Surprise! Day 31 of 30 Paintings in 30 Days!

"Wearing their Paintings"        11" x 11"            $145

First of all, let me explain why I did a 31st painting.  In the middle of this challenge, I painted a chicken painting instead of my figurative paintings, due to the guilt of that long overdue commission painting.  I knew that the chicken wouldn't fit in with all my other collection, so I promised myself that by the end, I would replace that painting.  I will be making a booklet (published by Blurb) of this series, so if you are interested, mail me a check for $30 (includes shipping) with your shipping address and email, and I will mail you a copy upon it's publication.  It usually takes about 3 weeks to publish.  My address is Karen Knutson, 8621 Coachman's Lane, Eden Prairie, MN 55347.

Now, a little about this painting.  I've always gotten a kick out of artists holding their full sheet paintings in front of themselves, because it looks like they are wearing their paintings.  So, this was so fun to do, and complete the background with a Frank Lloyd Wright look to it.  I'm hoping that the figures don't pop off the page right away.  I tried to make you see an abstract first and then, later, discover the figures.  By the way, this is me and a Florida friend, when I taught her how to paint in acrylics for the first time. It brings back such fond memories!

Collection of all 30 Paintings in 30 Days!

Well, there you have it!  All 30 Paintings to view in one glance!  What did I learn from this challenge?  That it is better to be prepared with meals and sketches ahead of time.  I love that Leslie Saeta features this every year, because it gives me the push that I need in January after not painting at all in December.  I discovered many new tricks and they are all shared on my daily posts, so if you are a student, you might want to look back over this past month's posts.  For those who want to buy a book of these paintings, just send me a check for $30 (this includes shipping) with your mailing address, and email to : Karen Knutson, 8621 Coachman's Lane, Eden Prairie, MN 55347.  It is size 6.5" x 6.5".  I made one last year of my bird paintings, and really liked the quality of the Blurb product.  Thanks to all those who purchased many of these paintings.  It's always so rewarding to have you buy my artwork for your homes.  If interested in any of these, I've tried to keep updating them as to whether they have sold or not, so each day should have the details of each painting status.   I can't thank all of you who commented or "liked" my paintings as I posted them on Facebook.  It really means a lot to hear what you think!  And special thanks to my wonderful husband for encouraging and supporting me when the house hasn't been cleaned all month and we've been eating take out food most days.

Day 30 of "30 Paintings in 30 Days"

"Cheers"              11" x 11"             $145 SOLD
Acrylic on paper

Wow!  I made it!  I wanted to do a toast to all the friends and family who have supported me in this 30 Day Challenge, hosted by Leslie Saeta.  So here's to all of you!  Cheers! :)  It's been quite a ride!  I always wonder if I will do it again next year.  I've done this for 3 years in a row, every January.  I challenged myself to painting figures with abstract backgrounds and I have to say that I really learned a lot!  Yes, I'm glad I did the challenge, and I'll probably do it again next year.  I could really feel the fatigue this year, far more than any other year, so I may have to find a way to make my paintings more simple.  You know how well I do simple....NOT.  Below is my value study (only 2 values) that  really helped me as I selected colors.  I wasn't "feeling" which colors to use in this painting, so finally, I grabbed a napkin that had colors that I liked and that really helped me out.  Try it! BTW, the figure on the left is ME, and the right figure is a good friend.  Wonder if she will know this is her?

Day 29 of 30 Paintings in 30 Days!

"College Finals Week"       11" x 11"      $145

I guess I may as well admit it; my favorite medium is collage!  Whenever I add collage to my paintings, I become completely immersed in the process and hours pass, without even having hunger pains! I had a total different plan when I started this painting.  But one thing I've learned over the years is to adapt to your painting.  When it's telling you something, listen!  Below is my wild underpainting, and my value sketch. But when I got to the mid stage, I noticed the circle rainbow shape that was behind her head and I thought, "go with it".  (see photo 3 below) I would love to do a large painting of this image!

Day 28 of 30 Paintings in 30 Days!

