back to school - one PAGE at a time . . .

Do you think about personal growth as an artist?  Do you think about how you will - as they say - take it up a notch or kick it up to the next level?  I went back to school - so to speak - got out a good old-fashioned note book.  I've never drawn a ballerina with an ink pen and then 'painted' it with pastels. . .okay so let's do that!  I need to work on capturing skin tones - so let's do that!  That was fun . . . now what about those cupcakes?  When are you going to paint one that looks good enough to eat?  Hey!  I'm working on it!!

page railsback

Speaking of yummy and delicious what a beautiful and inspiring work of art by Page.  I think her use of green inspired my use of green.  What beautiful color and textural qualities.  What about those fire red dots! Artistic genius.  Makes me want to paint!

ballerina lines . . .

One reason I like the ballet . . . the shoes.

stop! goutte! et peindre un degas!

work in progress

otherwise known as

'stop! drop! and paint a degas!'

8x8 acrylic on canvas panel

myra anderson

I like this initial block in.

ballerina blue . . .

ballerina blue

8x8 acrylic on canvas panel

myra anderson

This was actually a fun weekend where Harvey and I ate very good food - but I didn't cook the whole weekend!!  It was like being on vacation.  Harvey even found this new bakery and bought four LARGE cupcakes.  After all of that eating I thought that I had better get some exercise - so I painted this ballerina.  I think I lost 'point 1 millionth' of a pound.

parfois je pense a pommes de peinture en raison de la janettmarie . . .

otherwise known as

sometimes I think about painting apples because of janettmarie

8x8 acrylic on canvas panel

myra anderson

feel better Lisa G!

my first cupcake on a polka dot plate . . .

cupcake on a polka dot plate

8x8 acrylic on canvas panel

myra anderson

Oh how I envy those painters who can paint stuff on plates!

my first donut . . .

my first donut (wip)

8x8 acrylic on canvas panel

myra anderson

If you had told me this time last year that I would be attempting to paint pastries and writing silly poems I would have said 'get out of here!'   'really!'   'I mean it!'   'get out of here!'  And now a 'serious' poem . . .

Sometimes I'm just like apricots . . .
I'm always in a jam -
Sometimes they call me 'pork and beans'
'cause I'm a little ham -
I'm like the ten commandments . . .
I never tell a lie -
until the day you asked me
to taste your 'pickle' pie!
you said that it was berry
it was -
berry, berry bad!
you were going to feed it to others
which was berry berry sad!
When you came over to inspect
just how much I ate -
I 'tripped' and 'dropped' it on the floor -
and 'fell' on top of the plate -
OOPS!

a ballerina for helen . . .

a ballerina for Helen

charcoal on watercolor paper

myra anderson

Helen T. recently baked a whole bunch of delicious cupcakes.  I gained a pound just reading about them.  In between painting desserts I had better draw some ballerinas so that I don't gain too much weight.  Yeah - that's right . . . I think that's how that works.

my first fruit tart . . .

fruit tart

8x8 acrylic on canvas panel

myra anderson

ahhhh . . .
how wonderfully made . . .
your art of every hue and scent
to savor . . .
made to peacefully come together
in the sweet cream of life . . .
one day you will remove all barriers
that separate one from another . . .
and your art -
your beautiful, colorful art
will stand forever . . .

chocolate chip heart and a ballerina sketch . . .

chocolate chip heart

8x8 acrylic on canvas panel

myra anderson

my chocolate chip heart

you're the pickle in the tuna

of my salad dreams . . .

you're the red satin thread

running thru my purple seams . . .

you are the chocolate chip of my heart . . .

yes,

I'm beautiful . . .

I'm velvety . . .

I'm sweet . . .

but I'm nothing without your

ka-beat . . .

ka-beat . . .

ka-beat . . .

my chocolate chip heart . . .

you complete me . . . 

ballerina practice sketch

'my' candy corn cupcake . . .

my original sketch

myra paint me a cupcake!

on a more serious note . . .

a cupcake paintin' practice

8x8 oil on canvas panel

myra anderson

This painting shows that somewhere within me I AM capable of a looser brushstroke.

sometimes even I know when I have gone too far . . .

cupcake love #2

8x8 acrylic on canvas panel

myra anderson

What in the name of sanity is going on here?  Myra quit playin' and get back to work!

cupcake love #2

when you run to the fridge

'cause it's calling your name . . .

when your answer is 'cupcake'

when you play every game . . .

you named your kid "Butterscotch"

and people think you're insane . . .

you're not -

you have cupcake love
ps c'mon bonnie and paint a cupcake!

today - 'cupcake love' . . . next - 'an elegant cupcake' . . .

