Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all of you!
Hope that 2016 is filled with JOY, PEACE, LOVE, and ABUNDANCE!
Thanks to all for reading my blog!
Melissa

Riverbank Hues

"Riverbank Hues" was born from a desire to paint the beautiful woods and forests of winter. Just wandering in the park and seeing the different colors, thinking about how even while dormant, everything is FULL of LIFE, makes me really appreciate this time of year. Nature never asks questions. The seasons march on no matter what, answerable only to the conditions. It's a little like a giant metronome, keeping the beat of life.

"Riverbank Hues" • Original mixed watermedia on Arches 140# cold press paper • 11" x 15" • Sold

I will be offering a workshop in this technique Saturday, January 23, 2016. See my website at  http://www.melissagannon.com/workshops/index.html  for details.

Two Swans

I love the grace and beauty of swans. I also love it when I am able to take really good photos of swans! These swans were a pleasure to paint.
I masked the whites with white gouache and let that dry. Then I spritzed with water and floated acrylic inks and high flow acrylics over the piece. When that was dry I washed off the white gouache. I finished the piece with watercolors. I really like the effect of using white gouache as a mask. Some of the colors go through a bit and the edges look natural. Because the gouache has to be washed off, the background needs to be acrylic or something that won't wash off.

"Two Swans" • Original mixed watermedia on Arches 140# cold press paper • 5" x 7"

If you're interested in purchasing this piece click HERE.

Magic in the Air

I've been working on this piece for a few days. I started with watercolors and acrylic inks and added texture. This kind of piece is always challenging to finish but I'm pleased with the result.

'Magic in the Air" • Original mixed watermedia on Arches 140# cold press paper • 15" x 11"

If interested in purchasing this piece click HERE

A Place by the River

I've recently been doing a lot of painting using watercolors and acrylic inks. The colors are strong and the atmospheric qualities are really AWESOME! Trying to figure out how to finish them without compromising or losing all the texture is very challenging.

In this piece I wanted to really show the overgrown riverbank. These kinds of places look really disorganized to people but every plant and every leaf is placed to get maximum sunlight so nature probably thinks it's organized! I really love these kinds of places. They have a kind of magic from all the plants but also from being in a place where land and water meet.

"A Place by the River" • Original mixed watermedia on Arches 140# cold press paper • 11" x 15" • Sold

Trees & Lace

I started this piece awhile back and I've been looking at it for at least a month! It's a combination of flowers and trees, two of my favorite subjects! I collaged lace paper for the flowers and painted over that. The whole piece is a combination of watercolor and acrylic inks. I also used some iridescent blue ink on the bottom to add sparkle. This was a challenging piece.

"Trees & Lace" • Original mixed watermedia on Arches 140# cold press paper • 15" x 11"

If interested in purchasing this piece click HERE.

At Home in the Pines

Once again I used white gouache to mask the whites in this piece. I really like this method of masking because the white seem softer. I poured acrylic ink and watercolor ever everything and let dry. After I washed off the gouache, I finished with opaque ink and some watercolor tints.

"At Home in the Pines" • Original mixed watermedia on Arches 140# cold press paper • 5" x 7" • Sold

Dance of Magic

This is an experiment in a more thoughtful and purposeful use of saran wrap. I actually tried to shape it into tree trunks and branches. Then I squirted ink into the crevices and let it dry. When I lifted the saran wrap I saw so many possibilities! So this morning I just had to finish it! I really like the colors and the atmospheric effect of all of the lines.

"Dance of Magic" • Original mixed watermedia on Arches 140# cold press paper • 15" x 11" • Sold

Trees & Grasses

​I’ve been staring at this mixed watermedia wash for over a month now. I’d look at it and see if I could get an idea of what to do with it and then put it back. Today I saw trees! Finally something stood out! So I got out the watercolors and acrylic inks and enhanced what I saw. Enjoy!

"Trees & Grasses" • Original mixed watermedia on Arches 140# cold press paper • 5.5" x 7.5"

If interested in purchasing this piece click HERE.

Alpine Vista

Inspired from a trip to the mountains!

"Alpine Vista" • Original acrylic on 3/4" cradled gessoboard, sides stained cherry brown

If interested in purchasing this piece click HERE.

