me to finesser her shading.  Oh and also she needs her hair, but that's a ways away yet...

Improved Master Study Sketch of "The Cicada" by Jean-Baptiste Camille Corot...

"The Cicada" by Jean-Baptiste Camille Corot is one of my favorite paintings at the Norton Simon Museum and I intend for it to be my next master study painting.  I posted this sketch last week, but I've redrawn the hands.  I think they are now much closer in size now to how they should be.  My next choice is to decide what size to do the painting.  The original is not one of our standard sizes so I'm going to have to play around with this in photoshop to determine what will fit the proportions best.


To view more Sunday Sketches, please visit:
http://www.bluechairdiaryillustrations.com/

Unicorn Painting Work in Progress, Almost Fini...

Here is a work in progress view of a unicorn.  It was inspired by a photograph of a horse by Shawn Parker.  I am very close to being finished with this one.  A little more work on the mane, a little bit more light on the horn, and some touch ups and I should be able to post the finished piece on Tuesday...

Mermaid with Clownfish Painting Work in Progress Continues...

Here is a work in progress view of my mermaid with clownfish painting.  I've started working on her neck and shoulder.  I feel that I may have some more work to do on this part of her, but I'm not entirely sure.  I may work on the neck a bit more before I move on to her face or I may move on to her face and then go back to her neck.

Although I think I am feeling like working on my unicorn painting today, so this quandary of what to do first may wait until another day...


I'm joining in this week with Paint Party Friday.  To see more participants, please visit:
http://paintpartyfriday.blogspot.com/

Happy New Year! A Burst of Golden Fireworks...

I took this photograph of fireworks at Downtown Disney quite a while back, but I thought this burst of golden color was beautiful.  Happy New Year to you!

An Original Painting of a Blue Haired Mermaid, an Abstract Angel Art Print, & ACEOs!

Happy New Year! "Twirls and Curls" Original 11"x14" painting here

8"x10" print here

ACEO 2.5"x3.5" Limited Edition LE 1st of 25 here

This week I am listing "Twirls and Curls" my original blue haired mermaid painting.  I also have additional giclee art prints here.  This week I don't have a theme, they're just the ones that jumped out at me and said "list me this week."

Most of my art is also available on my website at http://www.lisarusso.com; however, I like to offer some art on ebay at a lower promotional start rate for the duration of the auctions...

"Windswept" Original Painting SOLD

5"x7" print here

ACEO 2.5"x3.5" Limited Edition LE 1st of 25 here

This is my featured print for the week.  I also have additional giclee art prints on ebay here.  This week there are mermaids, a fairy, a dragon, a cardinal, anthurium flowers, a bull mastiff dog and their person, and this angel.

Tis the time of year for resolutions.  I tend to not keep mine, so I haven't decided if I'm making any this year...

I hope you have a very happy new year!

Sogetsu Ikebana Japanese Flower Arrangements at Descanso Gardens Part I & Unicorn WIP

On one of my visits to Descanso Gardens, they had a show of Sogetsu Ikebana.  It is a Japanese art of flower arranging.  The emphasis is on expressing the spirit of the moment.  I found the arrangements beautiful and compelling.  These pieces were contributed by the group Yokou.  Here are some of my favorites.  I especially liked the pieces with birds of paradise in them, but there were so many wonderful pieces!  This is part I of II.  Edit: Part II is here.

I am linking this post with Inspire Me Monday

http://www.create-with-joy.com/

Here is a work in progress view of my unicorn painting inspired by a photograph by Shawn Parker.  I am getting close to finishing it.  I need to paint the mane and then I feel the horn could be lighter, but that depends on how it looks once I've painted in the mane.

Master Study Sketch of "The Cicada" by Jean-Baptiste Camille Corot...

"The Cicada" by Jean-Baptiste Camille Corot is one of my favorite paintings at the Norton Simon Museum.  Whenever I go there, I consider myself very fortunate to have the opportunity to see it.  It occured to me that it has been a while since I've painted a master study.  This is a rough sketch of Corot's original painting that I photographed whilst visiting the museum.  I've decided in my version, more of her hair will be down.  Seeing them side by side, I realize that I definitely need to focus on her hands and redraw them, in this sketch they are tiny!  While I know that I will never capture the beauty of this master painting myself, I feel that painting a master study allows me to see into the original more deeply and learn from the experience.


To view more Sunday Sketches, please visit:
http://www.bluechairdiaryillustrations.com/

Work in Progress Mermaid with Clownfish Painting, Big Brown Eyes...

Here is a work in progress view of my mermaid with clownfish painting.  I have started work on the mermaid.  I'm not very far in, but her big brown eyes are almost done...