'cupcake love'

8x8 acrylic on canvas panel

myra anderson

Sometimes I wish that I could go back and once again paint with the 'freeness?' 'fearlessness?' that you see in children's artwork.  These lovely ladies are from Janettmarie's art class 'Cookies and Canvas'.  What a fun name.  I wish I could be in this class.  Anyway, I found their wonderful artwork inspiring so finally I did decide to revisit some of my artwork as a child.  Here I added my figurative artwork to this cupcake painting.  I was seventeen when I drew this one.   I wish I could have painted a more elegant cupcake here but I am looking forward to painting this composition and theme again.

For my next cupcake painting I was asked to paint an 'elegant' cupcake.  I think that I have finally achieved that.  Will post soon.

cupcake love

when you can't concentrate . . .

and you can't sleep at night . . .

and with just the name whispered

you are filled with delight . . .

when you find yourself buying

extra toppings and whipped cremes . . .

you call that 'cupcake love'

ps c'mon Bonnie - paint a cupcake!

i been to taffy town - not to be confused with daffy town . . .

i been to taffy town

8x8 acrylic on canvas panel

myra anderson

Believe it or not - it was not easy for me to get this far.  Oh how I admire those dessert artists who have rich creamy chocolate at the end of their brush.  My first two attempts for a more decent cupcake painting were a disaster.  With the first painting I thought to myself  'why am I even painting?'  With the second painting I asked myself  'will I be defeated by a $2.50 cupcake?'  'Nay!' I said. 'Nay!'  (That's how I really talk.)  So I mustered up all of my "paintin' a cupcake power" and finally this came out!  And now I am tired . . . and now I must rest . . . but first . . .

i been to taffy town

loaded with sugar -

heavy with spice -

sprinkled with cinnamon -

once, maybe twice -

filled with chocolate -

baked in a cup -

before I hit the road to taffy town

a red shoe day . . .

a red shoe day

8x8 acrylic on canvas panel

myra anderson

if just for today you have what you want . . .
(be happy)
if just for today you have what you need . . .
(be happy)
let tomorrow take care of itself is the key . . .
indeed -
to a red shoe day . . .

OOPs!  Sorry!  I can't find the name of the impressionist artist who inspired this painting of a red shoe day.  I will have to post it when I can locate it again.  It was - I think - a friend of Degas? Was it Lebasque?  That's why I may have had 'poem flow interruption'.  Excuses, excuses. (I have to say that on this painting I really liked my paint slappin' ways) uh - I mean brushwork . . .

a new jar . . .

A NEW JAR

8x8 acrylic experiment on canvas panel

myra anderson

It's amazing! I redid 'my very first cupcake' in oil.  I wanted to paint it in a more impressionist way.  I LOVE IT!  It's way more cupcakey.  I also have several unsuccessful oil canvases that I need to paint over.  I really wasn't in the mood to deal with them.  It's funny that so far cupcakes put me in the mood to -- cut out some coupons, go to the store, buy some turpentine, buy some oil paint, buy some brushes, cover the terrible canvases and repaint.  I will post this 'little wonder' when dry. 

THE PAINTING ABOVE is another series I was working on entitled 'a new jar'.  As you can see, I actually found a little texture at the end of my brush.  Rather than 'ruin' this one I decided that I am going to repaint this composition - but this time put lettering on the jar because I am positive it would look better.

a new jar

look at you-

with your new red hat -

and your shiny new clothes-

yes your cute little dress of red and gold!

do me a favor-

stay fresh-

be sweet-

and don't grow up too soon!

okay, maybe cezanne shouldn't have a cupcake . . .

'okay, maybe cezanne shouldn't have a cupcake'

8x8 acrylic on canvas panel

by myra anderson

Moving on . . .

