Pont au Change, Paris 1987

Painting by Vicky Christensen, acrylic on 12 X 16 inch canvas

This painting is based on a photo I took in 1987 while on a business trip in Paris. This is the Pont au Change bridge over the Seine. My source photo was bleached out, probably from the changes that occur to color prints after many years, and also probably because the day was hazy. I have punched up the color a bit in the foreground. And this is the first of my paintings that I remembered to sign with my initials!

One thing you'll notice is that there are no people and no vehicles. I still am afraid to paint people. One of these days I hope to get beyond that

Philadelphia Sunrise

Painting by Vicky Christensen, acrylic on 16 X 12 inch canvas 

Today's painting was inspired by a photograph my brother-in law took of a Philadelphia sunrise. I had a lot of trouble with the pink/magenta color and never did match it to my satisfaction

View from Sacre Coeur

Painting by Vicky Christensen, acrylic on 16 X 12 inch canvas

 It seems I am still in a Paris mood. Tonight's painting was inspired by a photo I took from a balcony of the Sacre Coeur basilica. It was getting close to sunset when I took the photo, which accounts for the warm glow.

This is the underpainting. I thought it might be helpful to use a base color of burnt sienna to block in the roof/turret. It did help to some extent, especially when I was painting the tile roof.

This is the source photo. I took the photo in 1987 when I spent 5 weeks in Paris working.

Paris Rooftops

Painting by Vicky Christensen, acrylic on 18 X 24 inch canvas

I finally finished my Paris painting! A lot of work, but it was fun and I learned a lot. I have a few more Paris photos I want to paint, but next time I am going to limit it to a smaller scale, something I can do in a looser style.

Mixed media fun

Mixed media, charcoal pour, watercolor and collage

 I didn't get much done on my Paris scene today because I attended another adult continuing education class sponsored by a local high school. It was more like a party than a class. It was held at a local restaurant, so we were eating (and drinking) while we worked on our art. Our instructor provided us with watercolor paper that she had already prepared using the charcoal pour technique. She also gave us a sketch of a bird for us to trace. Given that, we were told to copy the bird to the paper and use watercolor, paper (napkins, tissue and some wrapping paper) and glue to create our works of art. It was fun to see the varied interpretations. I notice now that I forgot to paint/collage a key portion of the birds rump. And I could have picked a better location for the band of yellow/red paint in the lower right portion of the picture. Not a good choice to have it radiating from the bird's butt!

And here's the Paris painting. I'm hoping I will be able to finish it by the end of this coming weekend. Next up: painting the windows and gables of the mansard roof after I do some work on the sky.

work in progress

Paris Rooftops -- Work Still in Progress

work in progress, acrylic on canvas

Today I spent a couple hours painting a lot of windows on the building with the mansard roof. Since I am predominately left-handed, I have been working from right to left. I obviously still have the left wall to complete, then I will start working on the windows and gables in the roof. Since there is a lot of detail work I have been taking it slow and have been limiting my hours. The close-up work really knots up my shoulders if I try to do too much in any sitting.

Below is the source photo.

Source photo, taken in 1987 from a Paris hotel room

I obviously am taking a lot of artistic license. I changed some of the perspective, especially when painting the building with the mansard roof. The line where the roof meets the walls is nearly straight in the photo, and I decided to change that. Because of that, and also because the building has some quirky angles, I am having problems with the perspective. I like to paint fast and loose, so painting architecture is a big challenge and a learning experience. Next time I do a painting with a building in it, it will be something on a much smaller scale!

Paris Rooftops -- Work in Progress

Work in progress, acrylic on canvas

I started work on this painting a couple days ago. It's based on a photo I took from a hotel room in Paris in 1987. I usually paint landscapes without man-made structures so this one is a big stretch for me. I am used to getting a painting done in just a few hours. After the first night of working on this one I was pretty discouraged. With nothing but big masses of color on canvas, it was hard for me to visualize the finished product. It seemed like a pretty daunting task to complete it.

Last night I focused more on the tile roofs in the structures in the mid-ground. I finished the night's work by adding the sky-lights to the three story building, and suddenly I began to see some promise and began to have some hope. Today I spent most of my time adding details to the three story building on the right. It needs more work, but I'm really happy with it. I can't wait until I finish the background buildings so I will be able to add the cute little clay pot chimneys to top off this building.

The large building in the middle background is going to be a lot of work -- lots of windows, including dormers on the top floor, and lots of odd angles. This is going to take a few more days, but I'm hopeful that the finished product will be worth the effort.  Regardless of the outcome, I am learning a lot.