Best Friends Reworked

"Best Friends"

9x11 Watercolor on Paper

     #13 of the 30 Day Challenge.  Sometimes fresh eyes make a difference in your finished piece.  I'm one of those people that must meet a deadline if there is one.  As a teacher, it drove me nuts if the kids were not in there chair and ready to go "as" the tardy bell rang.  Maybe I'm driven too much by the clock.  If something is supposed to start at a certain time, then it must start at that time.  I detest wasting time.  Well, last night in the 11:00 hour, I was trying to finish this painting, because it's supposed to be 30 paintings in 30 days, right?  And, I'd already spent two days on this one!  That's breaking the rules in my mind.  I consoled myself with the concept of "painting every day"...which I have been.  Still, it bothered me.  So, tired and ready to be done already, I called it good.  My husband awoke to see it, and he indicated that I'd made him with a "bird nose".  I saw immediately what he was talking about.  So, today I broke the rules again.  I reworked it, and added a Quin. Burnt Orange wash on the skin tones which I think gave it a nice sunny glow and more true to his skin color.  I tweaked a few other things and now I am calling it good.  I also recall a saying that I like:  "In art there are no rules".  I guess there are some, but you need to know which ones to break.  

Just a Man

"Just a Man"

Watercolor on Italia 140# paper

11"x14"

     This is Day 3 of the Leslie Saeta 30 Day Challenge.  I didn't have a lot of time and didn't have much of an urge to paint due to three other projects in different stages.  So, I began flipping through a magazine remembering the fun that I had in a dental office in Cozumel...painting the time away.  So, like in Cozumel, I chose a photo of a person that got my attention.  This time I chose a man.  I grabbed my watercolor block that I had previously thrown some color on and began to draw.  The painting was fun, using the same colors as I had used on the wash.  This time I chose Dr. Ph Martin's Hydrus liquid watercolors, and boy do the colors pop!  This photo does not do it justice.  The colors are so deep and rich.  As I was painting, I began to think of the fact that I was doing a portrait of "just a man".  It reminded me of "just the Man" that died for me.  The One that Redeemed me from the pit.  The One that gave me real life for now and eternity. His name is Jesus.   He was "just a man" to many and still is.  But to me, He is far more than "just a man".  I'm sure that if we all listen, God speaks to us in our own language.  For me, art is the language that he uses so many times.  I pray that you can hear His voice today, in the language that you understand.  Amen.