Wacky Goats Northcoast Open Studios

This collection of whacky goat portraits will be on display this weekend at Northcoast Open Studios June 9,10 (info below). Sometimes I just get a wild hair in my brush and want to make silly paintings. When I got into this series I had been painting a bunch of portraits and had two in a row with bad proportions to the point where I scraped off two day’s work and abandoned the paintings. Still in the mood for painting portraits I landed on goats. No goat is going to come bleating and naaaging you for getting their eyeball placed an inch away from its rightful position. There just gonna eye you up and down, in hopes that you might look away long enough to get a bite of your shirt. Anyway, I started having so much fun, that one portrait begat another until I had myself a herd of whacky goat paintings. I’m not proud, it was just something that needed exorcising. 

This piece along with 300 paintings (many older pieces marked down) as well as cards and prints will be on display for Northcoast Open Studios. Over a hundred other artists will also be showing their work. Find catalogs around town or follow the link below for the online directory. Hope to see you there!

http://humboldt.northcoastopenstudios.com

Dark Reflected Forest by Andrew Daniel

Northcoast Open Studios is coming up June 1,2,3,9 & 10. This piece was painted during the Representational Art League’s annual retreat out at the Morris Graves property. I worked fast and loose and atmospheric. Was surprised at how much can be said painting in this manner.

Find the directory to Open Studios here:

http://humboldt.northcoastopenstudios.com/

#ncos2018

“Wetland Greens” by Andrew Daniel

After months of playing with process and abstracting nature, it felt like it was time to revisit and finish up some landscapes that I had left unresolved. I really enjoyed working in this mode again. Perhaps it fits my way of thinking better. I like making art that is receptive and observant of nature. By trying to abstract nature, I felt like I lost my relationship to it. This isn’t the first time I’ve rode this merry-go-round and ended up right back where I started, but each time is really instructive and helpful.

“Wetland Greens” 

12” x 24”

original hand painted in oil on canvas by Andrew Daniel

Available in my Etsy Shop: artofandrewdaniel 

https://www.etsy.com/listing/559913846/wetland-greenshttps://www.etsy.com/listing/559913846/wetland-greens

Hot Pink Poppies by Andrew Daniel

I think I might have burnt a hole in my cell phone camera’s logic board trying to figure out an exposure setting for these fluorescent poppies! When I’m working with acrylics, I often get frustrated with how clumsy the medium feels compared to oils. But this time I thought I’d embrace the awkwardness and build an aesthetic around it. It was a lot of fun and it taught me about how to keep the eyes moving with color contrasts and gesture. My goal in this piece was to combine painting from observation with imagination in a more robust way. 

“Hot Pink Poppies On Teal” 

14” x 10”

hand painted original painting in acrylic

On rag paper with mat

Available in my online store:

 https://www.etsy.com/listing/568696345/hot-pink-poppies-on-teal-originalhttps://www.etsy.com/listing/568696345/hot-pink-poppies-on-teal-original

Marsh Wren and Leaves by Andrew Daniel

For a long time, I have wanted to combine the whimsy of my earlier geometric style with painting from observation. This piece feels like an intriguing window into that world of possibilities. This was painted on a piece of pine left over from a cabinet I recently built. It was fun playing with the tall rectangular format. 

Marsh Wren and Leaves 

original hand painted in acrylic on wood

14” x 5.5”

Available through my online Etsy shop:

https://www.etsy.com/listing/554567744/marsh-wren-and-leaves-original-paintinghttps://www.etsy.com/listing/554567744/marsh-wren-and-leaves-original-painting

Leaves and Branches on Blue by Andrew Daniel

For this piece I was responding to a photograph I took from a bush, on one of my daily walks. Each source seems to bring out different approaches to the paint. This source compelled me to use a rougher, more organic brushstroke than previous paintings, it was also interesting to work from a source that didn’t have a strong focal point. I eventually played up the leaf shapes with stripes to create something strong for the branches to dialog with.

