Back to Forever

...a portion closeup...

...clicking on the image will show more detail...

...12"x12" acrylic mixed media painting...I left a few areas dimentional in this piece. The flag containing the quote (which reflects the sentiments of the subject) and the small orange extention in the left/center cast small shadows. The entire piece hasn't yet been trimmed, so unfinished edges still show.

To Begin Again - SOLD

12"x12" acrylic mixed media painting...SOLD and framed at Artistic Gifts and Framing in Dalton, GA...Other painted papers (les papiers colles) are available there and by contacting me at beejw@charter.net.

Comes a Romance

...portion of a 12"x12" acrylic/mixed media painting...

Dreams I Have

...portion of a 12"x12" acrylic painted and stamped tissue painting...I usually place the signature paw print on the lower corner of these paintings. However, turning this one 180 degrees would also echo the title.

My Metaphorical Garden -- SOLD

...portion of a 12"x12" acrylic painted/stamped tissue painting...Although some of these painted papers have a theme or recognizable subject, this one simply features color and design. It recently sold at Artistic Gifts in Dalton, GA.

I've never thought of myself as an abstract artist...and I still don't...but working with this medium seems to spark other areas of creativity.

Heart Shaped Soul

...a portion of a 12"x12" acrylic painted/stamped painting on garment pattern tissue...Clicking on the image will show intricate patterns and colors. See more at http://lespapierscolles.blogspot.com/

Color Changeling Bubbles by BJ Wright

...portion of a 12"x12" acrylic painted and stamped (on clothing pattern tissue) painting ....Reds and yellows merge into oranges, yellows and blues merge into greens...it's wonderful how the eyes will optically mix the colors. Overstamping with blue/purple serves to brighten the colors even more. I thought it might be whimsical to imagine square bubbles.

Permission to Play

...a large portion of a 12"x12" acrylic painted/stamped paper...I originally saw a mountain under square drifting clouds when this image emerged. But after turning it 180 degrees, I smiled as I saw what appeared to be a boot. Thinking "there was an old woman who lived in a shoe; she had so many children she didn't know what to do"...I named this playful image "Permission to Play".

Droll and Delightful

12"x10" la papier colle (painted pasted paper)...This is an example of an acrylic painting composed of stamped, painted, inked, torn, pasted and manipulated papers. It's been a lot of fun, and quite liberating, working with this mixed media. More examples and processes can be seen at http://lespapierscolles.blogspot.com/.

Meadow Memories

11"x14" oil, painted alla prima, during a TV interview on March 8th...$160 including shipping. Ron Arnold, the Charter Media reporter, had asked me if I'd feel comfortable painting while we did the interview. Since I often talk to people while painting en plein air, I agreed to set up my easel and 'paint away' while we chatted.

This meadow scene is a composite of several places I love to paint. And I hope the weather warms very soon so that I can get back out to these meadows and see Nature's wonderful colors.

"Oh! I Have Slipped the Surly Bonds of Earth"

40"x30" oil on gallery wrap canvas - $600 plus shipping - This is another entry for the sky painting exhibit at the Chattanooga Unitarian Universalist Church. Waiting until the last possible day, I decided to use the fastest drying oil paints in my tool box. I chose raw sienna (for the yellow), burnt sienna (for the red), Prussian blue, mauve (blue shade), and flake white. Hopefully they will be touch dry within two days.

The exhibit rules stated that no more than 5" of the canvas could be land...the rest being sky. I used my imagination in designing the landscape and another of my previous paintings to determine the sky colors.

The title comes from a poem written by John Gillespie Magee, Jr (June 9, 1922 - December 11, 1941).

plein air palette

Although I've painted en plein air with only 3 primaries plus white, I prefer having a wider choice of colors in cool and warm ranges.

The cool row (near left to right) is lemon yellow, yellow ochre, permanent rose, alizarine crimson, ultramarine blue, a cool green (I don't remember which), burnt umber and titanium white.

The warm row (far left to right) is cad yellow, cad orange, cad red light, cobalt blue, viridian green, burnt sienna and titanium white.

The lower right corner holds (top) raw umber (bottom) transparent red ochre.

I've used various color palettes in the past, but I always come back to these colors. There has been speculation as to whether ultramarine blue is warm or cool. My personal view is that its temperature depends on the other colors surrounding it. Many people consider yellow ochre as a warm color, but again I feel its temperature is dependent upon the neighboring colors.

