GINGER JELLY and SYLVESTER

Today I communicated with my female ancestors.

No, this is not some kind seance blog! I spent a happy few hours preparing a range of delicacies for winter enjoyment. Ginger Jelly, Crystalized Ginger and Ginger Sugar. Yum!

It was my paternal grandmother that taught me how to make jam. Before she married she worked in a grand house, like Downton Abbey. She was the equivalent of poor overworked and underpaid Daisy, a combination of scullery maid and under cook and for all the years I knew her she was a hard worker. She raised a family of 4 boys and 2 girls on a shoestring and she really was a pro at making something from nothing.

Whenever I'm in the kitchen making preserves, I feel as if my grandmother, is standing behind me, testing and tasting and giving gentle words of advice. Crystallized ginger really brings her close, because she kept a pot of the delicious and expensive treat in her private cupboard. This sounds strange, but when I was a child, a jar of ginger cost the equivalent of a days wages, so to her it was like a pot of gold.

Today I managed to make five jars of Ginger Jelly, 900g of crystalized Ginger and two jars of Ginger Sugar; when I calculate the cost, I saved about $30 and had a pleasant afternoon with Nana.

This to me is a perfect day.

Recipe for Crystallized Ginger

SYLVESTER

Image of street sign

SYLVESTER smile

SYLVESTER by Sea Dean 3.5" x 2.5" ACEO Framed as shown

Sylvester is an ACEO I created after a visit to Le Marais, Paris. In a museum there was a collection of old metal street signs which were rescued when the whole area was demolished due to disease. As it was a Jewish quarter, they used signs to advertise their business. This sign may have been for an animal doctor or a ratcatcher. I loved that smirk on his face and those round eyes so I'm thinking more likely it was a ratcatcher sign.

I chose to frame him to match his amber eyes and rusty fur and he is available in my Daily Paintworks gallery.

SYLVESTER
by Sea Dean
3.5 x 2.5" Canvas Card
Matted and Framed


VIew my online Gallery of large works and Limited Editions at ARTFINDER
View my online Gallery of small works at DAILY PAINTWORKS
Shop for Limited Edition ACEO and printed products here
Art Cards $5 and Art Postcards $3 here

BERT QUAIL NOW IN PRINT

BERT QUAIL is one of my most popular birdies. The original portrait is now perched somewhere in Australia,  but happily Bert is available in print. The prints make a great gifts.

OSWOA Art Postcard
Bert arrives printed on a sturdy recycled postcard with a matte finish and room for a note and address on the back. The postcard can be mailed to a special person as is. However, I have set it up so that you can pop it into a standard 4" x 6" photo frame to hang on your wall, or give as a very inexpensive gift (starting at $3). The postcard is easily trimmed, to remove the signature area and mount in a 4" x 4" frame. I like him either way, but of course I'm his Mum, so I'm biased. Order several for hostess, birthday and seasonal gifts. Everyone loves Bert Quail, even that hard to shop for Mr.

Purchase Postcards here


BERT QUAIL ACEO
Sea Dean paintings printed in ACEO collectable size 2.5 x 3.5 inches or 3.5 x 2.5 inches. All limited editions are numbered and include a signed Certificate of Authenticity.

Purchase ACEO here


BERT QUAIL DELUXE 2 TONE TOTE 
A top quality 100% Natural 12oz (407 g/m²) cotton tote printed with BERT QUAILs portrait. This tote is very roomy and perfect for the beach. It has a black bottom and straps to keep it looking smart.

Purchase Tote here


SIZES
ACEO - 2.5" x 3.5" (63mm x 88mm)
OSWOA Size Postcard - 4" x 6" (100mm x 152mm)
Deluxe 2 Tone Tote - 19" x 15" x 6" (48.3 x 38.1 x 15.2 cm)

Not yet available with Berts portrait
Magnet - 2" x 2.5" (49mm x 87mm) - Bert not available yet
Standard Postcard -  4.25" x 5.5" (139mm x 107mm) - Bert not available
Small Tote - 14" x 14" x 3" (35.6 x 35.6 x 7.6 cm) - special order
Deluxe Tote - 19" x 15" x 6" (48.3 x 38.1 x 15.2 cm) - special order


More prints to be revealed soon, but if you're in a hurry, hop along to my shop by clicking here and see the new spring designs.