'cupcake cezanne' WIP - step 1 and 2

'cupcake cezanne' otherwise known as

'si bonnie avait un petit gateau' otherwise known as

'if bonnie had a cupcake'

8x8 acrylic on canvas panel

by myra anderson

Here is step 1 and step 2 of my painting 'cupcake cezanne'.  At last!  This cupcake looks a little more realistic! (Those are chocolate chips by the way.)  There is a book entitled '500 Cupcakes'.  I think the artist Bonnie should buy this book.  She should bake each cupcake in this book.  She should send me a sample of each of these cupcakes.  I will then paint these cupcakes.  I will then eat these cupcakes. . . 

the second cupcake that I have ever painted . . .

serait ce bon gout avec le cafe de la janettmarie #2?

otherwise know as

would this taste good with the coffee of janettmarie #2?

Until she begs me to stop harassing her, I am having fun with this series of  'janettmarie cupcake' paintings.  As you can see, I am by no means the master of cupcake art.   Once, I went to lunch with my sister and someone asked 'why she still looked elegant'  while I had food on the floor, in my nostrils, on my clothes and in my hair.  'You ate while she dined', my other sister said.  Debbie Miller certainly represents 'fine dining' in cupcake art.

fine dining of debbie miller

fine dining of janettmarie

and now, from the files of 'one cup of coffee too many'

what is brown

if I am not brown? . . .

what is cream

if I am not cream? . . .

what is cup

if I am not in a cup? . . .

what is coffee?

I is coffee!
(the name of this poem is
'full of myself'
by coffee)

my pink chair modigliani . . .

I know that this has got to stop but here is another painting that I just stopped working on.  You've seen 'my blue chair' series right?  I am also painting 'my pink chair'.  Well,   right in middle of trying to work out  this  idea, I got what I thought would be a better idea.  A different girl?  A different green?  A different pillow on the chair?  We shall see . . . and now a poem that may not be here tomorrow . . .

ahhhh . . .

my cup of coffee

like a work of art . . .

if turps be thine sugar . . .

if oil be thine cream -
did I not go to the doctor

and thus did he say

that I could drink you everyday?

oh coffee . . .

oh art . . .

because you move me!

my very first cupcake WIP . . .

'serait ce bon gout avec le cafe de la janettmarie?'

otherwise known as

'would this taste good with the coffee of janettmarie?'

8x8 acrylic on canvas panel

by myra anderson

I was overly cautious with this one - I could have done more.  As usual this painting looks so much nicer in person.  I'm working on a second cupcake and this time I'll pay more attention to details.

janettmarie and 'venez et etre petite ma rose' . . .

'venez et etre petite ma rose' otherwise known as

'come and be petite my rose'

sketch for painting by myra anderson

I was mentioning to my 'good for the heart art buddy' janettmarie that I was going to try something a little different for the next few paintings.  My last ballerina looked a little too stiff - so I drew this one on regular notebook paper and will transfer it to the canvas to see if I can turn this more loose sketch into a more loose painting.  (I usually draw directly on the canvas.)  I just 'scratched around with a pen' until I drew a basic image that I liked.  I have another ballerina painting for comparison . . .so we will see.

I have to say that JM's current series of coffee cups has been the inspiration behind my 'coffee ladies'.  I started a new canvas today -inspired by this beautiful floral cup!  And now . . . a poem . . .

ahhhh . . .
coffee in a floral cup . . .
janettmarie says it's the stuff . . .
it will make you feel awake-y . . .
don't drink too much -
you might feel shaky . . .
then you can go on your way . . .
painting - and doing good to others
throughout the day . . .
thank you janettmarie for your wonderful advice!

une rose tasse de cafe . . .

'une rose tasse de cafe'

otherwise known as

'a pink cup of coffee'

8x8 acrylic on canvas panel

myra anderson

in the morn' when i get up . . .
i pour my coffee in a rose colored cup . . .
i'm a little sleepy when i begin to drink . . .
but when i'm done i'm feeling in the . . .
in the . . .
uh - what rhymes with drink?

another cup of coffee so i can think!
(This poem is dedicated to two beautiful roses Helen and Hilda)

coffee in the garden on a blue hat day #3 . . .

'coffee in the garden on a blue hat day' otherwise known as

'hey, who let the cow out of the barn?' otherwise known as

 'coffee and "creamer"'

8x8 acrylic on canvas panel

by myra anderson

Well, this is the last one of these for a while.  I could have done more on this one - but I didn't feel like it.  Whoever thought that I would try to paint a cow - small as it is!  It exhausted me!  I can't go on on this one.  However . . .I did want to dedicate this painting to that fabulous artist Bonnie!