Magic Along the River

A celebration of Fall!

"Magic Along the River" • 10" x 10" • Original acrylic on 3/4" wrap around canvas, painting continues on sides,
ready to hang

If interested in purchasing this piece click HERE

Maple Tree Perch

The vine maples are absolutely beautiful right now! I really love working these leaf shapes into paintings and it's really fun to collect the leaves! This is my latest painting of a chickadee in the midst of these really cool autumn leaves. I used watercolor and acrylic inks and there's a some small collaged shapes added as well. ENJOY!

"Maple Tree Perch" Original mixed watermedia on Arches 140# cold press paper • 5" x 7"

If interested in purchasing this piece click HERE.

Snowberries & Maple Leaves

​This time of year is really inspiring! I’ve been really looking at and photographing all the changes that happen in the Fall. I live near a park where snowberries and maples grow in close proximity to eachother. I spent an afternoon just looking, appreciating and photographing and now I’m painting some of what I saw.

I masked out the snowberries and their leaves with white gouache and let that dry. Then I spread acrylic inks over the piece, spritzed with water mixed with ox gall, pressed leaves down, covered with saran wrap, then wax paper, then books. I let everything dry for a couple of hours and then removed the saran wrap and leaves and let dry some more. After it was completely dry, I washed off the gouache. I painted the snowberries and leaves with watercolor, used acrylic inks for the background and finished with a mix of watercolor and acrylic ink. It's amazing what kind of world can be created in a 7" x 5" space. Hope that you enjoy!

"Snowberries & Maple Leaves" • Original mixed watermedia on Arches 140# cold press paper

To view price click HERE.

Magical Hues

I've been paying close attention to the turning leaves and noting all of the color combinations that nature is using in this years' fall display! They are AWESOME! I really love the vine maple leaves, partly because they are native and partly because they tend to turn beautiful oranges and reds. I wanted to paint the leaves and combine them with another of my favorite subjects to paint, the chickadee. The mixed watermedia is watercolor combined with acrylic inks and gouache paint. I pressed leaves into the background and masked the whites of the bird with white gouache which I washed off when the background dried. Enjoy!

"Magical Hues" • Original mixed watermedia on Arches 140# cold press paper • 7" x 5" • Sold

Golds & Reds of Autumn

I painted this piece today using really bright colors. I'm really fascinated with how the colors move and gradate at this time of year. Nature makes use of ALL the colors in the color wheel when the leaves turn.

"Golds & Reds of Autumn" • Original watercolor on Arches 140# cold press paper • 7" x 5"

If interested in purchasing this piece click HERE.

Golds of Autumn

Painting the colors of Autumn is something I look forward to every year. Interweaving yellows, oranges, reds, blues and greens challenges my skills. Yellow is actually a really difficult color to paint with and to work into a painting. I feel every time I work with this color I learn something new! Thanks to my brother for the reference photo for this piece!

"Golds of Autumn" • 24" x 24" • Original acrylic on 3/4" wrap around canvas, painting continues on sides, ready to hang

To see price click HERE.

Queen Anne's Lace Workshop

Queen Anne's Lace is a very cool flower to paint. In this workshop we expanded watercolor to include collage. Lace paper collaged onto a watercolor wash represented these lacy flowers. We painted over the collage with white paint to bring them out and added contrast behind the flowers.
See these beautiful pieces below from this really FUN workshop!

Magical Reflections

Have you been to the river lately? Listened to the birds, felt the breeze, and watched the everchanging reflections? Reflections fascinate me. The fluidity of the shape and color changes, the ripples of breeze on the water, the information about the opposite bank presented upside down are things I could probably marvel at all day!!!!!! This piece is all about reflection and it's magic.

"Magical Reflections" • Original acrylic on 3/4" wrap around canvas, painting continues on sides, ready to hang • If interested in purchasing this piece click HERE.

In my recent work and also in my classes, I have been really trying to emphasize beginning with a drawing, breaking it down into 5 to 7 shapes, assigning values to those shapes and then doing a color study. Below is the page from my sketchbook for this piece.

This is my sketch, value study and color study for the above painting. This becomes my map to show me where I'm going with the piece and helps me work out a few color combinations. The colors on the right are watercolor and on the left acrylic. You can see that I did use quite a few of the acrylic colors in the painting.

