ATC

Ohhh the colors…

~ thepurpledogpaintingblog ~ 23 Comments

Autumn is definitely in full swing.

This a twisted maple in my yard.

Isn’t that a gorgeous color.

This is a watercolor mini I did awhile back.

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I watched an interesting show on “60 Minutes” this week about Van Gogh. I’m sure most people have heard by now that there’s a theory that he did not commit suicide but was accidentally shot. It reminds me of the theory that Gauguin actually cut off Van Gogh’s ear (which is more probable than not, Gauguin was there, he and Van Gogh were fighting , Gauguin was swinging around a sword but he claimed he left before Van Gogh cut himself.) Of course the curators at the Van Gogh museum get in a huff anytime someone mentions that Van Gogh might not have been altogether an insane depressed madman. It just gets them in a right tizzy.

Personally I love Van Gogh. I like most art though the religious works of the Renaissance leave me cold (except for Da Vinci’s, but only because he at least seemed to have a sense of humor).  But either way, I have tried several times to copy Van Gogh’s painting (for practice only of course). After studying his brush strokes and color, I’ve come to one conclusion…

That guy was crazy!!

All those little dabs of color, over and over and over and over…

That and the whole walking over to the brothel and handing his ear wrapped in tissue to a prostitute named Rebecca for safe keeping…

Here’s my ode to Van Gogh.

“Van Gogh’s Cat”

(please note this is not a copy of a real VG painting, it’s my tribute to him)

Acrylic, 2.5 inches by 3.5 inches.

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Here’s a couple more ACEO’s (Atc’s, minis)

I used to do paper-cutting in the traditional style of Scherenschnitte.

I still do occasionally but this time I was lazy and used ink.

Both are ink on acrylic, 2.5 by 3.5 inches.

“Fish Eyes”

“Mouse Tail”

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And here’s a photo of a llama meditating.

llama llama llama llama llama

Van Gogh should have tried that. It’s very relaxing.

My spell check does not recognize “Van Gogh”. Seriously.

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©Virginia Spencer, thepurpledogpaintingblog.com, 2011

Giraffes? Girafffes!

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I’ve always liked giraffes. I had been taught that giraffes are one of two living species (the other being the okapi) of the family Giraffidae which had evolved from palaeomerycids during the early part of the Miocene epoch. I was taught that they are even-toed ungulate mammals and were herbivores to boot. I was taught that they definitely did not dance.

Silly me.

Fortunately I found this book Giraffes? Giraffes!  The book review in that link says it all…

“Giraffes? Giraffes! is the first in the series, and puts forth the following novel theories: that giraffes were not part of any evolutionary chain, but came here from Neptune, by way of very long (but convenient and fast) escalators; that giraffes are expert dancers, but they become angry if you ask them about their dancing; that giraffes control over 90 percent of what we see in mirrors; that the Giraffe navy is as strong as ever, contrary to recent claims in the popular press.”

I KNEW IT!

Well I didn’t really know know it but I had suspected as much.

Imagine my delight when we went to the zoo and the baby giraffe was out. She and her mother were kept out of the public eye until a few weeks ago. She is 14 months old, is 6 foot tall, weighs 105 lbs and is already proficient in tap and jazz. She will eventually reach 16 feet and weigh approximately 2500 lbs. She looks tiny compared to the other giraffes.

She’s such a doll. She pretty stayed in the same spot for about 20 minutes, then she went over to the fence and tried to nibble on it. The poor thing learned the hard way that the fence is electrified. She wasn’t hurt but she was very confused. She went right back to her spot and stood there looking at the fence to see what else it would do.

You can see how tiny she looks in this photo.

Here’s Mom. She’s lovely isn’t she.

And here’s Baby!

There was also a young mountain goat out and about. Unlike giraffes, mountain goats do not dance.

They do have lovely singing voices though.

This is a mini ( ATC /ACEO) in acrylic.

It measures 2.5 by 3.5 inches.

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©Virginia Spencer, thepurpledogpaintingblog.com, 2011


The tire swing..

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All over the roads of South Dakota we saw abandoned buildings. I always wonder when I see those buildings why they lie empty. I tell myself endless stories of these lost buildings.

I based this miniature on one such building. A house, a home at one time in a field. And behind that house was a tree with a tire wing hanging forlornly from it.

A little bit sad I thought.

“The Tire Swing”, Acrylic, 3.5 by 2.5 inches. (ATC, or ACEO size)

I’m not terribly thrilled with the painting. It’s okay but it’s not what I meant to do. I like the tree and the swing but not the rest. Goes to show that art like anything else is not all talent, it takes practice and when you don’t paint for a little bit you get rusty. I think that may be what discourages so many beginners. They think you need a lot of talent when it’s more like you need a good eye (or talent if you prefer) and a lot of practice. So if you’re a beginner, or just haven’t done it in years, take your time and and do many many paintings. Don’t be too hard on yourself, it will come.

In case you’ve been wondering Dummy did go on the trip with us. I’m not sure where he’s gone off to though…

Oh there he is!  Climbing around Custer State Park.

He’s so agile.

Oh dear….

©Virginia Spencer,  thepurpledogpaintingblog.com, 2011

Artist Trading Cards (or ATC’S, ACEO’s or minis, whatever floats your boat)

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Recently I  joined a trade on Wetcanvas. For those who aren’t sure what I’m talking about. An ATC (artist trading card) is about the size of a baseball card and can be in any medium. And you trade them like baseball cards to other artists. It’s fun, you get to meet artists all over the world as well as being  great practice. Plus it’s nice to get real mail once in a while as well.

If you’re in this trade with me stop reading this until you get your mail.  😀

The theme of this current trade I’m in was Animals. Here’s a couple I did. These are all the size of a baseball or playing card..they will appear larger on your screen then they actually are. These are all acrylic, except for the skunk which is pen on acrylic.

Hope you enjoy.


Dummy is off on vacation. I am hoping to join him soon!

©Virginia Spencer, thepurpledogpaintingblog.com, 2011

Learning from the masters…

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I recently participated in an ATC trade. The theme of the trade was to  learn from some of the great artists. It was interesting. I learned many things, mostly that I prefer to do my own paintings!

This one is based on Cezanne’s self-portrait. Acrylic, 2.5 by 3.5 inches.

This is based on a Monet. Acrylic, 2.5 by 3.5 inches.

These two are pencil sketches based on Waterhouse’s sketches. Pencil. 2.5 by 3.5 inches

I’ll be adding some works in progress posts soon, as well as some tips and advice on painting.  As always any critiques or comments are welcome.

Miniature Crane Painting

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Alright, so I’m not the most technological person. But at least now I know what a widget is. It’s  (and I hope the techno terms don’t go over your head) the thingy that puts little thingys over on the side of your page. Why? I don’t know. How? I couldn’t tell you. But I have widgets. Better than having fleas I suppose.

Here’s a crane.

 Acrylic, miniature, 3.5 by 2.5 inches.

©Virginia Spencer, thepurpledogpaintingblog.com, 2011

Hello world!

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 I suppose my first blog post should be something terribly clever and interesting. But frankly I’d be impressed after diving into the blogging world with butterflies in my untechnological tummy if I could come up with a coherent thought. So instead here’s a pelican….

 Miniature acrylic, 2.5 by 3.5 inches.