Willow Branches - 10” x 14” hand painted original with Acrylic paint on rag paper 

Comes with mat board

Available on Etsy:

https://www.etsy.com/listing/553767662/leaves-and-branches-on-blue-originalhttps://www.etsy.com/listing/553767662/leaves-and-branches-on-blue-original

St. John’s Wort by Andrew Daniel

In this piece I am revisiting an old theme, but with a acrylic paints instead of oils. I have been trying to find a way to abstract nature that holds my interest. In this one, I started out very far afield, but over time decided I was more interested in the photo reference than in what I was inventing. So I gradually brought it around to something that was very much informed by my photo but still interesting in its paint quality.

hand painted unique and original

10" x 16" acrylic on rag paper

Available in my Etsy Shop:

https://www.etsy.com/listing/565186411/yellow-flowers-original-painting-by

Flowers and Branches #1 by Andrew Daniel

I have been exploring different ways of abstracting nature lately. Trying to find my happy place. Today I have made some real inroads! It started with a foreboding feeling that my artistic crisis was not over, but instead really setting in. I wanted to paint but didn't really have any ideas that pulled me. I got out a neon red painting that had been responding to a photo of a St. John's Wart bush and started covering up the red and just playing with the natural rectangular shapes coming off my flat brush but still looking at the bush photo for ideas. This painting emerged and it felt really great doing it. It had been a long time since I had painted non-objectively/abstractly. It was like putting on an old favorite hoody that has been hanging out in the back of the closet unnoticed!

"Flowers and Branches" 14" x 10" hand painted original with Acrylic paint on rag paper 

Comes with mat board

Available in my Etsy Shop:

https://www.etsy.com/listing/566471413/flowers-and-branches-1-original-painting

Flowers and Branches #2 by Andrew Daniel

In this piece, I wanted to reduce the subject down to it's most elemental shapes, circles and rectangles. This was an evolution from the last painting, in which I was just using the shape of the brushstroke.

Flowers and Branches #2 - 14" x 10" hand painted original with Acrylic paint on rag paper 

Comes with mat board

Available in my Etsy shop:

https://www.etsy.com/listing/552991878/flowers-and-branches-2-original-painting

Willow Branches by Andrew Daniel

In this piece I was playing with more organic shapes and layering. I wanted to have the piece still refer to the source, telling the story of the shapes that fascinate me in willow branches. I also wanted to experiment with a value transition from dark to light. The piece really came together in the end, when I introduced metallic gold, silver and bronze paints.

Willow Branches - 14" x 10" hand painted original with Acrylic paint on rag paper 

Comes with mat board

Available from my Etsy shop:

https://www.etsy.com/listing/553571330/willow-branches-original-painting-byhttps://www.etsy.com/listing/553571330/willow-branches-original-painting-by

Alders in Morning Mist

 

I'll be open for North Coast Open Studios June 2,3,4,10,11. This painting will available there or online via the link bellow. Come drop in and visit! Please tell your friends!

http://humboldt.northcoastopenstudios.com/artists-2017/

Yesterday I made it out to Trinidad to paint the seaside, only to find that the ocean was obscured by deep fog, so I turned my easel toward the hillside looking up into a little valley between the cliffs. The alders made a striking tableau against the forest behind shrouded in mist. I think this may be the beginning of a series.

"Alders in Morning Mist"

12" x 12" oil on canvas

Also available in my online shop:

https://www.etsy.com/listing/532987425/alders-in-morning-mist

Chicken Head #10 by Andrew Daniel

 

Irma blushed when I first mentioned painting her portrait. I could tell she was flattered to have the attention, but didn't quite know what to do with it. Her face seemed to always go back to this same strained look, once our conversation lapsed. In the end she grinned slightly when she gazed upon the finished product, then immediately waddled off, mentioning something about changing the straw in her nest.

"Chicken Heads #10"

Casein paint and ink on paper 

7.5" x 5.5"

This is an original casein (milk paint) work not a print. It is matted and has a plastic sleeve for protection.

Available Here:

https://www.etsy.com/listing/524344051/chicken-head-10-original-painting-by

Marsh Wren #6

 

I'm experimenting with a sparser paint application these days, allowing the casein paint to be thinner, in exchange for a brushstroke that feels more lyrical.

One of my favorite subjects is the little Marsh Wren. They are so animated and busy. Willing to come up so close without fear. 