"Party Girl"               11" x 11"                  $145
Acrylic on paper

Today, I used one of my past abstract paintings as my inspiration for the design. (See below) I knew that I wanted to have earth tones plus zebra print and the Jazz color of aqua.  So, I would think that the painting would have gone smoothly!  Not true.  I tried another way of starting my painting, and it caused me lots of problems.  I'm going back to the middle value wild beginnings that I did before.  I am posting the painting when I thought it was complete (see photo 3 below), so that you can see why I changed it. When I analyzed it, I realized that I needed to make her hair a darker color so that it would show up against the circle background.  I also glazed the gold area with nickel azo to brighten the yellow area.  And I glazed the dark center area with pyrolle red light, and it really made that area richer.  It really made the painting better.  These last minute changes can really improve a painting.  I like to turn my paintings upside down, so I can really see the values, instead of the subject.

Day 27 of 30 Paintings in 30 Days!

"Being in the Moment"        11" x 11" image          $145
Acrylic painting on paper

This painting started as a wild underpainting, as explained on Day 3 of my blog.  I squirted both heavy body acrylics and liquid acrylics onto a prepared paper, and spread them out, using a credit card.  Then I sprinkled it with water and let that set for at least 5 minutes before wiping away the water.  This created light spots.  Both steps are pictured below.  This painting is actually someone that I know from a Paint-in.  I actually used the composition from my photo, and lots the different angles.  The stairs created a good interest point for her to sit.  To her right, is a painting done by a dear friend of mine, Connie.  I loved the angle of the snow scene, being an opposite angle to the stairway.  Good design, and that was how the photo had it!  Rare when that happens.  I abstracted the area beside her head, and changed her dress color, so that I could paint my favorite color, red!

Paintings 19 - 27! Almost there!

Paintings 19- 27 of "30 Paintings in 30 Days"

So there are only 3 more paintings for me to do in this 30 Day Challenge!  I can't believe how far I have stretched and how much I have learned in this painting challenge, put on by Leslie Saeta.   I find myself kind of nervous, trying to think of ones that I really want to be included in this 30 day Figurative Abstract Painting challenge.  To purchase any of these, go back to each individual day, and the price is posted under each painting.  Thanks for reading my blog and for all of your encouraging comments!  It really means a lot to me to have your support!

Day 26 of 30 Paintings in 30 Days!

"Heading for Happy Hour"       11" x 11"image       $145
Collage and acrylic on paper

I used the same value pattern as my last painting, "Suits".  But this time, I collaged with medium toned papers in the dark areas.  I forgot to take a  photo in this early stage.  I applied the collage papers using acrylic matte medium.   In the light areas, I tore up newspaper and collaged it in all different directions, so that the print wouldn't be readable.  I then painted a thin layer of gesso over the newspaper to make it a little whiter.  I like this painting, because the figures look transparent where they overlap the background.  Which painting do you like better--"Suits" or this one? They actually look pretty cool hanging together.  If you purchase both paintings, I give 10% off.

Day 25 of 30 Paintings in 30 Days

"Suits"               11" x 11" image                $145
Acrylic

My husband's business moved to a new location, so I wanted to do a painting for his new office.  The real painting will be 30" x 38" so this is a warm up for me. This painting started with a colorful underpainting, but I limited my colors to cobalt blue and nickel azo gold with a touch of pyrrole red. I learned how to use a limited palette from Carrie Burns Brown.  She told us to pick 2 colors, and then make 10 mixtures from them with just those 2 colors, and then, adding white and black to get even more colors.  It's a great lesson and keeps your painting unified.  Below is the underpainting.  After that dried, this was more about wiping out the lights than actually painting the figures.  They were created by wiping out lights around them, using cotton balls with rubbing alcohol.  I'm late posting this, due to going out with friends last night, and I had 2 margaritas.  Needless to say, I didn't have the ambition to complete this painting when we got home, so I'm hoping to get one more done today to get ahead again.  Only 5 more days to go!

Day 24 of 30 Paintings in 30 Days!

"Deep in Thought"            11" x 11"            $145  SOLD
Watercolor, acrylic and permanent marker

After yesterday's detailed painting, I just wanted to do an easy painting, and even though these "wire drawings" are time consuming, they are easier for me than other paintings, as far as design, color choices, etc.  I made a discovery today!  I did 2 layers of blue watercolor and was disappointed in the color.  I knew that there was no way for me to get the color of light teal that I wanted, if I continued to use watercolor, so I switched to acrylic for the blue color.  But I first wet each area quickly with a brush, then applied the acrylic really fast, and let it drip.  The granulation was so cool!!!  I definitely will be doing this technique again.  I hope you can zoom in and see what I mean.  My favorite part of this painting is the doodling within her dress and I also like her hair.

Day 23 of 30 Paintings in 30 Days!

