Painting Portfolio

 One of my New Year's Resolutions for 2024 was to grow my skill in painting with acrylic paint.  I enjoyed painting so much!  Here is my portfolio of acrylic paintings:

I painted these two from a blank canvas, with no tutorial or idea and I loved both of them.

First painting of 2024 and possibly my favorite.

This one was not easy for me, but I 'm still amazed a flat piece of canvas can be painted to make your brain see a 3D coffee cup.

I don't love the feathers on this, but I am very proud of how the eye turned out.

I don't like that I kept adjusting the tail and it ended up going off the canvas.  I do like the depth of colors and that I was able to play with texture on the fish.

This one was fun.  I love the "reflection" in the next two.

Too realistic - I would've liked a cuter flamingo!

In my flower era.

I saved this one for last because it's my favorite!

Let me know your favorite in the comments below!

https://amzn.to/42DFc82

Watercolor Painting

I do not consider myself an artist and I haven't painted with watercolors since elementary school, but for some reason, the idea kept coming to mind lately.  So I picked up a set of kids watercolors, some brushes and a pack of watercolor paper.  Then I turned on Runaway Bride to play in the background and made an attempt. 

 

 

 

In case you forgot how good it is:

 

One thing I learned from research is that you're supposed to paint the entire page with water before painting. 

 

I tried painting around a star, keeping underneath the star white, as a graphic element in the painting, but found I didn't actually like that look.

 

 

 

 

It was really fun to mix colors and try to add as many layers of color as possible to create an abstract, layered, completely unique piece of art.  I experimented with drops of paint or drops of water, to create organic shapes. 

 

 

I've seen art that adds just a touch of gold, so I tried that here.  I didn't have any "gold leaf" on hand, so I used a gold marker.  I like the addition of gold, but I think I'd rather have gold leaf.

 

 

 

I think it's fun and beneficial to let yourself experiment with a new medium occasionally - have you tried anything new lately?