'my' modigliani

Into Modigliani

8x8 acrylic on canvas panel

myra anderson

Here I am again - trying to work on my 'at the museum' series.  Lately I think that I would define my paintings as 'that splash of color' on the wall.

coffee in the garden on a blue hat day #2

coffee in the garden

on a blue hat day

(otherwise known as

'the horse is in the barn')

by myra anderson

This is 8x8 acrylic on canvas panel.

coffee in the garden on a blue hat day . . .

you invited me for coffee . . .
you said you'd pour me a cup . . .
if I wore my blue hat
and bothered to show up . . .
I came at four in the morning
and you began to shout . . .
take this whole POT of coffee -
drink it and GET OUT!

coffee, blue chair, 'my' modigliana and JM's coffee chair . . .

sorry about removing that painting - the fact that it looks so much better in person was driving me nuts!  must fix this situation!  but here's the 'poem' . . .

ahhhh coffee . . .

the elixir of life . . .

some drink it because it makes them feel stronger . . .

some drink it to stay awake longer . . .

me?

I drink it because with ten teaspoons of sugar -

it's hot AND sweet!

Also:  this is an actual coffee chair.  When JM finds out where to buy it - she will buy one for me.

at the 'degas museum' . . .

Into Degas

8x8 acrylic on canvas panel

myra anderson

It was a wonderful day of color at the 'degas museum' (of my mind).

van goghing on a red shoe day. . .

van goghing on a red shoe day

8x8 acrylic on canvas panel

myra anderson

the warmth of the sun . . .
the van gogh hills . . .
the rich reward of work that fulfills . . .
makes for a red shoe day . . .

'my' modigliani . . . and a blue chair . . . dedicated to JM . . . and to all coffee drinkers . . .

'my' Modigliani

9x12 acrylic on canvas panel

myra anderson

oh my coffee . . .

a dream in a cup . . .

for you I will gladly wake up

and leave on time . . .

to go make a 'dime' -

'cause you ain't cheap!

Today I'm Daily Paintworks companions of these wonderful artists!

this is a blue chair day . . .

This is 6x6 acrylic on canvas panel.

renoir and a red shoe day . . .

It was a Renoir day . . .
an impressionist day . . .
where colors meet in a playful way . . .
indeed it was a red shoe day . . .

ALSO This is my first time painting this little Renoir in acrylic.  I have painted her much better in oil so fortunately for me I will have to try to paint her in acrylic again.

dancing into red . . .

dancing into red

8x8 acrylic practice sketch

myra anderson

If you know me - then you know that it was just a matter of time before you read the name 'Degas' or saw a ballerina.  In this 8x8 acrylic painting I put on my red hor'dourves so that I could practice my aperitifs - yeah - I think that's right.  I've still got it after all these years . . .

'my' modigliana #2

So, as I was sitting in my blue chair looking at the paintings of Modigliani I thought 'wouldn't it be interesting to see her in an aqua t-shirt and polka dot skirt drinking a cup of coffee?' Huh?   This is 6x12 acrylic on canvas panel.

'my' modigliani . . .

Sitting in my favorite blue chair looking at 'my' Modigliani.  9x12 acrylic on canvas panel.  To be sure - I am drawn to all artists - and in this instance I am drawn to Modigliani.  This is my weird little pencil sketch where I imitated his elongated features.  Don't worry about form.  Don't worry that one eye is bigger than the other . . . just have fun!

a red shoe day #3 . . .

lavender days
of ultramarine blue . . .
lilac days
of green . . .
hopefilled days
of purple hue . . .
indeed -
are red shoe days . . .

a red shoe day #2 . . .

Gauguin and a red shoe day

8x8 acrylic on canvas board

myra anderson

at last . . .
it was a quiet day . . .
a day of painterly Gauguin scenes . . .
of cotton candy clouds and cerulean blue dreams . . .
indeed it was a red shoe day . . .

a red shoe day #1 . . .

'a red shoe day'

8x8 acrylic on canvas panel

by myra anderson

it was a day of warm sun -
a reflective day . . .
a 'do your work first'
and 'then we play' day . . .
a drink your coffee
and comb your hair day . . .
indeed it was a red shoe day.

myra and matisse . . .

'goin' all matisse up in here'

by myra anderson

Sitting in my favorite chair and looking at my Matisse.  This is 8x8 acrylic on canvas panel.  The bowl in the forefront is actually a floral bowl.  I was thinking of turning it into a cup of coffee.  Adding a cup of coffee to my favorite impressionists works . . . how myra of me.