Annie Salness

My Grass

2011-11-30T10:44:00.001-08:00

6"x 6"

acrylic on masonite

My Grass

Available at Randy Higbee Gallery .

Portland Streetcar 2

2011-11-14T09:48:00.000-08:00

6"x 6"
"Streetcar"

acrylic on masonite

I do love the Portland Streetcars. Their ray of color always makes the day less dreary.

I took this picture, a year and a half ago, while cruising around Portland, with a friend, looking for things to paint.

This painting is going to be in the Randy Higbee Gallery 6"x 6" show. The opening is December 3, with a Gala Artists' Reception, and it will go until December 23.

Shea Center

2011-09-08T07:10:00.000-07:00

14"x 11"
acrylic on masonite

Here is the painting I finished for the auction at the Shea Center where my sister works.

"The Shea Center offers classes that focus on a broad range and combination of disabilities. These classes fall under the general term "therapeutic riding" but each class is a sophisticated program developed to address the needs of that small group."

Here are some pictures of our visit there this summer:

They have several talented trainers.

The horses lined up and ready.

Getting ready to ride....

The riders get their awards!

It is a beautiful center!

Quality Time

2011-04-25T11:37:00.001-07:00

Quality Time
8"x 10"
acrylic on masonite

Click here to purchase

German Landscape

2011-04-05T17:02:00.001-07:00

German Landscape
6"x 6"
acrylic on masonite

This is a recent entry into the Daily Paintworks challenge.

Elk, Washington

2011-03-09T11:51:00.000-08:00

6"x 6"
acrylic on masonite

This is a view from my in-laws' ranch in Elk, Washington.
It is the first painting I posted....
To answer my art friend's question, I don't have any real movement in my right hand...but it's coming!
Done with my left hand.

Paper Head

2011-02-16T13:55:00.000-08:00

It is clear to me that the images are in my head, I just need them to come out!

I need to work on my pencil work and my brush work.

Done with my left hand. (off-hand)

I'm back!

2011-01-21T15:21:00.000-08:00

I'm back!

For those of you that don't know, I had a stroke October 14, 2010. I wasn't able to speak for a week, but I am working with a speech coach, and my right side was paralyzed, but I am getting better. I only use a wheel chair when I am going shopping, and I can also walk around my house without my cane. I work out every day: lift, swim, spin, and I go to physical therapy every other week.

The support has been amazing! Friends, people I don't know, and relatives have donated dinners, supported the Art Walk, posted on Facebook, helped give my kids rides to sports and school, and just shown up!

I have started to draw and paint, and even though my right side is paralyzed, all of the information is still in my head and I just have to train my left hand.

The picture I put up here is my work with my left hand....

Portland Streetcar

2010-09-22T10:50:00.000-07:00

7"x 5"
acrylic on masonite
sold

I loved the light filtering in through the trees and the color of the streetcar!

"The Portland Streetcar is a system in Portland, Oregon that opened in 2001 and serves surrounding downtown Portland....It is the first new streetcar system in the United States since World War II to use modern vehicles. " ( from Wikipedia)

Color Sketch For Shea Center Painting

2010-08-23T10:35:00.001-07:00

5"x 7"
Acrylic on board

Here is a color sketch for a painting I'm doing for an auction for the Shea Center in San Juan Capistrano, CA.

"The J.F. Shea Therapeutic Riding Center is dedicated to improving the lives of people with disabilities through therapeutic horse-related programs."

"The Center's staff is highly skilled in developing and delivering therapeutic programs to address physical and cognitive challenges. We have treated more than 70 physical and cognitive challenges including: cerebral palsy, spinal cord and brain injury, muscular dystrophy, mental retardation, Down syndrome, multiple sclerosis, attention deficit disorder, autism spectrum disorders, and hearing and visual impairment."

I was able to tour the center while visiting Southern California this summer and was very impressed with the facility and the services they offer.

Plus, my sister works there! ;)

The painting is of the open space in San Juan Capistrano and is done from a photo, with permission, from the Friends of Sam Allevato website.

Finding Paintings In Random Photos - Girl In Surf

2010-08-04T21:59:00.000-07:00

Girl In Surf
16"x 8"
acrylic on canvas

I painted this little girl to go with the little boy painting I posted on 6/15/2010 . I painted them side by side to make sure that I captured the same color and light. I found both of these children while searching through random photos I took at Newport Beach in southern California.

The little girl is easy to see at the right side of the picture.

The little boy is harder to find, but he is also on the right side of this picture.