Changing Seasons Reflections

This is my newest work. I spent a lot of time working on the reflections adding variations of color from yellow to orange to pink to brown and bits of highlights. It's a larger painting based on an earlier piece with a similar composition. It feels very rich to me!

"Changing Seasons Reflections" • Original acrylic • 20" x 20" ready to hang

If interested in purchasing this piece click  HERE.

Queen Anne's Lace

This is my latest piece, a combination of watercolor, ink, gouache and collage. I've had deep rich reds, browns and burgundies in my head for the last few days and just had to make them happen in paint! I built the color beginning with watercolor and ink and then adding glazes of watercolor to deepen the color. The lighter whites and light greens were created with gouache. Washing color over the collage of the flowers in the top left gave a really neat effect because the gel medium acts as a partial resist. There is some iridescent paint in this piece for added sparkle.

"Queen Anne's Lace" • Original mixed watermedia & collage on Arches 140# cold press paper • Sold

All About Reflections

This summer I've been trying to do more 'plein air' painting. It's been FUN! Just observing colors, values and color intensity has been SO informative! Seeing what happens with light and shadow is amazing! Nature creates combinations of shapes and colors that no photo can replicate. An added bonus is painting while listening to the birds, feeling the warmth of the sunshine, and the touch of the breeze. Talk about a COOL classroom!

Below I've included a photo that I took before I started painting. My camera will also photograph in black and white and I've found that useful to really look at values. Next is my value sketch and then the finished painting.

I usually begin on painting on location and then finish in the studio. I start with a value sketch in which I try to very clearly delineate about 5 shapes (sometimes more) and use 3 or 4 values to fill in my shapes. Next I rough in the values and shapes on my canvas and then paint over that. This piece was done in acrylic. I used medium to keep the paint from drying too fast. I can work for about 2 hours this way without having tacky paint.

This is the photo I took before I started. You can see that I really pushed the color in the finished piece!

This is my value sketch. I decided to cut off the top a little. It's helpful to figure out where the sun is! I also date these and note the time and the weather as well as the location.

This is the finished painting! "All About Reflections" •  10" x 10" • Acrylic on 3/4" wrap around canvas, ready to hang

 

If you're interested in purchasing this piece click HERE.

VIEW

 This is a piece I've been looking at for awhile! I started it 'en plein air' and just couldn't quite get to finishing it! So I worked on it today and I think it turned out really well! The placement of the tree is what fascinated me in the field. It's not a placement I would have come up with in the studio. I find that painting on location has so much more compositional variety than painting indoors from photos.

"View" • Original Acrylic on 3/4" wrap around canvas, painting continues on sides, ready to hang

To purchase this piece click HERE.

Color Crescendo

Yes! I HAVE been painting! This is my latest watercolor. I wanted to show the "aliveness" and "power" of trees in the Autumn juxtaposed against a quiet background on the left. I used a lot of Daniel Smith mineral paints so there is sparkle here and there in the foliage. Hope that you enjoy!

If you're interested in purchasing this piece click HERE.

"Color Crescendo" • Original watercolor on 140# 100% cotton Waterford paper • 15" x 11"

Mt. Hood from Trilliam Lake

Sunday I went with my Mom up to Trilliam Lake and painted Mt. Hood. The sky was cloudy, the temperatures very moderate and it even rained a little. We found a little space off the path and sat and enjoyed the view. I did some thumbnails in my sketchbook. Using acrylic I put the drawing on the canvas, blocked in colors and refined my values. Then it was time for lunch! I finished the piece at home in the studio using some of the photos that I took for reference. Thanks to my Mom for driving and spending the day with me!

Mt. Hood from Trilliam Lake • 12" x 12" on 3/4" canvas, ready to hang

If you're interested in purchasing this piece click  HERE.

