Diane Breuer

I'm Back!

2011-09-06T15:21:00.000-07:00

It has been a long time, but I am going to try to keep up with the blogging thing. Lots of things going on, lots of plans in the works. I have been doing a few ocean scenes to get the hang of how they are done. I have enjoyed them a lot, but now I'm about to get into a few subjects. I brought out a pastel I had started a few years ago and hadn't finished. The title is Pip, my niece's boarder collie. She has a boarder collie rescue in Florida.

Georgiana

2011-02-03T12:39:00.001-08:00

Here is the pastel I did for my son and his wife of my little grand daughter, Georgiana. She is now seven months old and crawling all over the place. This was taken from a photograph that was on the birth announcement.

This was a pastel done on Ampersand board.

Pastel of The Hen

2011-02-03T11:39:00.000-08:00

Well, I didn't get a chance to work on the Oil painting of the lady collecting eggs, mostly because its winter and I don't want to freeze in the garage where the painting is set up. So I started a pastel, on a smaller scale, than the oil. Same subject. I can take it with me when I go painting with my friends on Thursdays.

This is done on Ampersand board with pastels, a lot of pastel pencil, too.

Morro, California

2010-07-28T08:33:00.000-07:00

This is a pastel I did while in Morro, plein air painting with my pastel buddies. It is 8x10 on sanded pastel board.

We went out to paint and get pictures. We started painting on site, but when the wind started to pick up we all ended back at the studio. I finished up the pastel when I got back home. Finished is not a good term, its more like I quit before I messed it up. I have a bad tendency to keep working a painting until I ruin it.

Shell and Avacados

2010-07-27T11:50:00.000-07:00

Here is the pastel of the Shell and Avacado, almost done.
I am including a shot of my easel which is kind of a work of art in itself. I needed a kick so I ran out to my garden and picked geranium flowers. I like the result. Warms up the painting

Here is an update to the Shell and Avacado Pastel.

Not done yet, but pretty close

Pastel of Still Life Shell

2010-07-27T11:46:00.000-07:00

I started this pastel in Morro from a still life. I took a picture of it because I knew I wouldn't finish it on site.

Beginning my oil painting

2010-07-27T08:26:00.001-07:00

I started this oil painting (The Hen) last month but haven't had time to work on it since. story of my life.
I am working off of a photo that I edited using Adobe Photoshop Elements. I changed a few things around, made the chicken coop better, deeper, nicer, actually, than the one I have for my chickens. I have a white hen rather than the Black Aurstolorps I have because they wouldn't show up well in this case.
I sketched the picture in with charcoal. Then used Yellow Ochre and Payne's Gray to begin to get the tones.

I am in the process of clearing a place in the garage to begin the real setting in of color.

I must stand while painting. I walk away often, then turn to look at the paint I have added. This doesn't work well in my rather small studio. The larger the painting, which in this case is 24x30, the more I must stand back to view my work. Sometimes I will walk clear out of the garage, down the paved drive, to the side fence, which is a good 30 feet away.