Stacy Weitz Minch

6x6", water mixable oil on gessoed board, 6/29/15

6x8", water mixable oil on canvas board, 6/24/15 Painted for the "Reflections" challenge at dailypaintworks.com.

10x8", water mixable oil on canvas board, 6/23/15 We were out for a walk on Sunday afternoon and there were all of these beautiful purple thistles in bloom along the side of the road. I know they're noxious weeds and all, but I just couldn't help but notice how beautiful they were, their spiky blooms contrasting against the bright blue of the summer sky (yes, they are that  tall!). My handy husband had a multitool pocket knife along (the eagle scout is always prepared), and we were able to saw a couple of them off so I could gaze at them a little longer. Rummaging through our cupboard for a vase when we got home, all I could find was this little old jam jar--and I think it fits. Nothing says summer like weeds in a jam jar ;)

When I showed up for drawing last night, the model had canceled. So one of the artists volunteered to sit for a portrait. He was so much fun to draw, and a nice diversion from the usual 20-something female nude :)

Quick sketch of my husband browsing a favorite magazine after dinner :) 6x6, pencil on paper.

6x6, water mixable oil on gessoed board, 6/12/15 These roses are so beautiful, I just can't resist painting them! This time I used the burnt umber ground again. I'm trying to decide what I like better--ground or no ground, but I guess I don't have to decide right now :)

6x6", water mixable oil on gessobord, 6/10/15 Lately I've been using a ground of burnt umber on most of my paintings--I like the way it adds dimension to the background and an overall unifying color. But for this painting, I wanted to be able to adequately express the delicate nature of this rose, so I painted on a naked board (which felt pretty strange after getting used to painting over a ground). I'm pretty happy with how it came out :)

6x6, water mixable oil on gessobord, 6/10/2015 I absolutely loved the shape of this rose when I looked at it sitting up on a high shelf in my painting corner.

The open figure drawing session I've been attending lately is at a small atelier nearby that teaches the classical methods of drawing and painting. The students I see there are very exact in their work and spend the full two hours mapping out a very simple line drawing of the subject, attempting at exact proportions. I've been quite interested in watching the way they draw--it's very calculated, mathematical--a form of drafting almost.  I decided last night to try to adopt some of their methods, just to try it out. One thing I've noticed them doing is drawing "sight-size." They line their paper up on the edge of their easel, move their head so the subject is directly behind the edge of the board, and mark the exact places they see certain body landmarks falling (I cropped the edge of my papers, but on the left side of my paper I made a small tic-mark to mark where proportions should fall. Then I lightly brought those lines over to guide where certain body

8x8", water mixable oil on canvas board, 6/8/2015 Well, I don't know why it's been so hard to find a spare hour or two to paint lately (it might have something to do with having had three siblings and two parents visit within the past 30ish days (and all at different times, whew!) ). But I did finally find (make) an hour tonight to get back to the easel, and it felt good. For some reason, the more I think (read: overthink) about painting, the less confident I feel about actually doing it. And the longer I wait between painting sessions, the harder it is to get started again. So let's hope the next little while will bring some consistency and routine (and also that we can figure out how to make the little ones fall asleep before the summer sun (not an easy task) so I can have a little quiet time back in the evening ).  All this aside, these nectarines were really beautiful, and there's something about shrouding them in glass that makes them all the pretti

On Tuesday, I showed up about 10 minutes late to figure drawing (we had been at a wedding reception and I took off early to make it to class). I quickly set up and started drawing the model. I had just gotten a basic outline down when the model unexpectedly took ill. We waited around for a while to see if she would get feeling better, but no such luck, poor gal. Life drawing problems ;)

6x6", water mixable oil on gessobord, 6/3/15 Since I've been a little strapped for time as far as painting goes lately, I've been doing a lot more reading in my free moments--mostly about painting and drawing technique. I have all these tidbits of wisdom floating around in my head, which I fully intend to implement as I paint... but I'm afraid it will take a lot of time and practice before those things become second nature--mostly trying to improve my values, drawing, and edges. Easier said than done :) What I love about these little subjects is that their colors are all so similar, in their range from red-orange, to orange, to yellow-orange... and yet each one has so much individual character :)

I've had a rather crazy month, full of family and visitors. It hasn't left much time for painting, but I have been trying to pull out the sketchbook each day for a little drawing practice. This is a sketch of my sister Jackie, and the great thing is that it really looks a lot like her--her expression, posture, and features. It might have taken about ten attempts before I got it right, but I'm coming to realize that no matter how effortless a work of art may seem, it certainly was not accomplished without effort and a large catalog of practice and/or failed attempts to back it up!