Paintings With Soul

"24K Bun," 8" x 10", acrylics with gold leaf on museum quality panel, depicting a very content bunny rabbit encased in gold. Yup, gold - not gold paint, but gold leaf. This painting is $499 with complimentary shipping inside the US - if you are interested, please  let me know .  SOLD (thank you!) I've been curious about the difference between metal as a surface (painting on copper) and metal as a layer (using leaf). Today my friend Deb gave me some gold leaf to try out and I got experiment (thank you Deb!). There's pros and cons to each, and perhaps in the future there might even be a piece that combines both. But for now I'm very happy with what I am learning. And the way this one turned out. (And there was lots of giggling at the gold flaked boogers I blew out of my nose earlier too.) (And in case you recognize the bunny , this is an older painting that I reworked with my paint pens, fresh dashes of saturated color, a few value sh...

"Legs," 24" x 36", acrylics on museum quality panel, portrait of an Arabian filly. She's a chestnut filly, so she's destined to grow up sassy and opinionated. This piece will be offered to a select audience when completed. If you are interested, please let me know . We established that yesterday's easel time was worthless. I couldn't do anything right. And my inner critic had at me about it all last night, too, saying horribly mean things despite my feeding her chocolate. I mean, I stuffed it in her mouth, Ghirardelli dark chocolate, the good stuff. I couldn't shut her up. Today, though, today was a fresh start. I threw yesterday's 6" square panel into the "Paint Over Pile" with great pleasure, then unwrapped a 24"x36" panel and started a nearly lifesized foal portrait.  Because nobody tells me I don't know how to paint. You can follow along with the progress of this one online if you wis...

From last December, this was a Christmas gift I couldn't share for fear of ruining the surprise. "Buster," 6" x 8", acrylics on museum quality panel, commissioned portrait depicting a family member who is dearly missed.  If you are interested in commissioning a portrait, let me know .  Rough day at the easel. I tried a particular composition at least 5 times, but I might as well just been sleeping at my desk. Still not clear why it wasn't working, but I did fine tune my sanding and wiping skills. Then I went and ate a lot of cheese. I've been on a cheese kick lately. And worked on my new website. Now I'm off to teach art journaling class. The day hasn't been a total waste. Thanks for your interest in my artwork, Kim ksantini@turtledovedesigns.com  

"Airplane," 9" x 12", acrylics on cradeled panel, depicting one of my favorite goldens doing his favorite thing. Dogs + water is always a win, unless you are wearing light colors. As always, inquiries may come to me .  I have been slowly reworking this piece, making adjustments that pop Bear's head towards the viewer and add depth to the sluicing water. There's lots of wonderful little passages made all the more fascinating by a slip of a doodled line and dashes of complimentary color. This piece is earmarked for the Historic Yellow Springs Art Show (Chester Springs, PA) this spring. Stay tuned - I'm sending them a dozen little gems. Thanks for your interest in my artwork, Kim ksantini@turtledovedesigns.com  

In process, "Toile Tabby (Mona Lisa)," 6-1/2" x 6", acrylics on copper panel, portrait of my ever willing studio muse and tabby cat, complete with her air of mystery. When finished, this piece will be $599 to the first asking nicely. As always, inquiries may come to me .  I don't often force myself to take time away from the studio, but did so this weekend. Sometimes one can benefit from shutting down - or trying to shut down - the incessant color mixing/painting/composing/problem solving that goes on in one's head.  In my case, I returned to the studio early this morning - 7am!! - eager get to the easel and a bit more clear headed and focused than I have been as of late. The break (including a massage, reading, knitting, baking, journaling and family time) was good for me. And here I am at 11pm, readying to call it a night. Because when inspiration calls, my brushes are compelled to get to work answering. Thanks for your interest in...