"Windows to your Soul"             11" x 11"               $195
Acrylic

I knew that I wanted to do a more abstract painting today, but even I was surprised at this outcome.  I made color samples of rich earth tone colors.  I still started with a totally busy underpainting, pictured below.  Then I drew my value sketch for the abstract design with only 2 values. I made one of the sections large, so I could draw a face within that area.  I usually don't paint positive images, but this time, I was forced to give it a try, so the girls face has four layers of shadow patterns to build up the values.  I refer to Jan Kunz' book, Painting Portraits that Glow, when I need help getting the shadows correct.  The most fun part for me was integrating the abstract design within the face, and working the dark values into the design.  Odd coincidence:  I went to the movie, "Big Eyes" AFTER finishing this painting!  A great movie for artists.  :)

Day 22 of 30 Paintings in 30 Days!

"Showing off for Mr. Right"    11" x 11"    $195
(If you purchase both Mr. Right and this one, the set would cost $350)
She's such a flirt!  Trying to get the attention of Mr. Right.  I had lots of fun painting this one, because I had been through all the trials and new discoveries with the painting, "Mr. Right".  I did decide to add the stripe of collage paper in the middle and you'll see below that I added it to Mr. Right painting too.  Guess that's kind of breaking the rules, since I already posted it yesterday, but that's me for you.  One of my favorite sayings is, "It's easier to ask forgiveness than permission".  If you are interested in buying both of these paintings, I'm offering them for $350 for the set, instead of $195 each.  Both are acrylics with collage.  They are pictured below. I can picture them with a deep black frame. 

Day 21- 30 Paintings in 30 Days!

"Mr. Right"                  11" x 11"                   $195
Acrylic

Whenever I get myself into deep trouble, I actually get excited!  I know, you think I'm bonkers, but when this happens, I have to reinvent the wheel, and I usually am ready to have a breakthrough!  This happened today, when working on this painting.  I knew that I wanted a warm underpainting, so I grabbed all kinds of yellows and iron oxide, etc.  I then decided on impulse to add just a little of black. I spread the dots of color, with a rubber Catalyst wedge, that had notches in it.  Below is the result of that process.  Yikes!  I saw this underpainting, and thought, "Well this is a fine mess you've gotten yourself into, Lucy". But then, I decided to add a layer of yellow to unify the background and that turned the black to an army green color.  Then I added gesso on top, and flicked some alcohol and water drops to get the speckled look.  Now, I was cooking!  My objective on this one was to have really high contrast.  So I knew from the beginning that I wanted the bottom black and the top a light color. Once the gesso effect dried, I toned it with an aqua color.  I'm going to have a hard time letting this painting go.  It's such a great breakthrough.  Even the bottom black area has depth, due to a dripping process.  The thing that I'm most pleased with is the soft edges, and all the mystery created by all the layering.  Tomorrow, I'm painting a girl to go with this one.  They are meant to be sold together, I hope!

Day 20 - 30 Paintings in 30 Days!

"Treasured Friends"        11" x 11" image        $145
watercolor

I must admit, I hit "the wall" today.  I was so totally wiped out that I tried to take the easy way out, and just do an easy painting.  You'll see the first version below.  I thought, "It's good enough."  So, I went to have my hair colored and thought how nice it was to be done with my painting in the mid afternoon, so I could totally relax this evening and maybe even go to bed early.  I hesitantly showed my painting to my husband, (who has gotten to be one heck of a good critique), and he said, "is it half done?"  I love that he was willing to give me an honest opinion.  So, after supper, I went back to my studio and worked for 2 more hours on this painting, bringing it from "good enough" to good!  Lesson learned.  Always show your best work, or don't show it at all.  This is an illusionary painting, which I will be teaching at Cross Lake, MN in September of 2015.  Check my website www.karenknutson.com next week for details of that workshop, or email me at karen@karenknutson.com if interested.

Day 19 of 30 Paintings in 30 Days!

"Good Day at the Office"        11" x 11"image        $195
watercolor and permanent marker

Can someone tell me the meaning of the word "Easy"?  I totally meant to do an easy painting, since I was babysitting my granddaughters most of the day, and knew I wouldn't have much time to paint.  But, no, I had to start doodling!  And that takes hours!  I actually needed to go to bed last night with it unfinished and complete it this morning.  But the outcome is totally worth it!  This is another of my wire drawings.  I've been trying to take them to the next level.  My goal was to make them look more dimensional and to integrate the color with the drawing aspect of this technique.  I'm really pleased with the results.  By the way, I'm SO EXCITED to be 2/3 completed with this challenge.  Below are paintings 9-18.  It's been a great ride, but I really am getting exhausted.  On a good note, my art abilities have grown and the ideas are endless. 