I don't use black in my plein air palette. A wonderful black can be mixed with viridian or sap green plus alizarine crimson. Another black comes from mixing burnt umber plus ultramarine blue. Mixing 3 of my darkest colors presents another black. There is very rarely a pure black in nature. (A lovely green apple color can be made using lemon yellow and just a speck of ivory black...but I still don't carry a tube of black when plein air painting).

When painting greens, I begin with a blue plus a yellow and add hints of other colors until I get the right hue. Although I have green pigment on my palette, I only use it in small touches in other mixtures. And sometimes I never touch the tube greens while painting.

"According to Plan"

40"x30" oil on gallery wrap canvas...$600 plus shipping...During an artists' open studio on Saturday, several painters completed sky paintings destined for an exhibit at the Unitarian Universalist Church in Chattanooga TN.
I chose a sky depicted in the book "Painting Nature in Oil" with photos by John Shaw and paintings by S. Allyn Schaeffer. Although I changed the composition, colors and landscape sliver, I feel I must give credit to the above people for their excellent book.

Not a Knot

This shows a portion of a 12"x12" acrylic painted acid-free tissue paper. Since my scanner doesn't accommodate a 12"x12" paper, I really much photograph the entire 12"x12" painting to get the full effect.
Layering the paints, stamping and stencils lets my mind run free...seeing all the possibilities in subjects and themes.
All these painted papers are inspired by techniques taught by Anne Bagby http://www.annebagby.com/.

Pillars of Thought

12"x12" acrylic paints layered and stamped on acid free tissue paper. This is another example of the 'pretty painted papers' that resulted from working with techniques taught by artist Anne Bagby http://www.annebagby.com/.
After randomly applying layers of acrylic paint (beginning with opaque then adding transparent), a design or theme will appear. Letting the paper tell me what it wants to say (or be) gets me "off the hook" in deciding its subject. With the addition of a few final touches here and there, the paper is finished.
The only decision I must make now is how to properly display the finished piece. Will it be attached to a stretched canvas or clayboard? Will it be floated on gatorboard and framed under glass? Will it be matted as a watercolor? Will it be finished with a gel medium or varnish? So many options!

paper painting processes

These are two rubber stamps being carved for making "pretty painted papers". Using the stamps to apply acrylic paints in layer upon layer results in unusual designs. More painted paper images will be posted soon.

Fabled in Verse

After taking some time away from plein air painting, I was looking for a different "something" to do during the Winter. My friend, Sandra, had attended a painted paper workshop taught by Anne Bagby (see her website at http://www.annebagby.com/)

Sandra and I spent two days experimenting with the wonderful ideas that come with painting on different types of tissue paper. The entire process is hard to explain...so I'd suggest you visit Anne's website to see the exciting things she does with paint and paper.

Beginning with a 12"x12" paper, layers of paint, stamping, stenciling, etc are applied. The paper can be turned until a theme or object becomes clear.

A Fabulous Friday in Fall

8"x10" oil on RayMar panel, painted en plein air, alla prima, on November 13th (completed at 11:20am)...$85 including shipping. In trying several different painting ideas, I had pre-toned some canvas panels using alizarin crimson, cad yellow and ultramarine blue --- brushing the thinned paint on in a somewhat planned but otherwise haphazard way. Letting the toned canvas peek through serves to unite the painting. The pear trees, with their red foliage, contrasted with the evergreens nearby. As noontime approached, shadows were quickly disappearing. Although it appears that black paint was used, it was actually a mixture of ultramarine blue and burnt umber.

Live of a Tree -- revisited

11"x14" oil on linen panel, painted en plein air, alla prima, on November 6th, '08 (completed at 11:30) - $160 including shipping - contact me for purchase. Sandra and I painted at Mountain Cove Farm on this warm, breezy November day. The 1800+ acres were ablaze with the glory that is Autumn. Evergreens poked their heads through the warm red, orange and yellow hues and the mountains were shrouded early with a lavender mist.

Looking Again....

10" x 8" oil on RayMar panel, painted en plein air, alla prima on November 5th (completed at 4:30)...$85 including shipping...contact me at beejw@charter.net for purchase.
Sandra and I set up our easels in her front yard on a simply gorgeous day with Autumn blazing all around us. Looking directly across the road, this small stand of trees caught my eye. I had seen them dozens of times before, but in looking again.....