By taking random photos, I am able to capture spontaneous and natural postures that may only last a moment.

I am always excited to see what I have captured when I go searching through the photos after I've loaded them on my computer. I often find several moments to paint in each photo or combine elements from several photos.

Really, I'm not a very good photographer so I am THRILLED if I find something to paint! Taking 'random' photos is my cover for not taking 'good' photos! ;)

Early Morning Along The 5

2010-07-28T19:07:00.001-07:00

5"x 7"
acrylic on masonite

I like to ride shotgun when I'm in the car so I can take pictures out the window as we drive. It's safer than when I'm driving! ;)
This shot was taken driving north on the 5, just outside of LA at about 8 a.m. The light was beautiful!

Where's The Balance?

2010-06-15T10:49:00.000-07:00

16"x 8"
acrylic on canvas

May was a challenging month.

I was fortunate to be in two art shows, but needed to paint at least 10 pieces within a few weeks. I kept thinking, "I hope I can do this." "I hope this works".

That's why Seth Godin's blog post caught my eye:

" 'This better work'

... is probably the opposite of, "this might work."

"This better work," is the thinking of safety, of proven, of beyond blame.

"This might work," on the other hand, is the thinking of art, innovation and insight.

If you spend all day working on stuff that better work, you back yourself into a corner, because you'll never have the space or resources to throw some 'might' stuff into the mix. On the other hand, if you spend all your time on stuff that might work, you'll never need to dream up something that better work, because your art will have paid off long ago."

On the one hand, I was thankful for the shows and the deadline and the challenge to get the work done. I didn't have time to over think. I just painted. I produced more than I thought I could. In fact, I believe that two of my favorite pieces were the result of the time constraint. I was thinking, "this might work" and it did!

On the other hand, I sometimes felt that I was rushing the process and working just to get done and not taking the time needed to paint something great.

Yesterday, without a deadline looming over me, I found myself spending hours sifting through my photos, trying to decide on something to paint. Something that 'better work'. I looked and cropped and thought and doubted. Should I? Shouldn't I? Is it good?

I didn't get any painting done.

For me, there seems to be a fine line between having enough space to create the stuff that 'might' work (within which I find the stuff that 'does' work)

and

having TOO much space and time to, over think, over plan and never do.

Where's the balance?!

I need to use the time to paint and know that it 'might work' and if it doesn't, I still have time.

Afternoon Chat

2010-05-31T07:14:00.000-07:00

Afternoon Chat
16" x 20"
acrylic on canvas board

In the crazy, busyness of life as a homeschooling mother of 4 active kids, I find myself continually drawn to finding, contemplating and painting simple moments: appreciating and applauding those who find a way to slow down.

A recent painting for the show "NW Art Herstory" on June 4th.

End Of Day

2010-04-21T05:48:00.001-07:00

End Of Day
8"x 24"
acrylic on canvas

One of the things I loved about moving from southern California to Portland, Oregon was the ability to drive west for five minutes and see beautiful farmland. This piece will be in the Art and Agriculture show at the Columbia Center for the Arts Gallery in Hood River in May.

Here's a detail of the above painting. I love the span of color I can get when mixing green with ultra marine blue, cobalt blue, raw umber, burnt sienna, nickel azo (one of my faves!), yellow ochre and hansa.

Big Yellow Bag

2010-02-06T18:22:00.001-08:00

10"x 10"
acrylic on canvas

This is from another random photo. I was initially drawn to the composition, the light, color, the girl contemplating her laptop, but surprisingly, I really enjoyed painting her big yellow bag!

Painting available at Paradise Perks in Irvine, CA

Finding Paintings In Random Photos

2010-01-22T19:47:00.001-08:00

I find that I am always taking my camera with me, wherever I go, looking for inspiration. Sometimes I just take random pictures as I am passing by, especially if there is interesting light, shadows, colors, or shapes that catch my eye. I am always excited to get back to my studio, download the pictures and revisit the images I took, often not knowing what I will find...as in the above photo.

It wasn't until I started looking closer and cropping that I found the beautiful light and shadow play, the wonderful color palette and the peaceful image of someone enjoying tea on a lovely afternoon with a close companion! AND THEN it wasn't until after I started painting that I noticed the person sitting in the shadows, on the ground petting the dog!

