I just love when I have an ah-hah discovery about how to paint more beautifully, when I just know my newfound insight will have a profound effect on my art. I shared 3 of these top ah-hah insights in my new video at https://www.youtube.com/@rachelsstudiodotcom/videos
My newest discovery helped me paint "Wild Pony" below with a whole new approach to design, emphasizing local color instead of bold contrast to create an aesthetically pleasing painting.
I made a video about this ah-hah moment back in February at https://youtu.be/yBME7UTOPpk?si=nwmXTZVodb9JtErc and it has become my best performing video of all time on my YouTube channel. Another great ah-hah moment is featured at https://youtu.be/hLHvg03qDzU?si=BFY6CoiUxAXp9DpP where I discuss a discovery I made from artist James Gurney. He had an ah-hah moment observing a Rembrandt painting and it is BY FAR my favorite art insight of all time. I hope you will be as excited about these ideas as I was when I learned them!
I hope you all are having a great weekend! I'm working on taxes and enjoying the last week with Parker before he goes to camp full time, then school. Here he is jumping in a pool we borrowed all summer. It is SO hard to have a work/family balance when you work for yourself, but I have worked hard on making time for Parker, family, my health, and enjoying life more than in past summers. I honestly think when I am able to do this, my art improves SO MUCH. And it's because of you all that I'm able to!
In keeping with striking a healthier work/life balance, today we are visiting my mom and dad. Below is a picture of her in her studio with her newest piece that is of a bridge near one of the first properties my parents owned in Kentucky. My mother has been an amazing influence on me and without her I probably would not have realized that I could do art. Visit her website at gretchenevansparker.net
She gets her realistic colored pencil paintings in all kinds of prestigious competitions, including her latest big news, getting "Forged in Steel, Bonded in Blood" into the International Guild of Realism (see below)
She met the man (Ace) in the painting below in line at Walmart, and asked him if she could take pictures of him and his baby, and the references resulted in the piece below. Ace's tattoos symbolize his experiences as a police officer and his body work is based on Romans 13:4
Thank you again...
It is because of you all who follow and support me that I am able to rely on my art instead of going into a stressful 9-5 social work job and I appreciate you SO SO much. The combination of having fibromyalgia, being an older mom with a child who has more health needs than typical has made my art and the income I make from it LITERALLY a lifesaver. Thank you so much, and know when you support me through Patreon, buy art, or even just comment on, like, and share my social media posts, you are the reason this is all possible for me. You are supporting a living artist, and it means so much to me! It makes my wildest dreams come true and I have to pinch myself that I get to do this with my art.
Join my patreon.com/rachelsstudio if you would like to support me and/or learn from me more in depth! My "Wild Pony" watercolor is the newest addition to my library of over 180 tutorials you will gain instant access to depending on what tier you join. You can view the tutorials I have available in my visual index by visiting www.rachelsstudio.com/patreonindex
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