"Marsh Wren Calling #6"

4.5" x 6"

This is an original casein painting with some metallic inks on paper with 10" x 8" matt

Available Here:

https://www.etsy.com/listing/522965963/marsh-wren-6

Pigeons and Planets by Andrew Daniel

 

This one just took off into a different place.

This painting is part of a series of 100 experimental pigeon paintings with casein paint and colored inks. Sometimes it helps to repeat the same subject matter in order to explore the possibilities around that subject. By keeping the pigeons the same for each painting I am able to focus on brushwork ideas and color ideas. In a way, the narrow parameter sets me free to try things and challenges me to surprise myself.

This is an original painting on paper with matt and protective plastic sleeve.

"Pigeons and Planets"

9" x 12"

casein paint and colored inks on paper

Available Here:

https://www.etsy.com/listing/516749813/pigeons-and-planets

"Walk in the Bottoms" by Andrew Daniel

 

This painting was done from a photo I took during one of my daily dog walks. The uneven farm roads and the view of passing weather patterns, the pastoral smells provide great comfort to a man and his dog.

"Walk in the Bottoms" 

Casein paint on paper

9" x 9"

Includes a matt and protective plastic sleeve.

Available Here:

https://www.etsy.com/listing/501676032/walk-in-the-bottoms

Pink hair series by Andrew Daniel

 

 

 

In between commissions, I like to take some time to experiment, see how far I can push things. This is a series of woman with pink hair, tho I think my hair ends up more red. This was a bit like riding a fast horse and letting him have his head. As soon as I start splatter painting, I kinda can't stop myself! These were made with watercolor, Casein paint and colored inks.

Portrait project continued - Andrew Daniel

 

 

For the last three weeks I have been painting a portrait a day in watercolor and casein paint, with the goal of setting up a series of daily commissions at 70$ a piece. Each painting is posted on Facebook, Instagram and Sktchy. So far I have received 4 commissions and sold two of my "practice paintings'! This has been really exciting to see that things are already coming together! If you would like to commission a portrait contact me through andrewdanielcomissions@yahoo.com

I have included some process pics this week to show how this piece evolved. I chose this photo from the Sktchy App, because I admired how the models face looked like a classical sculpture. In the painting I wanted to accentuate the geometry and flow of the shapes. So, initially I drew out the planes of the face in pencil. Next I put in a few layers of watercolor wash. Once this was done I decided to put some opaque casein paint on top to see if I could explore the form further. The process took about three hours.

Simple Portrait Business - Andrew Daniel

 

 

I have been practicing portrait painting from photographs with the thought that I might start a portrait painting business online. My thought was that if I streamline the process I could make it possible to set up a steady flow of small inexpensive commissions. This could help me transition into a more reliable artistic income vs. working so many hours as a care provider. So far I have been having a lot of fun working with fast drying casein paint, it's like watercolor but is opaque. 

The source photos were taken from an app I found called sktcher. People post photos of themselves and others draw them. It is a hoot!

If you are interested in having a portrait done, you can contact me at Andrewdanielcomissions@yahoo.com

There are very specific rules tho.

- the portrait must be close up, (head or head and shoulders)

- the subject must be a human being

- if you really want something nice try to avoid head on flash photography, and send me a few photos to choose from

Price is 70$ for a Casien painting 9" x 12"

          Or 150$ for an Oil painting 9" x 12"

Stream With Alders by Andrew Daniel

Stream With Alders by Andrew Daniel

Oil on canvas 12" x 12"

This was an interesting experiment for me. I wanted to try using a Japanese composition technique called Notan. This is where the painting is devided into shadow shapes and light shapes, both need to be interesting compositionally. Then I built up the shadow and the light while being conscious of retaining their opposing identities.

The stream had looked overwhelmingly complex, but this device helped me to break it down and maintain some drama.

Sunny Morning at Hurdygurdy Creek by Andrew Daniel

I just put the final touches on the piece from our trip to the South Fork of the Smith River. I was standing on a bluff overlooking Hurdygurdy Creek with Rick Tolley, Antoinette Toni Magyar, and John Crater. The sun was blazing hot at 10:00 in the morning. We painted until we were about to drop from heat stroke both mornings, then went down to swim in the cool water!

"Sunny morning on Hurdygurdy Creek"

Oil on canvas 

20" x 16"