Blog Archives - Robyn Sand Anderson Art

Painting-A-Day: February 27, 2014

2/27/2014

Acrylic on Archival Gessobord with 3/4" Birch Sides, 12x12", Ready to hang!

Today I used Fiber Paste again, but covered most of the 12x12" gessobord. I love the way the uneven, textured surface grabs the paint, but leaves the actual surface of the painting untouched. Ash Wednesday is coming up next week. I can't say that it is a day I look forward to. It is painful to be reminded of our mortality. Ashes to ashes. Dust to dust. We try really hard not to think about that fact. Sometimes we don't get the choice...we have to think about it. I am going to use this thought to remind myself of all that I do have, of the richness of life and relationships. I'm thankful for so many things! I am going to dwell on that for a little bit here.

If interested in purchasing, hit the Painting-A-Day Purchase tab and then hit the Etsy widget.
It will take you right where you need to be to purchase the painting of your choice. Thanks!
$100 for this original painting, ready-to-hang, plus $15 shipping and handling.

Painting-A-Day: February 26, 2014

2/26/2014

Acrylic on Archival Gessobord with 3/4" Birch Sides, 12x12", Ready to hang!

Running late today! Not sure if I am finished with this one yet...we'll see. You wouldn't believe how many times I tried to get a good picture of this one, but there was too much light in here, so I kept getting some reflection off of the paint from a gloss medium mix with the paint. Some days are better than others for photographing artwork. Cloudy days are better for this kind of thing! Ah, well. Hard to complain about sun, right? So I shan't. I pushed myself to use some unusual color combinations today, at least unusual to me. You may have to move your screen at different angles to get the best version. Here you have it!

If interested in purchasing, hit the Painting-A-Day Purchase tab and then hit the Etsy widget.
It will take you right where you need to be to purchase the painting of your choice. Thanks!
$100 for this original painting, ready-to-hang, plus $15 shipping and handling.

February 25, 2014

2/25/2014

Acrylic on Archival Gessobord with 3/4" Birch Sides, 12x12", Ready to hang!

I am often amazed how one stroke of the brush can change a painting completely. One new thought in the middle of chaos can give clarity. Sometimes it is a subtle change, sometimes bold, that can change a painting for the better. This painting makes me think of a battle. The classic battle of good and evil, of beauty amongst wreckage, of light in the darkness. Today I only added one stroke, though a major stroke, of white in the middle of the painting from my February 10th post. In the midst of this tumultuous wrestling, this battle, a clear, strong stroke of white light.

If interested in purchasing, hit the Painting-A-Day Purchase tab and then hit the Etsy widget.
It will take you right where you need to be to purchase the painting of your choice. Thanks!
$100 for this original painting, ready-to-hang, plus $15 shipping and handling.

Painting-A-Day: February 24, 2014

2/24/2014

Acrylic on Archival Gessobord with 3/4" Birch Sides, 12x12", Ready to hang!

Close-up below...

Today's Painting-A-Day painting involves a medium called Fiber Paste. I've included a close-up so you can see the loveliness the fiber paste creates as it grabs the paint. I applied it with a palette knife using the common abstract motif of the cruciform. I let it dry for a few days and have now applied several colors of acrylic paint. There are several layers of paint and texturing in the four corners as well. I try things. If I don't feel it is enough I try another layer...in this case Paynes Gray, then Transparent Red Oxide and another layer of Paynes Gray. I still wasn't satisfied. I wanted a deeper contrast that would make the cross stand out as the main act in this painting. I used Titan Buff with a dry brush to pull outward from the center of the cross.

This painting has SOLD!

If interested in purchasing, hit the Painting-A-Day Purchase tab and then hit the Etsy widget.
It will take you right where you need to be to purchase the painting of your choice. Thanks!
$100 for this original painting, ready-to-hang, plus $15 shipping and handling.

Painting-A-Day: February 21, 2014

2/21/2014

A Painting in Progress...Acrylic on Gessobord 36x24"

When I go to an art museum or gallery you might find me staring at a painting for a long time . Then I get really close to it and stare some more. It's really fun for whoever I am with! (just ask my kids!) I am trying to figure out how the artist went about their creation. Sometimes I can see and figure out the steps they might have taken. That is why I take progression pictures of my work. I like to remember the steps I took to get certain effects and I like to show all of you how it looked at different stages. This is a painting I have been working on for about a week, off and on. I am trying the practice of working on more than one painting at a time. It is a more efficient way of using my time and I can cut myself a break when I am stuck. So far, so good. I am not done with this one yet...but I wanted to show you my progress. More later...

Painting-A-Day: February 20, 2014

2/20/2014

Acrylic on Archival Gessobord with 2" Birch Sides, 40 x 30", Ready to hang!