Day 18 of 30 Paintings in 30 Days!

"On Top of the World"            11" x 11"                $145
Acrylic painting

I love the song, "I'm on top of the World", so this time, I started with the title and then painted a painting to go with it.  Click on the link, and you can hear it too!  Again, I started with a wild under painting.  See photo below.  I highly recommend starting this way, because it takes away that initial fear of facing blank white paper.  Plus, it unifies your painting.  See Day 3 to read detailed instructions of this process.  I looked through my one year of color studies, and found one that would lend itself well to this idea of the globe, even though the colors were all wrong.  It was a starting point for a good design. I just used part of it, and worked the girl and the globe into it's design.  I drew the value sketch next, and then started painting the midtones first, to establish a unifying value.  I didn't know that her hair would be blue.  I could have made her a blonde, but it looked good as the under painting color and it related to my color scheme, so I left it that way.  Simplification is always good.  I do feel so lucky in this life, and do feel "on top of the world".

Day 17 of 30 Paintings in 30 Days!

"Whatever Works"          11" x 11" image           $145

I was up late last night working on this one, due to being on the phone with technical staff about computer problems.  I finally had to go to bed with it unfinished and get up early this morning to finish it.  So, the title kind of has a double meaning to me.  This lady has it going on.... So glad that I'm not in the dating scene anymore.  Below is the under painting and the value sketch that I used for my map while painting.  Martini anyone?

Day 16 of 30 Paintings in 30 Days!

"Quiet Moment Together"            11" X 11"       SOLD
Acrylic and Collage

Knowing I had to leave my studio in the mid afternoon, I tried to keep today's painting more simple.  Have you ever had tiny pieces of collage papers that you've thrown away?  I use them in a complicated paper collage.  AnneBagby taught me how to do this on her DVD.  Placing the collage papers randomly over the entire surface, I have my "under painting".  I use acrylic matte medium to adhere them to the paper.  It is pictured below.  Then I draw my subject on tracing paper, placing the center of interest wherever I like the collage papers the best.  After my complete drawing is on the tracing paper, I get a print of the drawing that is only 25% of it's size.  I then make a 3 value sketch on the new small copy.  For me, I HAVE to do this on these paintings, because you are actually painting where the lights are.  Below is my value sketch too.

Day 15 of 30 Paintings in 30 Days!

"Angel Among Us"     11" x 11" acrylic    $395 

I finished this at 11:20 p.m., so I fear that unless I paint some easier paintings, I may get behind in this challenge.  Today was a full day, with a computer expert here and I also had chores for the grandkids. So why did I pick such a hard subject today??!!!!!  It actually started as a simple painting.  But then I decided to add the ring around her head and also to paint her face more realistically than I usually do.  By the way, whenever I paint shadows on a face, I refer to Jan Kunz' book, Painting Watercolor Portraits that Glow.  It's a great book!
All in all, I'm really pleased with the results, so guess it was worth the long hours to complete her.  It was hard to get a good photo of her under the florescent lights in my studio.  I usually take the photo outside under natural light.  I wanted Botticelli hair for this one.  For my next version of this, I intend to make it a horizontal format, so that the hair can blow in the wind even farther. Below is the beginning stage of this painting.  The process is explained on Day 3 of this blog. I was so in love with the colors of her hair that it took many very timid washes of shadow color before I realized that value trumps color every time.  Lesson learned.

Day 14 of 30 Paintings in 30 Days!

"Life in the Fast Lane"              11" x 11"    $145 SOLD
Acrylic and permanent marker

Back to painting acrylics for this one! This painting went pretty smoothly, although I had to resize my drawings several times to get the size that I wanted for this format.  I drew my image on tracing paper, and then enlarged it on the printer to the preferred size.  What did we ever do without the computer and printer?  I find that I'm a little out of my element when I go to Paint-in's since I don't have my modern equipment right by my painting desk.  I started with a wild underpainting, using mainly blues and greens.  I like starting with the opposite color because I knew that I wanted to do a red painting today.  Then I wiped out the light areas, using rubbing alcohol on a cotton ball.  I love the marks left by doing it that way. I doodled on the background and her dress, using a permanent marker.  I'm pleased with the colors, but then I am partial to red.  Even my grandkids know that red is my favorite color.