10"x 10"
acrylic on canvas
Available at Paradise Perks

Late Fall In Downtown Portland

2010-01-14T17:04:00.001-08:00

8"x 10"

acrylic on masonite

This painting is of a street in downtown Portland, Oregon. I thought it would make a nice compliment to the two previously posted paintings of San Francisco and New York City. I was struck by the very different color palettes of the cities.

8"x 10"
acrylic on masonite
San Francisco

8"x 10"
acrylic on masonite
New York City

After The Tree Farm

2009-12-30T10:19:00.001-08:00

8"x 10"
acrylic on masonite

Out in the Hillsboro, Oregon countryside, a favorite seasonal tradition for many is to go to the tree farm, find the perfect tree, and stop at McMenamin's Rock Creek Tavern for one of their fresh brewed ales, a hearty meal, and a roaring fire in a down-home, log cabin atmosphere. The history of the Rock Creek Tavern dates back to the mid 1920's when it started as a small country store. "Bombed in the 1930's, closed up at the end of the '60's, run over by a car in the late 1990's, and twice destroyed by fire over its 80+ years, and yet, here Rock Creek Tavern stands...". Thank goodness! Cheers!

Satsuma

2009-12-02T11:28:00.000-08:00

5"x 7"
acrylic on masonite

Satsumas are widely available in the stores now and a family favorite!

Shadows and Saturation

2009-11-18T14:42:00.000-08:00

8"x 10"
acrylic on masonite

One of the fun things about the current image from Karin Jurick's DSFDF challenge, was all of the red I found in the figures after enhancing the saturation in photoshop. Playing with the saturation and hue in photoshop has helped me to look for and see color where I hadn't before and as helped me to expand my color usage in my painting.
For this painting I used: ultra marine blue, cobalt blue, yellow ocre, hansa yellow, cad red lt, napthol red lt, and raw umber and titanium white. Oh, and a litte green gold!

Different View

2009-10-28T12:28:00.000-07:00

Karin's original reference photo

5"x 7"
acrylic on masonite

There were two things that I particularly appreciated about the current painting challenge from Karin Jurick's DSFDF. First of all, the reference photo provided a new subject matter with a multitude of cropping options. Using someone else's reference photo gives me the opportunity to see through different eyes and broaden my artistic view.
Secondly, I ended up using a limited palette of colors: cerulean blue, burnt sienna, hansa yellow, a little raw umber, a bit of ultra marine blue and white.

Challenging Cupcakes

2009-09-16T15:19:00.001-07:00

Karin's reference photo

Okay, so Karin Jurick posted a photo of colorful cupcakes to paint for the current Different Strokes for Different Folks Challenge. I thought, "How fun! This should be easy." Not so! It was hard. But I loved it!
What I loved about it was that Karin referred to the artist Wayne Thiebaud who is one of my favorites. It was a good reason to pull out my book and notes about him.
He uses incredible color in his paintings, but I also noticed that he spend a lot of time looking at positive and negative shapes, and shadows, and pattern/repetition....so I decided to go in that direction.
The drawing was hard! (I think it was the frosting!) And then I wavered between using two or three values or pencil or ink.....I tried them all and ended up with this. The end result may not reflect all of the time and thought that went into it, but it was a very valuable process to me and I enjoyed the srtuggle!

A Bunch of Beach Cruisers

2009-08-12T09:03:00.001-07:00

16"x 16"
acrylic on canvas

I'm working on a series of paintings for a show At Paradise Perks in Irvine, California on August 29th. Because I'm painting for Southern California, I get to revisit my roots and reminisce. After living in the pacific northwest for almost 20 years and being surrounded by many serious cyclists, it's been fun to remember the lazy summer days of my youth and paint a bunch of beach cruisers! However, cruising the boardwalk in Newport Beach is considered a very serious sport by some!

'09 Volleyball T-Shirt Design

2009-08-10T10:24:00.001-07:00

Original art

front of shirt

back of shirt, right shoulder

Because my husband is the head girls' volleyball coach at Sunset High School and my daughter is on the team, I get to design a volleyball t-shirt for the camp each year. It can be intimidating, frustrating, and fun!

Intimidating because I want to create a design that girls and boys ages 12-18 will like. The timing is perfect, however, because I can look through the back-to-school ads to see the latest fashion trends.

It can be frustrating because I'm not savvy on the computer and do all the art by hand, hoping that I give the printer enough information and they can figure out what I want! They did a fabulous job!

Fun because it is so different from the other art I am doing and my kids get excited and involved and I see my t-shirts all around the school!

I used watercolor paper, ink, a dip pen, water sprays, salt and splatters for texture.