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I was honored when Vivian asked me to paint the book cover for her new book. I painted it with acrylic paint. To see a video of how I painted it, Click on the blue button below. It will take you to my ArtsyUs Facebook page.
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 For more than 2 months we have been at home during the Covid 19 pandemic. It has been a scary time as it seems that not much was known about it, yet it is very contagious and deadly. I was happy for this extra time to be able to do some art work everyday. I began to follow Shawn Petite's lead in making a calm art journal to focus my mind on good things. As I painted each page, I would think of the word for the page and my mind was taken to a more peaceful, calm place. Here are the pages in the journal.  The first page was about LOVE. So many good things come from love: tenderness, kindness, others first, self sacrificing, caring, commitment, God's love, nothing can separate us from God's love, I love you. The list can go on...  JOY was next. As the days went on, my joy bucket was very low. Then my grand kids come by or called us and my JOY bucket gets full again. They are such a joy to me.  HOPE - This is the word I choose in the beginning of the year to be my focus. Little did I know that we all could use hope during these trying days. My hope is in the Lord Jesus Christ. He give me hope in knowing He has all things in control.  I have FAITH that God is in control and that all will work out.  Patience is a virtue! Boy this is a tough one. But we all need to stay calm, wait, don't rush. Waiting is very hard, especially when you feel the pressure mounting. With God's help we can learn to be patient.  The Lord Jesus gives me PEACE that passes all understanding.  GENTLENESS is a great virtue to have. Lord help us all to be kind, tender and kind to one another.  PRACTICE COURAGE - I was thinking of our brave medical workers and our wonderful military, who are the front workers for us. They practice courage everyday and I am so thankful to them.
I pray that as you read through this post and look at each journal page that it will help you to have hope, calmness and peace. I looked up each word in the Bible website to read some of the verses for each. It was a great help. God bless you my friend!  Sailing Away - final paintings  My daughter asked me to paint her an abstract/impressionistic painting of some sailboats for a large wall in her house. I usually paint realistic, but have been wanting to try my hand at some abstract. I can say that it was a lot of fun! I think it's more fun to paint out of your head and make it up than to strictly follow a picture. I put on some smooth jazz music for inspiration and began to organize my table with all the colors she wanted in the painting. This was my work table when I started.  The canvas size for each was 30" x 40". The first thing I did was use the acrylic gel medium and struck on some texture here and there on the canvas and let that dry. Then, I painted a base coat, using dark blue with some red and yellow mixed in to tone it down. I sprayed some water to let it drip and left it to dry.  Using yellows and browns I put in the hints of rocks and started to lighten up the sky with light blue.  Put in the clouds with white and each time also put the same colors into the water.  Started in with the pinks, peaches, purples and coral colors. Whatever I put into the sky, I also put into the water. After each step, I let the canvas dry, sometimes using a hair dryer to speed up the process. I later redid the clouds as we didn't want them so puffy, so I smoothed them out.  My work table towards the end of the day.  The final painting. As I added more colors at the end, I sprayed water on each time to allow the colors to drip down, giving it a more dreamy effect.  I joined a small group of local painters at Quiet Waters Park in Deerfield Beach, FL this morning to do some plein air painting. It was a beautiful morning, bright and sunny, with a cool breeze. This is my watercolor painting.  I found a nice section of the park to paint, that also had a picnic table! It was really sunny and I soon wished that I had found a spot under some shade! I felt the sun burning my arms and legs. I will have to remember that next time. Glad I had a hat on!  This is what I was looking at as I was painting. It was so peaceful and pretty with the reflection of the sun in the water.
