Black and White Rooster-Final

© Ellen Blonder

Finally, done!

Happy Thanksgiving, Everyone

Can't always be painting. Sometimes, you've just got to take a break and make a pie, and lemon meringue is my favorite--this one's adapted from an old, torn and stained Betty Crocker cookbook recipe. Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

Black and White Rooster-Day 18

 

© Ellen Blonder

I'm slowly continuing to work on details of the foliage, mostly on the upper right today.

Black and White Rooster-Days 16 and 17

© Ellen Blonder

I'm adding details to the plants on the left side of the painting.

 

Black and White Rooster-Days 13, 14, 15

© Ellen Blonder

I've been working short periods on this all week, and some of the time has been spent overpainting details I didn't like. The painting still has a long way to go.

Dog Repair

© Ellen Blonder

Mice got into this stuffed dog, a prototype I designed to present to a toy manufacturer years ago. If it had been a stuffed pillow, I would have tossed it in the garbage, but this guy looked so sad I ran him through the washer and dryer and repaired him. He still has a few loose threads, but I hope that just gives him character.

Black and White Rooster-Day 12

© Ellen Blonder

 All I know is the pink's way too bright here, and it looks all wrong with the rooster's red comb. I have to tone these way down. I've also added grass under the rooster's feet.

Apropos of Nothing

© Ellen Blonder

I didn't paint today, but I did go through a lot of old files, and I came across this silly sketch. 

I'm combing through years' worth of files of old work, and I've been a bit unsettled by how much work I did that I forgot about completely. I also couldn't help but see how much more we all rely on the computer for presentations, rather than slow, detailed pencil sketches. Computer-based art is slicker and more accurate, but I wonder if something's lost, too, from skipping the painstaking drawing.

Black and White Rooster-Days 10 and 11

© Ellen Blonder

I'm almost done with the feathers--finally! Now that the rooster is nearly finished, it'll be fun to move on to the flora.