Living your life with gratitude

I just returned from a trip to Austin, TX, where Creative Catalyst (now called Streamline Production Inc) filmed 2 videos of my painting process. The painting above, “Enduring Love”, is one of the videos.  It’s a story about a couple with the orbits of love coming their way.  And even tho there might be some hard times mixed in with the good, they lived their life with gratitude. I’ve heard several stories lately about friends who are grateful, even in tough times. It truly is a good practice. Finding the good in situations brings more goodness into your life, and makes us healthier and happier.
Check out my website soon (www.karenknutson.com) to get in on the early bird discount for my videos. The first one is a charcoal pour process.  You will love it!

Being Prepared- the secret to success!

"Stepping into the Light",    Image 15" x 22"
acrylic on paper.    $1200 framed

I'm the last one to preach about being organized and prepared, but as I continue my journey as a professional artist, I find that my most successful times always are when I'm prepared.  Today, I printed out a calendar of the upcoming months and marked the deadlines of upcoming shows, because I missed a couple of important show that I had wanted to enter!  UGH!!!  So, I keep trying to be more organized.
Today, Dick and I went down to Carney's, an Irish Pub in downtown Venice to properly celebrate St. Patrick's Day.  I told him that I thought we should be early so that we could get a good table and listen to Irish music while having a Reuben and a green margarita.  Good plan, right? Well.....there was a car show in the main parking lot, so we had to park many blocks away.  Then we arrived at 11:10, and they said to eat inside, we would need to pay a $10 per person cover charge.  I thought, no problem, it's worth it.  Got sat down and asked the waiter when the music would start and it was at 2:00!  So, we enjoyed our lunch, without live music, like I'd hoped, and then left knowing we had just paid an extra $20 for nothing!  So, going forward, we will call ahead and find out all the details!  On a good note, we now have 2 plastic green top hats and some green beads for our grandkids to play with.  :)
The painting above was well thought out.  I did 2 different value sketches and worked out the problems on those.  Below is the one that I decided to go with.  These types of paintings develop stories as they go along.  This one is about the challenges in life.  If you are having one of those challenges, get help, but most importantly, do it for YOURSELF.  Until you realize that you matter, no amount of friends or family will make the difference.  You matter and you are loved!

Always Be Yourself!

"Yacht Club"
original acrylic on paper
Image:  14 x 21"

Do you catch yourself saying something negative about your artwork over and over?  The same statement?  I used to say that I didn't like making so many itty bitty shapes.  Virginia Cobb straightened me out in a workshop when I told her that.  She asked me if I liked making little tiny shapes, and I said that I must, because they keep showing up.  She said to honor that unique quality of my work and then just unify them with a glaze to make fewer "grouped" shapes when I was done. I LOVE that advice.  So, now when I teach a workshop, I tell everyone that the very thing that they think might be their worst thing about their artwork, actually is the very thing that they should keep!  We all need to be ourselves!
This painting, "Yacht Club" is part of a local show called Bonnie and Friends.  Bonnie Featherstone asked about 30 artists, from the Minneapolis/St. Paul area, to bring 2 paintings each.  It's at the Ames Center in Burnsville, MN for the month of December, if you get the chance to see it.  I'm so honored to be a part of such a grand show.  You won't believe all the different styles.  I was talking with one of the artists and he said that he wishes he could be a little looser.  His paintings are so good, that they are almost photographic!  I told him my story about excelling at what you consider your worst feature.  He agreed with me, and we both appreciate our differences.
By the way, one of my favorite painters is Gustav Klimt.  Check out how many tiny shapes he has in his paintings!!!! www.klimt.com But they are beautifully combined into big shapes and so well designed.

Landscape Wire drawing

So, my latest craze is wire drawings. I love drawing birds or other animals, and now have added abstracts to the list. One thing that has been hard for me till now, is drawing landscapes using my wire drawing skills. I'm encouraged by this outcome. I'm hoping to do an acrylic Gustav Klimt beginning and bring this landscape study to life. Wish me luck!

Upcoming Workshops in Florida!