 I was honored when asked to paint a backdrop for an inspirational dramatic presentation for a friend called, "From Russia To Love". It had been a long time since I had painted one. This picture is the finished product. It is 8 feet long and 36" high. Made to fit a standard 8 foot table. The top of the table serves as the counter top for the various props for the scene. Here is the process that I took.  After purchasing the canvas, paints and gesso at the local art store, I spent a day, applying the gesso. While painting the first coat bare handed, I ended up with a big, painful blister in the middle of my hand! Here, I am painting the second coat with a glove on! So, I recommend that you use a nice thick garden glove! It worked a lot better. Painting in the shade helped, too! Allow it to dry overnight.  The next day, we set up the canvas, using stands and a pole with clamps to lift it up. A picture and an overhead projector showed the picture clearly enough so that I could trace it onto the canvas, using a pencil.  This kind of project requires team work! Support was needed from behind as the canvas moved a lot! So, my helpful husband held a flat board along the back side ,where I was working. He helped me throughout the process, too! Thanks, honey!  The bar stools needed to be the uniform. After looking at the finished sketch, each one was slightly different, because of the movement of the canvas, while sketching. So, I made myself a template of the stool, using tracing paper. Using this tool helped me adjust the sketch so that all the stools were the same and straight! Then it was ready to paint! I used acrylic .  My table was only 6 feet long. Always had to move the canvas back and forth to adjust to where I was working. So, for the final clear protective coat of Matte Medium, I put the canvas on the floor. My dogs were so curious! Had to keep an eye on them! Bonnie Pearson and Jose Jimenez will be using this backdrop for their drama...  "From Russia To Love"
Be entertained while learning how to share your faith! Friends of Israel Representative Bonnie Rosenthal Pearson with Jose Jimenez trace the story of Bonnie's Jewish heritage back to turn-of-the-century Russia. Through drama and music, see how a sister's betrayal led a whole family to find their destiny through Jesus, their Messiah. For booking information, contact Bonnie Rosenthal Pearson bpearson@foi.org 607-707-2851  I added a new section to my store called Gallery Prints. They are prints of my original paintings, processed in high quality professional luster finish. The print comes to you with foam board backing and inserted in a clear plastic sleeve for protection. They make great gifts and fit into standard 8x10 or 11x14 frames or mats.
I also added these prints to my Etsy Store http://www.etsy.com/shop/JanisLeeColon so please do stop by!  Check out my new Scripture Pictures in my ArtsyUs Store! Loxahatchee Marsh - 1 Peter 5:7 A Plein Air Watercolor - Loxahatchee Nature reserve, FL. "Casting all our care upon him; for he careth for you"  The Watcher - 1 Corinthians 16:13 A watercolor Plein Air painting in Deerfield Beach, FL Cute for a little boy's room! "Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit you like men, be strong.  Sebastian Marina - Psalm 31:24
A watercolor painting - Sebastian, FL "Be of good courage, and he shall strengthen your heart, all ye that hope in the Lord. While you are there, check out my other items in the store! Thanks!  This is Loxahatchee Nature Reserve, West of Boynton Beach/Delray, FL. My first visit. What a peaceful place! I had been wanting to join the Palm Beach Watercolor Society's paint outs for a while. Finally had the chance to do it! I'm so glad I did! Painting out in the open with fellow painters gave me so much inspiration! I think that it really makes a difference in the mood of your paintings. After walking around the area, I decided to settle under a shady tree and paint this beautiful marsh scene with the little black ducks enjoying the lake in the distance.  This was my little set-up!  I was there for about 2 hours. The time went fast!  I worked a little more on it when I got home. Just some defining and highlighting. This is the finished piece! Let me know what you think! If you are interested in joining me for the next plein air painting time, let me know!
 I was invited to teach a watercolor class segment at a ladies retreat and Bible conference: Journey to the Heart of the Father, at CrossTown Chapel in Port St. Lucie, FL this last weekend. Here , the Leader, Pam Douglas, is introducing me.  I was so excited to teach this class and have fun with the ladies. Here we are, putting all the supplies together for each table.  The painting we did was my "Conch Shell in the Shade". It was fairly a simple one to do, although some of the ladies shrieked when said that. But, I assured them that I didn't want them to stress out about this. I just wanted them to have fun and explore their creativity.  This was the view from the large screen above me as a video camera was picking up my moves each step of the way, so that all could see.  It just amazes me that we all were painting the same picture, yet all the paintings were different! Everyone had fun and some said they would like to do more!
 Had fun painting these whimsical Ballerinas, dancing with balloons! My inspiration came from a few things. During Christmas I went with my daughter and granddaughter to see the Nutcracker ballet. Just loved the gracefulness of the dancers! We also had, during that time, a birthday party for my 2 granddaughters - 1 and 3 years old. They just LOVE balloons! and then at our WITVA meeting we had a great demonstration on acrylic abstract painting. So I tried the technique on the background. I always like to try new things!  These would be great in a little girl's room. Both are acrylic with ink, size 8"x10"x1/2". Click on the picture to go to my Store "For Kids" section to order if interested!
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Janis Lee ColonArtist, mixed media, watercolor, acrylic,oils- Archives
May 2023
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