Having Fun with Adobe Illustrator AI

 I was playing around with Adobe Illustrator, when I discovered the ability to create new vector art based on a sample style I could define.  So I asked the program to create a scary shark based on an old watercolor painting I did called "At the Beach."  The result is above.  It could be a great logo for a line of surfer apparel.  

In The Garden from watercolor to digital painting

 Years ago, I painted a little mini series of watercolor paintings, each about a place, and each 10 x 7 on Arches paper.  I then blew some of them up and printed them larger.  I liked this one, so I did an illustrator version continuing the "In The Garden" theme.  I thought I could turn it into some loud fabric design, but now realize I'll have to work a bit more to have the pattern repeat successfully.  

Mock Up for New 36 x 36 oil painting?

Repainting old oil paintings on the horizon for 2022.  One idea is for a series contrasting realism with abstract painting styles to explore the process of imagination.  

Getting Back into the Studio

Painting over more Charbonnel oil prints that didn't completely work with pastels and acrylic. 

More Monoprints - One Original and Two Doctored

Guess which is the original and which two have had Photoshop elements added.

December has 31 days: Here is image #9 of 31 to celebrate the end of 2018

Blur photo of paint samples at Home Depot in Seattle.  A little experiment in abstract photography.

A Trio of Digital Window Paintings

Top to Bottom:

Belize Water Sports and Marin Window merged:  Two separate Decembers, two separate years

Marin Window with GrutBrush Clouds & Rain

Marin Window (with Adobe KYLE brushes adding a variety of graffiti)

Bluebird of Happiness Mixed Media Artwork

I thought I'd create some interesting art with grandsons Wilson and Cole Taylor when they were visiting, but Wilson only drew a few items on this sheet of 24" w x 18" h watercolor paper.  The twins were too busy playing in the creek to do much art.  Now that I've finally finished the latest quilt (with eighty separate 2 1/2" x 2 1/2" photos appliqued into it) - more on that later, I thought I'd follow whatever quirky thing manifested itself and do some more work on paper.  I ended up with this mixed media piece which includes pencil, graphite, ink, watercolor, gouache, acrylic and various papers, including some old printed photos.  It represents a lifetime of seeking the Bluebird of Happiness.

Repainting Old Artworks

There is nothing quite so fun as doing something over.  Top to Bottom:
1.  Pink Flamingo with Yellow Roses:  This started out as 3 separate photos, one shot in the Galapagos, on in my garden and another who knows where (Berkeley Botanical Garden?).  These were composited and printed on the exceptional paper Kozo Dbl Layer and glued on a cradled board 8x10.  I just painted over it with gouache and acrylic.  I like it better now.
2.  In March 2011 I shot a brick pattern in Seattle that I later printed on fabric and glued onto a 8x10 board.    Finally got around to painting it with gouache, acrylic and enamel.
3.  I took a photo from the top of Mt. Tamalpais during a photography class in 2016 at dusk and printed it out on quality paper 13x19.  Kind of boring!  I just painted in a large crow landing with some other gouache highlights. 

A Few New Mixed Media Pieces: Paul Klee Inspired Abstract and More Realistic Butterfly Still Life

Taking Appealing Blurry Photos is Harder Than it Looks!

Anticipating a very stormy, blurry, weekend, I ventured into the backyard today, while the sun was out, to experiment with blurry photos using my Nikon digital camera and a 100mm macro lens.  More results are here:  https://www.facebook.com/lucyautreywilsonart/

Old Art and New Photos Come Together as One

Trying something different compositing art with photos both in camera and digitally in Photoshop. Top image was done in camera in multiple exposure mode - shooting the original art and a copy of the photo printed in the same size as the original painting, then edited in Lightroom and Photoshop. 2nd from top is a digital blending of the two bottom pieces with minimal editing in Photoshop.

Painting in the Sun

What happens when you paint on a hot, sunny day in an outdoors studio:
"Sun Flower Cross Section" 9x12 paper on 1 1/2" cradled board.  R&F oil sticks and oil paints.

Big Mouth

Two new oil, cold wax and graphite paintings each on 12x16 inch encausticbord (on 1" cradled wood panels) painted as a diptych (bottom) but presentable as two separate paintings - Big MouthA (top) and BigMouthB (middle).  Painted on a hot, sunny day in California in my outdoor studio as I channeled my love of the sun!

Although not yet completely dry, they are now up on my Saatchi Art gallery:  http://www.saatchiart.com/Lucy

Pink Beast

I was painting over a crummy earlier oil painting when this pink beast appeared!  Where he came from I do not know.  Under the beast are four bad portraits I did of fully, or partially, veiled Saudi Arabian women.  I'm intrigued why any woman would agree to cover up her entire body to the top of her head - especially when it feels so good to allow a breeze to softly blow your hair on a beautiful day.  Oil on canvas board 16x20

Repainted Back Garden 3

It was observed, correctly, that I tend to paint inside the box.  It's true - the mathematical side of my brain loves things to be neat and tidy.  I heard the artistic side of my brain crying out to be freed from the tyranny of my organized self and repainted this 24"x18" oil on canvas which used to look like this.  I like it better now.

Pink Candy

I painted this abstract before my most recent physical.  Because of my love for hard candy, I shouldn't be surprised that my cholesterol levels are back up in dangerous territory (243 mg/dl) and my glucose levels (99 mg/dl) are too high as well.  I guess I'll have to get my sugar fix in future looking at candy art rather than eating it.

Connecting The Dots

My latest oil painting is another abstract.  My friend Janet Ashford recently gave me some advice on how to take better photographs - which is to focus on any one of 4 intersecting points based on a grid composed of 2 vertical and 2 horizontal lines that break up the image into 9 equal squares.  So, my abstract painting is one of connecting these 4 intersecting points.  Meanwhile, I discovered some new software I want to buy from the creative folks at Alien Skin.  It's called Exposure 3.  But since all I'm doing is playing with art and not making much money at it I'm trying to control myself.  Instead of buying more software, I thought I'd see what my Alien Skin Eye Candy software could do with my new abstract painting and created a marbleized version and a version using lizard skin (both above).  I could play all day!!