SNOW MELT - 30 PAINTINGS IN 30 DAYS - Day 8 - You're welcome to vote and post

SNOW MELT by Sea Dean

SNOW MELT
By Sea Dean
5" x 7" Canvas Panel

View my online Gallery of originals please visit DAILY PAINTWORKS
Shop for Limited Edition ACEO here

Thick impasto paint imaged while wet so will darken slightly. Will photograph again tomorrow in the light.

I recently took a trip up a local ski mountain, took a sleigh ride and reveled in the beauty of fresh snow. Most of the day was lovely but about 2pm the weather started to close in and it started snowing. We took the ski bus back home and it started to snow in earnest. Seventeen inches later we had our own winter wonderland just outside the door. So I suppose it's inevitable in this challenge that I should keep returning to snowy landscapes.

I find most artists focus too much on the blue spectrum when painting snow scenes, but I've spent a lot of time experiencing it first hand and there is always some warm colour in a snow scene. Actually it's roughly half and half, but you have to search for it. I tell my students to stare at the subject until their eyeballs are about to pop out. The image I had to work from in this barely had any colour and I had to really search to find it. It wasn't until I finished that I realized I had pulled a lot of information from the trip I took up the mountain earlier in the week.

30 PAINTINGS IN 30 DAYS - Day 8

WELCOME

POSTING
As a special gift to fellow artists participating in the Leslie Saeta 30 paintings in 30 days Challenge. I am allowing artists to post their entries on my blog as well. I'm using the same type of system to make it easy. Add YOUR NAME ONLY (not the painting's name or your business name) and a link to your web presence. 

VOTING
Posting ends at midnight each day and voting begins. Voting is open on all the previous days blogs from January 1st until January 31st. Three votes for each person. Each day voting opens the when posting closes and continues till 31st January 2015. At close of voting the top three rise to the top and remain on my blog forever.

SHARING
All I ask in return is to spread the word and give your buddies a chance to win prizes too. If you blog, link to your entry on it. Share to Twitter, FB, Pinterest etc. with an easy hover and click. Click on the thumbnails to visit the artists and tell them how much you love their work.

Prizes given to the most active artists and voters that participate throughout the month. Posts, Votes, Comments, Shares etc.

An InLinkz Link-up

P.S. Remember to post your painting on the current day and vote on all the previous blogs from January 1st to 31st for the most chance at prizes. You have 3 votes each day and voting is open on all pages till January 31st. To vote click on the grey heart on each painting you like. If you're lost click on each of these links.

January 1st WHITE MOUNTAIN II - VOTE
January 2nd WHITE MOUNTAIN I - VOTE
January 3rd WHITE MOUNTAIN III - VOTE
January 4th NORTHERN BEAUTY - VOTE
January 5th CITY LIGHT - VOTE
January 6th HEART AND ROSES - VOTE
January 7th WOODLAND TRAIL - VOTE

Good Luck everyone.
Thank you for visiting my blog

Posted on Leslie Saeta # 4

SAFE HARBOUR - DAY FIVE

SAFE HARBOUR

by Sea Dean
6" x 6" Acid and Lignin free Canvas Card

To view my online Gallery of originals please visit Daily Paintworks
Shop for Limited Edition ACEO here
More from my fellow intrepid and brave artists attempting the 30 paintings in 30 days here

The moment I saw this beautiful photo by my internet friend Bob Jones, I knew I had to paint it. Trouble is when? My busy life means I was painting this at 3am this morning. 

I'm in luck, yesterday, I finally found my halogen painting light which had disappeared during the move and how happy I am. This means I can paint at night with ease because the light I was using before, a strong daylight, was making the colours too intense and throwing off my values. Ahhhh!

This is quite an unusual colour scheme for me, but in the spirit of the 30 day challenge I'm KISSing my paintings. Nothing sloppy here, it means KEEP IS SIMPLE SEA so I chose a limited palette using "pushed" versions of the colour in the photograph. The edge of the boat is a more intense bright red but I couldn't get it to photograph well. The main colours are Cerulean, Sap Green, Dioxazine Purple, Raw Sienna, Naphthol and Cadmium Red.

As you see, I made the angle of the boat slightly more upright and cropped it for compositional purposes.

Thanks Bob.