I'm excited to announce that I will be teaching in Cape Coral, FL on January 12- 14th, 2017.  This is the second time that I've taught in this location.  I love escaping the MN winters, so timing is everything!  Charcoal pour birds is one of the subjects.  This procedure is so fun.  We actually pour a big bucket of water on a watercolor surface that is sprinkled with charcoal powder.  The effect is so fun!  Also, I will be teaching how to paint like Gustav Klimt.  That technique involves scraping dots of acrylic, using a credit card.  The colors are so beautiful!  These two techniques are my most popular workshops.  Both paintings below started using the acrylic scraping technique!  Students send me paintings for months after each workshop.  Pretty fun! For information on the workshop, please contact  Marjorie Ewell   Phone:  239-945-3158   Email:  strgazr39@comcast.net

Workshop at The Villages, FL

Students with their paintings
The Villages "Paint like Gustav Klimt" workshop
 

What a wonderful week I had teaching in The Villages! The workshop students were so understanding about my recovering from pneumonia, and instead of me coming around to help them, we had them come up to my desk instead, so I could remain sitting.  It worked like a charm!  This class was such a joy for me to teach.  Positive attitudes and wonderful discoveries during the week.  They were so excited to learn the scraping with a credit card technique, and they even conned me into teaching them "wire drawings".  Loved my time there with these beautiful ladies, and Beverly Hennessey as our host.  She really knows how to make everyone comfortable.

"The Diva"

"The Diva",  Acrylic on paper, 14" x 20" image
Price:  $850



I painted this artwork yesterday, starting at 8:00 a.m. and finishing at 5:00 p.m.  I had to meet a deadline for the Northwest Watercolor Society.  I entered with one hour to spare!  Several times, I almost quit in the midst of this painting, but my granddaughter, said, "No, grandma, you can do it!", so I continued.  Constantly, I tell students that very thing.  If we just keep going past the "ugly teenage" stage, lots of times, these can be your best paintings.  I really listened to the painting as I worked.  For instance, the blue streak coming from the left side was in the underpainting, and I liked how it connected the background to her dress, so I left it in.  Also the abstract shapes behind her head were formed in the first layer also, so when I negative painted around them, the shapes were very interesting. 
This painting started with squirting several colors on prepared paper, and then scraping it with a credit card.  It's a great way to get exciting colors in the underpainting.  I'm teaching in The Villages, FL from January 25 - 29th, and this is one of the subjects, "Painting like Gustav Klimt".  It's really a fun technique!  If interested in coming, contact Beverly Hennessy at www.thevillagesartworkshops.com
bbaug97@aol.com  352-572-5317

Painting like Gustav Klimt

"Tribute to Gustav Klimt-2"  Acrylic on paper, $295, 11" x 14"

Gustav Klimt has been one of my favorite artists for many years.  I just completed teaching a 3 day workshop in my home studio.  There were 12 eager students who really did fantastic jobs with their paintings, which are pictured below.  We start these paintings by dropping acrylic paint on the surface and then spreading it with a credit card.  They liked that part the best!  This abstract beginning is perfect for us to use as an underpainting for the busy patterns in the outfits. I love teaching in my home studio, because I'm able to give lots more individual attention than in other workshops.  We all get to be such good friends by the end of the 3 days!

 

"Promise Granted", Acrylic painting with metallic accents

"Promise Granted"  Original Acrylic and metallic,  11" x 14"  $245

I'm preparing for my home studio workshop, "Painting Like Gustav Klimt", that starts next Tuesday.  One of the days, we will work abstractly.  This painting has gold foil paper on it, (much easier than gold leaf!) and metallic paint added for details.  I even did a little of my "wire drawing" on it. I'm so excited to share lots of fun techniques with the students!  It's a full class with a waiting list.  I did have a value plan when I started this painting, but it took on a life of it's own, halfway through. (See below)  In fact, I was ready to pitch it and start over at one point.  But I persevered and am very pleased with the outcome.  The title comes from the image of the round red shape that comes from a higher place.  I was thinking of my friend, Kathie George, who is battling cancer right now.  My prayers are with her.  If you get the chance, be sure to sign up for her blog.  She's such a great artist and a fantastic teacher!

Day 6 of 30 Paintings in 30 Days!

"Love- Homage to Klimt"         11" x 11"         $395  SOLD

 

 

I started this using the wild underpainting, as explained in Day 3's blog.  This is acrylic on Strathmore Aquarius paper.  I got in a hurry and started putting in my dark values to form the figures.  Then I remembered that I had promised myself to do a value study this time, because I'm almost always more successful when I have a "road map".  I like to use only 2 values, and then put my darkest darks later on within the midtone area, and let the painting tell me where to put those darks.  When I paint with acrylic, I never paint the color that I intend to end up with.  There are at least 4 layers to build up to that color.  You can see the steps pictured below.  Gustav Klimt is one of my favorite artists, and this is in homage to his famous painting, "The Kiss".  I used their position and then took off on my own.  Can you see the hidden word in the painting?  This one is my favorites of all that I've done so far.  Don't forget to write me an email if you want to be on my student email list. Karen@karenknutson.com  I have 3 workshops in my home studio each summer, and they fill up within the same day that I advertise them by email.