I have settled on a title for my upcoming exhibit. Human Condition, Human Spirit: Wreckage and Beauty. This painting will open my show. It is in honor of those who were killed on Omaha Beach, Normandy, France on June 6, 1944. Today I watched this video which highlights the Arrowmanches 360 Theater http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IbOVDQifgUg. My daughter and I were privileged to be able to stand in the middle of this theater as we were surrounded by video and the sounds of WWII, the human voice and heartrending music. It was a powerful combination. I had goosebumps from the top of my head to my toes and tears running down my face. Oh, the sorrow of wreckage upon beauty. When I stood on Omaha beach I was filled with the incongruity of this serene beautiful expanse of sand, water and sky and thoughts of war and what it does to people, the widespread suffering it causes, the utter loss of so many lives. The assault upon nature. Somewhat hidden in the painting is the image of a plowshare...from the verses in Isaiah that are echoed at the United Nations. "And He shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore." Isaiah 2:4 Amen.

This painting will be for sale down the road. This will be posted at the end of the exhibit, May 15, 2014.

Painting-A-Day: February 19, 2014

2/19/2014

Acrylic on Archival Gessobord with 3/4" Birch Sides, 12x12", Ready to hang!

You know...sometimes a painting just doesn't work. That's the way I felt about the painting this used to be (from Nov. 7, 2013). Today I used 3 pigments in the caramel to sandstone range, leaving a small horizontal strip of the previous painting showing. I turned a representational painting into a simple abstract with layers of horizontal paint strokes. This picture doesn't do it justice. As often happens, these Painting-A-Day paintings look better in the flesh. Better than the alternative, I guess. There is some lovely warmth to this painting now, with hint of the previous painting showing through for some healthy intrigue.

If interested in purchasing, hit the Painting-A-Day Purchase tab and then hit the Etsy widget. It will take you right where you need to be to purchase the painting of your choice. Thanks! $100 for this original painting, ready-to-hang, plus $15 shipping and handling.

Painting-A-Day: February 18, 2014

2/18/2014

Acrylic on Archival Gessobord with 3/4" Birch Sides, 12x12", Ready to hang!

Today I took an older painting of poppies and painted over it. Always scary. I used a squeegee tool to lift off areas of paint while the paint was still wet. This too is a bit scary...what if I make a wrong move? Hey, there are no wrong moves in art! Remember this. Even if something doesn't quite work there is always a next move. It would be nice if we could look at life this way wouldn't it? If we always had a pool of grace surrounding our every decision. Well, we do. Yes, I think so. And the first move is forgiving ourselves when we make a mistake. We can learn from our "wrong" moves if we open ourselves to it. It is part of being human...so why are we so hard on ourselves and others? There is no perfection that we can create. Seems to me that perfection is not all it's cracked up to be. In the meantime. I love, love, love this red against teal. That teal makes this red look so much more beautiful. There must be a life lesson in that...I'll leave it to your interpretation.

If interested in purchasing, hit the Painting-A-Day Purchase tab and then hit the Etsy widget. It will take you right where you need to be to purchase the painting of your choice. Thanks! $100 for this original painting, ready-to-hang, plus $15 shipping and handling.

February 18th, 2014

2/18/2014

Acrylic on Archival Gessobord with 3/4" Birch Sides, 12x12", Ready to hang!

Today I took an older painting of poppies and painted over it. Always scary. I used a squeegee tool to lift off areas of paint while the paint was still wet. This too is a bit scary...what if I make a wrong move? Hey, there are no wrong moves in art! Remember this. Even if something doesn't quite work there is always a next move. It would be nice if we could look at life this way wouldn't it? If we always had a pool of grace surrounding our every decision. Well, we do. Yes, I think so. And the first move is forgiving ourselves when we make a mistake. We can learn from our "wrong" moves if we open ourselves to it. It is part of being human...so why are we so hard on ourselves and others? There is no perfection that we can create. Seems to me that perfection is not all it's cracked up to be. In the meantime. I love, love, love this red against teal. That teal makes this red look so much more beautiful. There must be a life lesson in that...I'll leave it to your interpretation.

If interested in purchasing, hit the Painting-A-Day Purchase tab and then hit the Etsy widget. It will take you right where you need to be to purchase the painting of your choice. Thanks! $100 for this original painting, ready-to-hang, plus $15 shipping and handling.

Painting-A-Day: February 17, 2014

2/17/2014

Acrylic on Archival Gessobord with 3/4" Birch Sides, 12x12", Ready to hang!