Bob Jones © 2014

Cat # 14135 Safe Harbour - POSTED ON THE 30 IN 30 BLOG AS # 31

CUTE FRENCH POSTCARD - BARGAIN BIDDING

LE FROMAGE
by Sea Dean
6" x 4" Original OSWOA Postcard

Regular $79, it is currently at the screaming hot auction start of only $9.

To view my Gallery please visit Daily Paintworks
Shop for Limited Edition ACEO here

This cute postcard sized painting would be lovely in a kitchen or conservatory. It can be framed with a regular photo frame to stand on a shelf or table or hang on the wall. The background admittedly looks a bit grey here, but it's a lovely creamy white impasto and the writing is sage. Other colours are Naples Yellow and Sienna. 

Sorry about the lateness of this blog, I actually fell asleep over my computer last night and didn't manage to blog until now.



Cat # 12106 Le Fromage

FAMOUS ARTIST BIRTHDAY, NORMAN ROCKWELL - ROCKWELL CAT, MINI MASTER SERIES

ROCKWELL CAT
PAINTING BY SEA DEAN
4" x 4" Mini Master on Canvas Panel
Homage to Famous Artists on their birthday

To view my Gallery or purchase this painting please visit Daily Paintworks. Larger originals or prints may be available by contacting me. 

My Mini Master series are Such a wonderful way to kick-start an art collection. They are on durable canvas panel with painted edges, so they can be displayed on a small easel, mounted on the wall with 3M poster tabs, or framed. They are every bit as beautiful as a larger version, but take up less space. 

You could add to the collection over time, on special occasions like Valentines, Easter, Graduation, Anniversaries, Birthdays, Thank you, Hostess gifts etc. My growing collection can be viewed on Pinterest.

There is also a sister series in the same size which you can mix and match. These are original Sea Dean paintings as opposed to paintings inspired by the Masters. In my Daily Paintworks Gallery you can search for 4x4, Mini Master, or Mini Masterpieces to find them all easily.

This was a tough homage for me because my painting style, paint and surface are completely different to Norman Rockwell, who was an illustrator rather than a fine artist. The most difficult part was finding something simple enough for a small canvas. I happened upon this detail from "Tom Sawyer - The Medicine" and just fell in love with this orange cat. Although his style is usually drawing on paper and colouring in afterwards, this painting is more akin to my painterly style. He cleverly added the cat for charm, but chose similar colours for the background so it didn't detract from the subject which is Tom Sawyer being given some medicine.  

NORMAN ROCKWELL

Norman Perceval Rockwell was born in New York, NY, USA February 3, 1894. He was an American painter and illustrator, with a broad popular appeal in the USA for their view of American culture. Norman was an early starter. He transferred from high school to the Chase Art School at the age of 14. He went on to the National Academy of Design and finally to the Art Students League, where, he was taught by Thomas Fogarty, George Bridgman, and Frank Vincent DuMond. 

Norman's breakthrough came in 1912 with a book illustration for Carl H. Claudy's Tell Me Why: Stories about Mother Nature. Then, at the age of nineteen, he became the art editor for Boys' Life, the magazine of the Boy Scouts of America (BSA), producing illustrations, calendars and covers for the publication. He is also famous for more than four decades of cover illustrations  for The Saturday Evening Post. 

His best-known works are the Willie Gillis series, Rosie the Riveter, The Problem We All Live With, Saying Grace and the Four Freedoms series. 

From Wikepedia

Norman Rockwell lived a long and highly productive life, which came to an end in Stockbridge, Massachusetts, on November 8, 1978, aged 84.


Cat # 14027 Rockwell Cat

DAY 8 - 30 PAINTINGS IN 30 DAYS - PRIMA BEACH ACEO - ALLA PRIMA

PRIMA BEACH ACEO
ORIGINAL ACEO BY SEA DEAN
2.5" x 3.5"
On auction at Daily Paintworks starting at just $11

To view my Gallery or purchase this painting please visit Daily Paintworks. Larger originals or prints may be available by contacting me. You may also view my available ACEO in my Facebook Gallery here.

VIOLET BEACH - Prism Violet

I found with the underpainted photos, I had to lighten them considerably to make them look good on the screen. In processing the intricacies are lost I have included the alla prima, shown next to the one with Australian Sienna under-painting because I used Australian Sienna as a contrast.

PEACH BEACH - Cadmium Red Light

MAGENTA BEACH -

I realized that when I did the series on under-painting earlier in the week, I was missing a painting with no under-painting. Prima Beach is ALLA PRIMA which I describe as using a white canvas with no under-painting. It can also mean painted all in one session without drying periods. 