Day 13 of 30 Paintings in 30 Days!

"Jenna"                 11" x 11" Image                   $145
Watercolor and permanent marker

This is another "wire drawing".  Basically a contour drawing, with changes and doodling afterwards.  In this one, I took it even farther than any others that I've done.  I'm trying to keep the integrity of the wire drawing, but add some depth to the painting too, without making it look like a coloring book.  I'm pleased, but will be trying to improve more as I go along.  The model is Jenna Erickson, who is Director of Programs at Madeline Island School of the Arts.  The first time I saw her, I knew that I wanted to paint her.  To me, she's like a Mona Lisa- very striking, and statuesque.  This isn't as good of a likeness as I would have liked but I'll be painting more paintings of her, and hopefully, one of them will capture her unique spirit.  She frequently wears colorful scarves and lots of jewelry. She is a genius at matching clothes to accessories.  If you get the chance, I strongly recommend the MISA for workshops.  It's beautiful and peaceful; it is located a short ferry ride from Bayfield, WI.  A nice place to reconnect with your inner soul. I've taught 2 workshops there and totally enjoyed the experience.

Beginning wire drawing of Jenna

Day 12 of 30 Paintings in 30 Days!

"In one of my Moods"  11" x 11" commission painting

Sold 

I've had this commission since March of 2014, and the guilt just took over me today, so instead of doing my people paintings with abstract backgrounds, I did a "girl chicken" in front of an abstract background.  I feel like such a huge weight has been lifted off my shoulders!  Below are the other 2 that are companions for this painting.  The buyer bought the middle painting from my 30 in 30 Challenge from last year, and wanted the chicken and rooster to go with it.  Hope she is pleased with the results. This painting is acrylic, watercolor, and collage.  To hear about the process of the dripping acrylic background, go to last year's blog from January 13, 2014.  Here is the link: http://karenknutson.blogspot.com/2014/01/30-paintings-in-30-days-day-14.html

  I'd love to get a conversation going about commission paintings with other artists out there!  Please post your comments below.  I have a love/hate feeling about them.  It's great to get sales, but I need to set deadlines for completion.  I think they push me to new levels, but obviously (from how long it takes me to complete them), I must not like being told what to paint!  I'm so spoiled!

 

 

 

 



Day 11 of 30 Paintings in 30 Days!

"Ooh Lah Lah"            11" x 11" image      $145  SOLD

“Ooh Lah Lah” came into being because I’m excited about the Golden Globe Awards tomorrow night.  I love all that movie star stuff! J  On tracing paper, I did a free hand drawing of the girl all glammed up. To check up on my drawing skills, I then placed the drawing over the actual photo to see how well I did.  I’ve been doing that lately, because I want to improve my drawing skills so much!  I used to think of myself as a pretty good drawer, but really lack confidence in that area lately as I’m really looking more critically at my skills and trying to improve each day.  Next, I drew a value sketch using only 2 values.  This is my road map while I paint.  At the very end, I decide where to put the darkest darks, depending on what I want to accentuate.  When trying to think of a background, I came up blank.  So, I looked through all my 30 minute color studies and found the one pictured below. I made a few changes, but it gave me a good starting point.  I did it on January 27^th of 2011.  That year, I had the goal to do a 30 minute color sketch using Tombow markers every day for a whole YEAR!!!! Yes, I said a whole year!  I only missed 2 days, due to totally forgetting!  How can one forget when you’ve been doing it for that long??!!!!  Life gets busy some days-- that’s how!  Anyway, I love being able to page through the color studies and be inspired for either a total abstract or a background for a semi-abstract painting.  Be sure to check out Leslie Saeta's blog to see other artist's paintings from this challenge.  I notice that many have dropped out by now.  Sure hope I make it to the finish line! Below are my first nine paintings.  I couldn't get the 10th one on there.

color study that I used for inspiration (left)
value study (right)

Day 10- 30 Paintings in 30 Days!