Today I worked with opposing forces. Organic squiggles of Iridescent Copper against geometric diagonals of red-brown and violet. I find myself often working with light against dark, light in the darkness...that is what attracts me to the drama in Rembrandt's paintings. A master of light against dark. Diagonal lines suggest movement, sometimes tension. The bright green splash of color complements the red-brown tones and the copper highlights. (The red-brown is more toward brown than red in tone.)

If interested in purchasing, hit the Painting-A-Day Purchase tab and then hit the Etsy widget. It will take you right where you need to be to purchase the painting of your choice. Thanks! $100 for this original painting, ready-to-hang, plus $15 shipping and handling.

Painting-A-Day: February 14, 2014

2/14/2014

Acrylic on Archival Gessobord with 2" Birch Sides, 18x 24", Ready to hang!

"Darkness cannot drive out darkness, only Light can do that.
Hate cannot drive out hate, only Love can do that."
MLK, Jr.

This painting is available for purchase now, but will be in an exhibit
March 15-May 15, 2014 and can be picked up or mailed after that. If interested in purchasing hit the Painting-A-Day Purchase tab and then hit the Etsy widget. It will take you right where you need to be to purchase the painting. Thanks!
Purchase this original painting for $465.00 (18x24" with 2" Birch Sides),
Ready-to-hang, plus $45 shipping and handling.

Painting-A-Day: February 13, 2014

2/13/2014

Acrylic on Archival Gessobord with 3/4" Birch Sides, 12x12", Ready to hang!

Today's painting involves an underpainting and a handmade paper painted overlay. This is the first time I've tried this and I like the results. The underpainting has a gloss finish so it looks shiny, especially when light shines on it. The overlay has the texture of homemade paper and has a textured matte finish, which gives this combination of the two pieces a 3D effect. I liked the result, but felt it needed some pizzazz! I added calligraphic lines of Iridescent Bright Gold that really pops, especially with direct lighting.

This painting has SOLD!

If interested in purchasing, hit the Painting-A-Day Purchase tab and then hit the Etsy widget. It will take you right where you need to be to purchase the painting of your choice. Thanks! $100 for this original painting, ready-to-hang, plus $15 shipping and handling.

Here are pictures of the underpainting and the overlay.

Painted overlay (above) and
painted handmade paper (right).

Painting-A-Day: February 12, 2014

2/12/2014

Acrylic on Gessobord 18x24" Painting in Progress

I take progress pictures as I paint. It helps me to remember the steps I take in a painting. Today's painting is about light in darkness. It is a theme I seem to paint on, even when I am not aware of it. I am creating a painting built on this quote from Martin Luther King, Jr. "Darkness cannot drive out darkness. Only Light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate. Only Love can do that."
First I started with the light and am building layer upon layer building up darkness around it. The greater the contrast, the more powerful. This morning when I came into the studio to look at this painting it hit me like a ton of bricks...but in a good way. I have several layers to go on this one. I am excited about it...hope it continues to say what MLK captured in this quote. This painting will be for sale at some point. It is for my upcoming exhibit. I will be able to show the finished paintings after March 15.

Painting-A-Day: February 11, 2014

2/11/2014

Acrylic on Archival Gessobord with 3/4" Birch Sides, 12x12", Ready to hang!

Today's painting was originally painted on December 4, 2013. It had very heavy, dark skies. I decided to lighten those up a little. Maybe that is how I feel about December vs. January. As the days grow longer by minutes every day, hope springs. Yes, yes. We will see the grass grow green again. Still, there is real beauty in the smooth, snowy fields. The trees that poke through the great white expanse speak of good things to come.

This painting has SOLD.

If interested in purchasing, hit the Painting-A-Day Purchase tab and then hit the Etsy widget.
It will take you right where you need to be to purchase the painting of your choice. Thanks!
$100 for this original painting, ready-to-hang, plus $15 shipping and handling.

Painting-A-Day: February 10, 2014

2/10/2014

Acrylic on Archival Gessobord with 3/4" Birch Sides, 12x12", Ready to hang!

Time and space. It's amazing what they can do for you. A new 12x12" Painting-A-Day painting for you! I've been away from painting for about four days as I accompanied my husband to the Twin Cities for some meetings. I used the time to plan for the next 4-5 paintings for the upcoming exhibit, buy some art supplies and well, take some time to be quiet and think. I've learned that it really helps to take a break from painting on occasion. I come back feeling fresh and energized. Here's what I've decided. I need to do these 12x12" paintings every so many days...sort of like cleansing your palate, only in this case, palette. The subject of my exhibit, dealing with the suffering caused by war, is pretty heavy and I think I need to take a break from it to paint something colorful and full of life just to keep my head above water. So, you will see some 12x12's interspersed with the play-by-play of my exhibit paintings. The other reason I've decided to do some 12x12's is that I need to keep making an income while I build a body of work for the show. There you have it....another day in the life of an artist.

