Modern Folk Art Painting ~ Maya on Canvas

Maya on canvas is the 5th in a series of modern folk art paintings I've done over the past 3 months. With each painting I learn a little more and I seem to be getting better and better at blending my acrylic paint.

"Maya"
Purchase Original & Prints

Maya was created in mixed media collage style using acrylic paint, decorative papers and rubber stamps. The orchids are individually hand cut from watercolor paper, folded sculpted and assembled into a 3 dimensional element. Orchid centers are embellished with a tiny faux pearl.

Artfest 2011 Part I

Artfest 2011 happened the week of April 6 - 10 this year out at Fort Worden in Port Townsend, WA. Imagine an old military base, 500 creative people and nothing but time to play with paint, clay, wood, wire, fibers and just about any other medium you can imagine. Ahhh! This is what I was meant for!

New Beginnings 5x7 Matted Print on Etsy

I spent Friday and Saturday learning to draw and paint pretty girl faces with Sunny Carvalho. If you aren't familiar with her work she does absolutely phenomenal eyes which is what originally drew me to her beautiful paintings.

Kell Belle Studio Original Drawing

I was amazed at how much my drawings could change with only a few minor changes to what I was already doing plus I learned a few other nifty tricks with the facial features that I will continue to incorporate into my work.

Kell Belle Studio Pretty Girl Original Drawing

Who would have thought that whimsical was only a matter of changing a few lines? Haha! I can't help but smile every time I look at this little girl. I want to thank Sunny for her generosity in sharing her knowledge with us at Artfest. She truly made my experience special not to mention fun, and informative.

Mixed Media Face Painting

I am finding mixed media face painting with acrylic can be challenging because of the short drying time. I spent the better part of a month perfecting my drawing techniques. It's important for me to keep in mind that my painting deserves no less attention. How else will I learn what will work best for me right? I am determined to overcome!

good blending, could go darker in places

In my second and third painting attempts I thought I was using my extender but realized later I was using glazing medium instead. I found I could actually lift the paint layers beneath just by overworking an area with glazing medium. While this may have its uses, I found it difficult to reclaim the area after that had happened.

colored pencil used to add detail

I've read that acrylic painting actually has something called an awkward stage at which many beginners give up. I must admit that I too have felt the urge to give up but have pushed through. I keep hearing that little inner voice as it nags at me again whispering for the 800th time, "don't give up!"

Painting the Face

My first attempt at painting the face was not as successful as I had hoped. Not only did I begin my collage underpainting upside down but I became so disenchanted with the painting process that I literally ripped the face from the page. I think I just gave up too soon. Was it fear? Perhaps.

I come from an oil painting background although it's been eons since I've used that medium. The reason I enjoyed oils was because they could be blended so nicely. Now I'm teaching myself how to use acrylic which dries so fast that I find blending is nearly impossible.

I tried painting the face again with more success. This time I used a retarder in the paint which allowed me to blend it the way I wanted to. After the paint dried (which took several hours), I covered the entire face with clear gesso. I then went back over some of the details with water pencil. This is a great first start and I'm very happy with it.