Art from the Land of Enchantment

Art Supplies

I enjoy shopping for art supplies almost as much as I love painting!  Well, maybe not quite.  Of all the brushes I have, this old worn one is one of my favorites.  It's an Isabey and at one time, I think it was a flat.  But I have worn it down to an angle and because it's also a bit stiff, it works better than some of my newer, smoother brushes.

I paint with Liquitex Heavy Body Acrylics and I use lots of blues in my paintings, especially the Pthalo blues (green and red shade).  Recently, I added a new color to my palette - Raw Sienna.  I love this color!  Very warm and earthy.

I used a glass palette for years, but living in a dry climate really makes my acrylic paints dry out even faster than normal.  I looked for a flat plastic covered container to store the palette in when I wasn't using it, but couldn't find one big enough.  I finally gave in and bought a 12x16 Masterson Sta-Wet palette, just to store my glass palette in.  However, the paints still dried out while I was painting, so I was constantly spraying water on them.  Finally, I decided to get the sponge and palette paper that goes with the Masterson Sta-Wet palette and it does work great.  It's a bit expensive, but I used my 40% off coupons from Michaels and that helped.  There are simple and cheaper ways to do this and there are several tutorials online that show you how.

Feel free to share you own favorite art supplies!

The Cider Barn - Acrylic Painting on Canvas

The Cider Barn

This is an acrylic painting of a barn on the Rio Grande Heritage Farm located inside the ABQ Biopark.  The farm is a 1930's era year-round working farm.  The barn is used for making apple cider and vinegar.  I spent a day at the Biopark taking pictures one day and this was a scene just waiting to be painted.

This is an original acrylic painting on gallery wrap canvas.  The edges are painted, so it can be displayed framed or unframed.  The painting will be delivered UPS ground service, varnished and ready to hang.  Shipping to the continental U.S. will be calculated in Paypal during checkout.  For all other destinations, please contact me for shipping information using the link above.

Click here to view larger image.

©2013 Gayle Faucette Wisbon, The Cider Barn, Original acrylic painting on canvas, 16 x 20 inches.

The Untapped Source Now Offers Matting, Framing and Canvas Prints

The Untapped Source has just recently added matting and framing options to their fine print services.  Fine art prints are available on four types of paper.  They are also available on canvas with five wrap options.  I've ordered a few prints on the Premium Luster Photo paper and they were beautiful!  Click here to visit my gallery of prints on The Untapped Source.

New Postcard for my Email Newsletter Subscribers

I just received new postcards of my painting, Desert Beauty.  When someone signs up for my email newsletter, they will receive one of these postcards, if requested.  My newsletter subscribers are the first to be notified about my new paintings.  They also receive a special price on canvas paintings that's good for thirty days.  Even if you are a current subscriber, feel free to contact me with your mailing address and I'll be happy to send you one, also.  You can contact me on this page.

Here's the link to my email newsletter sign up page.  You can see previous newsletters by clicking on "Read Past Issues" at the bottom of the sign up page.

Gayle Faucette Wisbon Fine Art Newsletter

Ceramic Tiles from Zazzle

I recently purchased a framed ceramic tile from Zazzle as a gift for a friend.  The tile is a reproduction of my painting Dancing Poppies.  It's really cute and I will definitely order more in the future.

I have seven images available as ceramic tiles in my Zazzle shop.  They come in two sizes - Small (4.25 x 4.25 inches) and Large (6 x 6 inches).  They can be ordered with or without frames or on a gift box.  The framed ones are available in a Cherry or Pecan finish.  I ordered the Cherry finish, but it really is much lighter, more like an oak color.  The gift boxes are available in Golden Oak, Ebony Black, Emerald Green and Red Mahogony.

The framed tile comes with a wooden peg so it can be displayed on a table top.  It can also be hung on a wall or used as a trivet.

Click here to visit my Zazzle shop where you can find posters, prints, greeting and note cards, post cards, postage, tiles, gift boxes and magnets.

Adobe I - Work in Progress - Another Step in the Process

Adobe I - work in progress

This painting has taken another turn and I'm just having fun with it.  All these memories of Belen come to mind and old sketches have been waiting years to become paintings.  I don't want it to get too O'Keeffe-ish, but there really was a buffalo skull in the home I lived in.  Let's see what happens next.

Adobe I - Work in Progress

Adobe I - work in progress

I decided to fade out some of the rectangular shapes of the adobe molds.  I'm hoping this will give the illusion of dust in the air, which is common in New Mexico.  I'm also hoping it will add to the emotion of the painting, which is what I wanted.  Now it's getting fun, thanks to my "muse".  You know who you are.

Adobe I - Work in Progress

Adobe I - work in progress

Here's the next step in my painting of Adobe I.  I really wanted this to be a more emotional painting, but the composition is very rigid.  This is probably due to the subject matter, but I do hope to loosen up with it as I progress.  I am trying to remember what it felt like to live there and walk by that adobe farm.  I remember dust and tumbleweeds and beautiful light and pulling my baby girl in her little red wagon.  I still appreciate these things now many years later, even though the baby girl is all grown up.  ♥

Adobe I - Underpainting

Adobe I underpainting

Here's the next step in my process of painting Adobe I.  I used a Burnt Sienna and Titanium White mixture to create the underpainting.  I'm not sure what will come next in the process.  Stay tuned.

Trying Something New

Adobe I sketch on canvas

The ideas are just flowing these days.  Not enough time in the day!  Recently, I shared my works in progress.  However, yesterday my son encouraged me to paint something abstract, just to help me loosen up and have fun.  I have seen so many wonderful abstract artists and get so inspired looking at their work.  Some of my favorites are:

Cody Hooper

Mark Yearwood

Filomena Booth

Sally Trace

Joyce Watkins King

Ruth Palmer

Babatola Oguntoyinbo

Poteet Victory

Phillip Vigil

There are others and I may add them to this list in the future.

So, today I got really inspired to paint a subject I've always wanted to paint in an abstract style.  When I first moved to New Mexico in 1986, I lived in the small town of Belen, south of Albuquerque.  I lived next door to an adobe farm, which I had never heard of.  They had big wooden frames where they poured the mud into to make the adobe bricks.  Then they would remove the frame to let the bricks dry in the sun.  I liked seeing the rows of drying bricks.  I have sketches I made of the bricks and the frames from 1987.

Today, I decided to add to my works in progress, two more paintings.  They will be Adobe I and Adobe II, based on my sketches.  This one will be Adobe I and this is the basic sketch on a 20" x 16" canvas.  I'll be posting progress pictures here on my blog as I work on it.  I don't plan to change my style of painting, but I think this will be fun and will allow me to be more creative and have some fun with just colors and shapes.  I would like these paintings to be less representational and more emotional, recapturing that time when I was first experiencing New Mexico.