"We hold the world in our hands"  11" x 11"  $245 SOLD
Watercolor, permanent marker, and Elegant Writer marker

Yes, I truly believe that each and every one of us makes a difference in our world!  I had this idea of a girl holding the globe in her hands and really enjoyed painting this.  Last year, one of my students (who happens to be a teacher herself in Duluth, MN), Mary Beth Downs taught me how to do "wire drawings".
 At least that's what I call them.  That's because they look like wire to me.  I can't tell you how to do them on this blog; it's actually something that you have to see.  Basically, they are contour drawings with changes afterwards. This will be a process that I will teach in one of my summer workshops if you are interested. (email me to be on the list:  Karen@karenknutson.com )  I use a permanent marker to do the initial sketch picture below.  When I started this, I honestly thought that this would be an easy painting, and picked it, due to babysitting my sick grandson this morning.  But the finishing touches took hours.  I used the Elegant Writer calligraphy pen to make some of the lines thicker and then activated it with a wet brush to cause it to soften a little.  Elegant writer felt markers are water soluble and therefore are really fun to mess around with!  Karlyn Holman introduced me to the Elegant Writer pens years ago, and I love them.  Click on this link to buy them from her store.  One of my heroes is Alphonse Mucha, and I was trying to do this painting in his style.  A lot of doodling, but it was worth it!
 

Value sketch (left) and first drawing using permanent marker (right)

Day 9 of 30 Paintings in 30 Days!

"Waiting Patiently"       11" x 11"        $145

Some days everything goes right in a painting!  Wanting to end with a blue theme, I started my underpainting using warms and brown tones.  I drew a value sketch with only 2 values, so that I would know where to connect my lights. I thought of Polly Hammett and how well she repeated shapes and simplified shapes.  That's what I tried to do! This painting was basically about where to scrub out, rather than painting in layers. (See yesterday's blog to get a more detailed description of scrubbing out with rubbing alcohol.)  Below you will see my underpainting, value sketch and my painting 3/4 done.  I actually considered it done, but after sitting critiquing it during wine o'clock, I decided that I indeed needed to add more darks.  I like the design in this painting.  Notice that even the bracelets are a repetition of the chair curve. 

Day 8 of 30 Paintings in 30 Days!

"Love Forever"            11" x 11" Image        $145  SOLD

I was kind of lost when I first started painting today, so I looked back through my 30 minute sketches that I did using Tombow markers, and found the swirl design in one of the sketches. Then I drew another value sketch, using only 2 values, light and medium.  Pictured below are the beginning underpainting and the simple value sketch.


I loved the colors so much in the underpainting that I decided to keep as much of it as possible. Would you like to see how I painted the word, "forever"? I believe that it is much more painterly, if I wipe it out rather than actually painting the letters.  So, the first step is to cover the area with masking tape.  Then carefully cut out the letters, using a single edge razor or exacto knife.  Be careful not to cut too deeply, so you won't cut a hole in the paper.  Then I rub the word out, using a cotton ball that is soaked in rubbing alcohol (91% Isopropyl works better than 70%.  Read at the top of the alcohol label).  (This only will work if you have prepared the paper in the very beginning by coating the surface with matte medium.  Let it dry before painting the underpainting.) **Very important:  Once you have scrubbed out the word, be sure to dry it with a blow dryer.  The heat from the dryer melts the glue from the masking tape and makes it easy to remove.

I've had so much fun painting in acrylics lately, that I've decided to teach a summer workshop in this process. If you would like to be on the list, email me at Karen@karenknutson.com  By the way, I'm so excited that I have over 100 people reading my blog now!  If you want to get on the list, simply provide your email at the top right area of my blog. Happy Painting!

Day 7 of 30 Paintings in 30 Days!

"Shop till we Drop"          11" x 11" image          $145

This painting had lots of ups and downs.  But to tell you the truth, I almost get excited when this happens.  I know, you're thinking I'm crazy.  But when I struggle with a painting, usually that's when I have to use my imagination to solve the problem and then I make a breakthrough.  I started with a messy underpainting (as explained in Day 3), and tried some new colors. Micaceous Iron Oxide is the one that I had the most trouble with.  I love the color, mixed with iridescent sparkles, but I know that next time, it should be a finishing coat, not an underpainting.  Anyway, I had a real mess, and then thought that the only thing that would solve the problem was to make complicated paper collage.  This process is explained on a video by Anne Bagby.  I took a workshop from her last summer, and she's a fantastic instructor and really top notch artist!  I strongly recommend her videos! Thanks again, Leslie Saeta for this incredible challenge.  Be sure to check out all the other paintings.  There are really some incredible paintings.  I'm amazed!