New paintings & Salon Show October 2nd and 3rd

"Rose Essence" 30x10 gilding, metal on board

"Green Flash" 30x10, gilding, metal on board

"Copper Angel" Diptych, gilding & mixed media on board

The three paintings above will be at my critique group's Salon Show, October 2nd from noon to 8 PM and October 3rd noon to 5 PM. The address is 6905 SW Ventura Dr. in Tigard OR. Here's the mapquest link: http://www.mapquest.com/maps?city=Tigard&state=OR&address=6905+SW+Ventura+Dr&zipcode=97223-9166&country=US&latitude=45.447775&longitude=-122.747073&geocode=ADDRESS

The show is also a benefit for the Mt. Hood Kiwanis Camp with a portion of each sale going to the camp. The six members of the critique group each started a 20x20 canvas in the spring. So we each had our turn and the finished work will be part of a silent auction with all proceeds going to the camp. We also will have a display of photos of each step along the way. It was a very challenging and fun experiment.

New paintings

I'm off in a new direction recently and lots more I want to explore. I'm working on Ampersand boards which are two inches deep. I'm applying more gilding of various kinds because it's time to break the rules. I'm also applying copper, brass and aluminum sheet metal. I glue and nail the metals to the board. The nails match the metal. Then I rub on various kinds of metal patinas. The metals can also be painted over. Once I've created the right finish I spray the gilding or metals with an acrylic fixative. The metal will not degrade or change.

I'm starting small. The first two above are 16x20 and the third one is 12x12.

New paintings & Paris

Here are four new paintings. I took the photographs rather than taking them to the photographer who is 45 minutes to an hour away and requires two round trips. I can always take them later if I change my mind.

My critique group is having several shows this year and I'll post more about this closer to the first one which takes place in May. So I'm busy thinking about what I want to paint or have available for each show.

"Breaking Through" 30x30 Acrylic on canvas
"Out of the Mist" 24x24 Acrylic on canvas
"Clearing" 24x24 Acrylic/gilding on canvas
"Signature" 24x24 Acrylic on canvas

All images copyright of Jan Heigh.

The top painting "Break Through" has my usual bright colors and I think of it as sort of a spring like painting. The other three were experiments in starting paintings using more neutral or earth colors. I thought I should just make some changes and challenge myself to do something totally new and difficult for myself. What was I thinking? As you can see they all morphed into my usual bright colors with a tiny bit of neutral left. Lesson learned. Use the colors I love.

Now on to Paris. I've been looking at blogs written in or about Paris and have found some new ones. Once I find a blog I like I check out the blogs they recommend and nearly always find some new treasures. So try out some of these wonderful blogs.

Arm Chair Parisian.

A taste of garlic.

Paris Apartment for eye candy.

Little Brown Pen.

New paintings

Here are four new paintings. The first one (Gilded History) has some gilding near the top but it's very hard to photograph and the only real way to see it is in person.

The bottom painting "Muse I" is the first of three similar paintings. The first background is a very bright yellow and the top or darkest color is the background of the second painting "Muse II"-which looks very orange in the photo. The third painting's background "Muse III" (which looks more red in the photo) is the darkest color on the second painting. Still with me? The third painting ends in dark blue.

All four can be seen at Art on the Boulevard in Vancouver WA.

Gilded History

Muse III

Muse II

Muse I

New paintings

Here are five new paintings recently delivered to Art on the Boulevard in Vancouver WA.

They are all 16X16 inches and painted over either gold or copper gilding with acrylic paints. There just isn't anything like the glow one gets when painting over metal leaf. I started with the most transparent paints and toward the end, if needed, I used more opaque paints. These five pieces were in process for many weeks and then were on hold as I worked on a large commission. Sometimes a painting needs to be put aside for a week or two and then placed around the house in different places with different types of lighting. Once I've studied them for a time I can then proceed to the last steps and feel that it's a finished painting and no further study is needed.

I plan on doing more work on metal leaf now and am working toward a more simplified look. It remains to be seen if I can do simplified.