If interested in purchasing, hit the Painting-A-Day Purchase tab and then hit the Etsy widget.
It will take you right where you need to be to purchase the painting of your choice. Thanks!
$100 for this original painting, ready-to-hang, plus $15 shipping and handling.

Painting-A-Day: February 7, 2014

2/7/2014

Ad Latus "To the Side" Buxtehude's Membra Jesu Nostri

I am often amazed at the power of music to bring more creativity out of my painting experience. It often moves me deeply and enhances what happens in my paintings. I have a proposal. I would like to invite all of you to send me the name of a piece of music that moves you. It can be classical, jazz, rock or whatever. Several times a month I will pick one of them to inspire my Painting-A-Day 12x12" painting. The painting above was created from a specific piece of music. Check it out at the Membra Jesu Nostri tab at the top of the page. I have a piece of music attached to each painting so that you can listen to it while you view the painting. So please, send your favorites to my email RobynSandAnderson@gmail.com or leave it on my Facebook Art Page. I will pick from those suggestions on occasion and let you know when your favorite brought about a certain painting. Thanks for helping to inspire me!

Painting-A-Day: February 6, 2014

2/6/2014

Acrylic on Archival Gessobord with 3/4" Birch Sides, 12x12", Ready to hang.

I really love this painting. It is so simple, but really captures the feel of big sky, distant vista and cool crisp air. It's a good reminder to me that sometimes saying it simply works really well. Today I am re-featuring this 12x12" painting, which is for sale under the Painting-A-Day Available for Purchase Tab above. I am taking some time to do some heavy duty thinking, envisioning, and planning of the next 3-4 paintings for my upcoming exhibit. I find that I really need to create some space to think, to let my mind's eye visualize, to think through what I want to say and how to say it. When I don't do this I sometimes wander away from my theme. There is always the "Happy Accident" but then there is also the "Wasted Time Accident" which isn't as much fun. I find that a little planning works better for a themed body of work. I'll let you in on the results, down the road.

This painting has SOLD!

If interested in purchasing, hit the Painting-A-Day Purchase tab and then hit the Etsy widget.
It will take you right where you need to be to purchase the painting of your choice. Thanks!
$100 for this original painting, ready-to-hang, plus $15 shipping and handling.

Painting-A-Day: February 4, 2014

2/4/2014

Close-up of Opposing Forces (Original in Progress, Acrylic 30x40")

"Opposing Forces" in progress...

Today I am working on a 30x40" painting. I began with a crackling paste to create texture on the surface and a central orb, bottom center, using Glass Bead medium. The idea that I am working with was inspired by the book Monuments Men, soon to be released as a movie Feb. 7th. As I read about the opposing forces of Allied and Axis powers I saw this image in my head of the constancy of opposing forces butting up against each other throughout history...and the how the beauty of human life, creative expression and nature get lost and destroyed by greed, power and the lust for what you don't have. Heavy stuff. You will notice though, that I can't seem to go completely dark...I always want to have that glimmer of light, of hope and trust that Goodness will win the day.

Painting-A-Day: February 3, 2014

2/3/2014

Work in Progress..."Wreckage" Acrylic on 24"x36" Gessobord

I spend a good deal of time thinking about beauty, as an artist. I spend a lot of time noticing beauty, oftentimes in very ordinary things, sometimes in extraordinary things. I often feel that it is the job of an artist to point to beauty, to remind others to notice. Perhaps that is why the contrast to the beauty and wonder of this planet and its greater solar system hits so hard. Le Mémorial de Caen or "Peace Museum" in Caen, France holds the big picture of what happened in Europe in WWI and WWII, the Holocaust and WWII in the Pacific. I had the privilege of spending several hours in this place. It wasn't pleasant, it wasn't fun. It was overwhelming. Sometimes you want to run away from these painful parts of being human, you want to say "Well, I didn't cause that...I didn't do that..." or "I'd rather not think about that." To see the artifacts, the words, the films, the photos, to hear the music of this place in time is overwhelming and heavy. But, I felt it was a way I could honor the people who actually lived it and suffered it, by looking at this carnage square in the face. It was difficult...but you get the big picture by walking through this world experience. It is probably the most important museum I have experienced. In one display, I watched a film that showed a pit full of human bodies piled high. The Nazis would march a row of 10 or so women and children on a narrow ridge of dirt slightly above this ditch. The level of the grass was at an adult's shoulder level, so that the women could see out. There they stood, waiting. Then the SS yelled an order and the German soldiers shot them all in the back, mothers, grandmothers and young children. They tumbled into the death pit. The film was taken from the viewpoint of the executioners. When I try to talk about this with people, I find it hard to speak. This painting is what I want to say.