Plein Air Paiinting

This summer I decided to get up the courage and actually paint the scenery around me. I started with pastels which are very portable, sat overlooking the river and began to paint what I saw. Well, the first thing that I discovered was that what I was painting wasn't what I was seeing! Then I began to really look. How dark is the bank compared to the river?  What is the value of the river compared to the sky? What happens to colors in light and shadow? What happens to the colors on the distant trees? What are the shapes of the values? After practicing with pastels, I decided to try acrylics. There's a particular place where the river goes behind an island and I thought I'd go paint that. I had an idea of where I wanted to sit and even how my painting was going to look—all before I even arrived! Well, I discovered that I couldn't see the view that I was wanting to paint, so I needed to paint a different view. As I was sitting by the river thinking that I was going to paint the river, I kept looking at this grouping of trees and how the sunlight seemed to be lighting the trees behind more than the one in front. In the studio I would have lit all the trees the same way. Well, since I was so attracted to the trees, that's what I painted! The result is "Sunlight on Trees" below.

I learned that I need to be open to what's around me and try to paint what I see and not what I think I'm seeing!

"Sunlight on Trees" • 12" x 12" • Original Acrylic on 3/4" wrap around canvas, painting continues on sides, ready to hang

If interested in purchasing this piece click  HERE.

Land & Water Muse

Here is my latest watercolor. I think I've painted this at least 3 times and finally I was satisfied! One of the hardest things in watercolor is to keep that fresh look. The more you go into a piece and make changes or adjustments, the more you lose all the lovely interaction between water and color. I think that the blues and oranges really work together in this piece!

"Land & Water Muse" • Original watercolor on 140# Waterford paper

If interested in purchasing this piece, click HERE.

Summer Dazzle

I really love watching the hummingbirds! This is my latest hummingbird painting.

Summer Dazzle • 8" x 10" • Acrylic on 3/4" wrap around canvas painting continues on sides

See this piece for sale HERE.

What I've Been Painting Recently

Here are some of my recent pieces.

Oak Tree & Lupine • Original mixed watermedia on Arched 300# cold press paper • 22" x 30" • Available

Nature's Layer • Original mixed watermedia on Arched 140# cold press paper • 11" x 15" • Available

Growing • Original mixed watermedia on Arches 140# cold press paper • 11" x 15" • Available

Above the Ocean

"Above the Ocean" is a textural extravaganza of mixed watercolor and acrylic ink. I began by creating outlines of flying birds. If you cut them out of tracing paper, you can arrange them in a pleasing way on the paper that you're planning to paint on. It's a good idea to make some of the birds appear to be just partially on the painting. This can give a sense of movement to the piece. When I decided on the arrangement, I cut the birds out of contact paper and adhered them to my watercolor paper. This is a great way to mask big areas.

This shows the contact paper birds on my watercolor paper.

Next comes the really fun part! Just throw paint on the paper. I used watercolors and acrylic inks. I spritzed with a mixture of water and ox gall liquid to make the paint granulate and to really make the ink spread. Next I covered with saran wrap.

Here's what's happened so far!

After I let everything dry, I peeled off all of the texture as well as the contact paper.

Here's what the piece looks like under all that saran wrap!

The next step is to finish the birds and add to the background.

"Above the Ocean" • mixed watermedia on Arches 140# cold press paper

I added to the ocean and painted the birds. I really like how the texture worked out in the water.
For more information about this piece click HERE.
cMelissa Gannon 2015

Ahead of the Wave

Last summer I took some great action photos of sanderlings. They are very difficult birds to photograph flying, for me anyway. About the time I get out the camera, turn it on and figure out where to point it the birds are gone! This is one of the first pieces that I've done using my GREAT photos! There is some iridescent russet in the wing. This is a Daniel Smith color and I'd highly recommend it of you're into sparkly colors! It catches really well in the right light.

Ahead of the Wave • Original Acrylic, painting continues on sides, ready to hang

To purchase, click HERE

A Day at the Beach

I've been experimenting with texture and color. In this piece I decided to add shorebirds to the textured background. I really think that the color and placement works! There's also a little iridescent paint if you see it in just the right light.

"A Day at the Beach" • Original watercolor on Arched 140# hot press paper • 5" x 7"

To purchase this piece click HERE.

My First Guest!

Today's guest on my blog is: Annie's Hang Ups.Annie's shop, Annie's Hang Ups, is the BEST place to have your artwork framed. She has been an independent framer/designer for 20 years and offers a huge selection of frame styles. She has framed several of my pieces and always does a SUPER job! She offers quality framing at affordable prices. Stop in today—a place for ALL your framing needs!