 

Because the internet is so important to marketing Art, over the last couple of years I've conducted many experiments to find the best image of my work. Over time I've discovered that toned canvas and multi-layer acrylic paintings look fantastic in real life, but are very difficult to photograph without assuming a grey cast. 

I have tested different types of paint, varnish, under-painting etc. and it appears that Alla Prima keeps its glow under multiple lighting conditions. Importantly, I find a higher sales ratio with this approach. 

SERENE BEACH - Australian Sienna

I also prefer the flexibility of "wet on wet", not having to worry about allowing the toned canvas to show through and I can place counter colours exactly where needed. This is less of a challenge with large paintings but with miniature ACEO a single brush hair can make a big difference.

My personal favourite here is the Magenta under painting, but I like the two warm tones, Cadmium Red Light and Australian Sienna, almost as much. I see the place of Prism Violet under painting in creating a calming mood, but I prefer more pep.

You may enjoy several of my previous blogs on the subject of under painting.

PRIMA BEACH - Alla Prima

Cat 13219 Prima Beach
Posted as number 29 on Leslie Saeta 30 in 30

DAY 1 - 30 PAINTINGS IN 30 DAYS - SERENE BEACH ACEO

SERENE BEACH ACEO
ORIGINAL ACEO BY SEA DEAN
2.5" x 3.5"
On auction at Daily Paintworks starting at just $11

To view my Gallery or purchase this painting please visit Daily Paintworks. Larger originals or prints may be available by contacting me. You may also view ALL my available ACEO in my Facebook Gallery here.

30 IN 30 

Today is the beginning of the Leslie Saeta 30 Paintings in 30 days challenge and not only that, I'm in the process of setting up a new studio. It's been like one of those speeded up movies around here.

STEP 2 - Under Painting

I wanted to start of the challenge with a bang and get ahead of myself so I can relax. I already had some pre-cut ACEO which I had prepped as well as some 5" x 7" canvas panels and some 6" x 8" Strathmore Windpower sheets, so when I sat down to paint it took me a while to decide which to choose. I eventually opted for the ACEO because last month I mainly painted larger works.

I've suspected for some time that the difficulty in photographing a completed painting, could be caused by under-painting. I thought I would under-paint four ACEO canvases with four different colours and then use the same palette on the upper layers to test my theory. I was also curious how under-painting affects the mood of the finished piece.

Today is Australian Sienna. Follow the next few days to see different under-painting and the end result

 Under painting showing under texture

STEP 3 - Base Layer Sky on Australian Sienna base

STAGES

STEP 4 - Other Layer Sky

Step 1 - Preparing the painting surface and creating texture (not shown)
Step 2 - Under painting (Clockwise from top left)
- Matisse Magenta 
- Matisse Australian Sienna 
- Liquitex Cadmium Red Light 
- Liquitex Prism Violet
Step 3 - Base sky colour
Step 4 - Other sky colour
Step 5 - Base ocean colour
Step 6 - More ocean colour
Step 7 - Finish and Sign (Top)

STEP 5 - Base Layer Ocean

Step 8 - UV Protective Varnish (not shown) 
Step 9 - Photograph, Scan and Post

STEP 7 - Iridescent Highlights and Signing

 














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CAT 13212 Serene Beach ACEO 
Posted as number 16 on 30 in 30 Leslie Saeta

FLUFFY KITTY ACEO

SCAN OF PAINTING

FLUFFY KITTY

PHOTO OF PAINTING

ORIGINAL ACEO BY SEA DEAN
3.5" x 2.5"
On Auction at Daily Paintworks

To view my Gallery or purchase this painting please visit Daily Paintworks. Larger originals in the same series or prints may be available by contacting me. 

I couldn't resist this fluffy puss. I love cats. They have such individual personalities, likes and dislikes and they are great teachers. 

If things aren't quite right in their furry world or if their human companions are having a bad day, they really let you know what's important. Pretty soon they will find a way to get your full attention.

Some techniques are:-
1. Looking cute
2. Sitting on your work
3. Loud yowling
4. Knocking something onto the floor

...... I could go on all day. Needless to say they eventually get whatever is wrong fixed because otherwise it will dominate your day. 

This puss looks like something needs attention don't you think?


Cat 13193 Fluffy Kitty