Tiger Lily Banquet

I purchased a new paint brush and I've really been enjoying using it! It's a 1/2" flat brush that holds its shape with acrylic paint and has been a joy to paint with. As a counter to the fast drying time of acrylic, I'm also experimenting with acrylic retarder to slow the drying time a bit and keep everything more workable.

I really enjoyed creating the color variations in this piece. I thought that the purple really set everything off when I applied it. There's some iridescent paint in the undercoating for this piece as well as in some of the tiger lily spots. It really sparkles when you look at it. Hope that you enjoy this piece.

"Tiger Lily Banquet" • Original acrylic • 8" x 8" on 3/4" wrap around canvas, painting continues on sides

 To learn more about this piece, click HERE

A Wing and a Prayer

On Sunday I spent a lot of time covering paper with paint, saran wrap, cheesecloth and leaves from my yard. I used watercolors and acrylic ink and hydrus watercolors. Then I put everything on boards, put more boards on top, emptied my bookshelf of books to use as weights and went bike riding and ate dinner. I uncovered treasures!!!!! Below is the beginning to A Wing and a Prayer. The most awesome thing about working this way is that it really challenges my imagination!

This is how the beginning wash looked when I pulled off all of the texture. It's VERY EXCITING!

The next step in a piece like this is: What do I do with it? How do I preserve the quality of the texture while adding elements to create a painting. It took me awhile to think about that. My finished piece is below.

A Wing and a Prayer • mixed watermedia on Arches 140# cold press paper • 11" x 15"

I'm really pleased with the result! To see the price of this piece click HERE.

Painting Mt Hood

This piece is a picture from one of my hikes, a view of Mt Hood from the Pinnacle Ridge trail. It's a very beautiful area with trees, meadows and a very large looking Mt. Hood!

Mt. Hood from the Pinnacle Ridge Trail • Original acrylic on cradled gessoboard • 12" x 9"

Solitude

I have been combining watercolor and acrylic inks and different textures. To texture this piece I used stretched cheesecloth. I was really intrigued by the ripply pattern which was created. It reminded me of water, so I added the heron in acrylic and acrylic ink. I worked really hard to not cover all that captivating texture! See the painting below.

"Solitude" • Original mixed watermedia on Arches acid free 140# hot press paper
sized to fit a standard 8" x 10" mat & frame

 To see the price of this piece, click HERE.

What I am doing with my Friday

I have had a few paintings that needed finishing, so I thought I would get to that today. I got out my watercolors and acrylic inks and set about putting those last touches on a couple of pieces. The pieces are below. I really enjoy working with watercolor and acrylic ink. So many possibilities!

Singing on a Branch • Original mixed watermedia on Arches 140# cold press acid free paper • 11" x 15"

To see the price of this piece click HERE

Another piece that I wanted to work with is below. I decided to add the geese to give movement to the piece. What do you think?

Looking for a Good Place to Land • Original mixed watermedia on Arches 140# cold press acid free paper • 11" x 15"

To see the price of this piece click HERE 

My Studio sale is tomorrow, April 11.

Come and visit and see GREAT art! Click HERE for directions. 

Fuchsia Hummingbird Dance

I have been painting hummingbirds and fuchsias recently. This is my latest piece. I really love the combination of the bird with the flowers!

 To see the price of this painting, click HERE.

Robin in the Tree

This is my latest robin piece. I really like the layering of trees in this piece. The reddish  breast of this bird is such a neat color!

Robin in the Tree • 6" x 6" • original acrylic on 1/8" gessoboard

 Click HERE for price

Playground

Today I really wanted to paint the desert. I love the desert mountains.  I imagine the rivers hidden in the canyons, the different plants living in the different climate zones and the views from the ridge lines. I have 2 long narrow canvases which I've been looking at for the past month, trying to figure out exactly what to put on them. I decided in favor of the mountains I've been thinking about and to try a vertical composition instead of a horizontal one. My brother has been sending me photos of ravens, so I incorporated a couple into my mountains. Ravens PLAY. So I made my mountains into their playground. Thanks to Joe Marek for the AWESOME photos of ravens!
"Playground" the finished piece is below. What do you think?

"Playground" • 12" x 36" • original acrylic • Sold