"Mona's Nest," 11" x 14", acrylics on museum panel, portrait of my studio muse Mona Lisa, $1259 to the first asking nicely. As always, inquiries may come to me .  Today didn't go as planned, but I tried to roll with it. Sometimes that's how things play out. What matters is that I didn't beat myself up, I worked with what I was given, and I made it to the easel long enough this afternoon to finish Mona. Thanks for your interest in my artwork and here's to a better day tomorrow, Kim ksantini@turtledovedesigns.com  

In process detail of "Mona's Nest," 11" x 14", acrylics on museum panel, portrait of my studio muse Mona Lisa, $1259 to the first asking nicely. As always, inquiries may come to me .  When my kids were little, we used to make huge piles of blankets and soft sweaters and snuggle in to read together. I knew they were upset or didn't feel well if they asked to make a nest. It was our first defense in making things right. I wish I could make a nest for everyone in the world who's hurting. There seems to be sadness and strife and terror and loss everywhere I look. I want to make a nest for each person who's heart aches, and tuck them in with a dog eared copy of Hug . Today I did the next best thing. I painted a nest, read my kids' well loved copy of Hug, and visualized comfort radiating out into the world. Thanks for your interest in my artwork, Kim ksantini@turtledovedesigns.com  

All finished, "Caught," 8" x 12", acrylics on copper panel, portrait of a Golden Retriever complete with ball, $849 to the first asking nicely. As always, inquiries may come to me .  I've been thinking a lot about Daily Painting, the habits it has instilled in me, and how they might - or might not - serve the final painting.  One of my takeaways from my nearly 10 years of daily painting is that, originally, my goal was to complete a painting in a day. In the beginning, painting a 4"x5" portrait in one day was a big challenge, and as I became more comfortable with that, I expanded my focus to include larger and then more complex paintings. However, I have realized that limiting myself to one day just isn't the best approach for the sort of artwork I now want to create. I need to simmer with the paintings, consider and try out various solutions to my intended end. And that can't be boiled down into a specific length of time. ...

In process detail, "Caught," 8" x 12", (detail approximately 6" square of the entire painting surface), acrylics on copper panel, portrait of a Golden Retriever with HER ball, $849 to the first asking nicely. As always, inquiries may come to me .  I am getting caught up in the intricacy of the marks and layers of paint. Wanted to share all the lusciousness of that with you. This part takes time, as I paint the whole image, scratch, sand and distress it, then repeat. Over and over until it looks just right. It's almost just right. Thanks for your interest in my artwork, Kim ksantini@turtledovedesigns.com  

In addition to the paint pushing happening in the studio these days (I am so excited by the new pieces in the works!), there's a lot of soul searching going on as I examine the practices I've refined and look at how they might - or might not - get me to where I want to be. Certain habits are simply not conducive to reaching my goals. Like checking email first thing in the morning. Over a dozen years ago, this particular habit originated from a desire to offer great customer service and a quick response time. But what I didn't see *until now* is how email often eclipses my intended goals for the day.  Additionally, my greatest painting energy is in the morning, and that gets lost when I sit down at the computer first thing. So why am I doing this still?! There's so much I want to accomplish with my life, and that means buckling down and being effective, Now. Looking at my goals and cutting out those habits that distract or postpone or even interf...

"Blaze," 8" x 12", acrylics on copper panel, portrait of a lovely Gypsy Vanner mare, $849 to the first asking nicely. Because it's on copper and you need to SEE the light move across it, here's an in process video . As always, inquiries may come to me .  This morning I made some changes to Queenie which I am very pleased with, and then started Blaze. The unfinished/sketched in areas of Blaze are intentional. I want the copper to read as more than just an element of the background. I also thought it interesting that as I painted the green ground in, I subconsciously made a box around the focal point. Similar to the painted sketches I used to make, where the animal's face projected from painted "windows." I loved that effect, so left it in here as well. So now comes the tough part - what to paint tomorrow?! and isn't that a lovely problem to have! Thanks for your interest in my artwork, Kim ksantini@turtledovede...

"Queenie," 8" x 12", acrylics on copper panel, portrait of a very relaxed yellow labrador retriever, $849 to the first asking nicely. Here's an in process video where you can better appreciate the play of light on this painting. Inquiries may come to me .  I worked a little more on Annie's latest portrait last nite and made a mess of things (photo in above link conveniently taken prior to mess being made). So today I wanted to tackle a painting that was firmly entrenched in my comfort zone. Enter Queenie, from a friend's photo I have been wanting to paint for years (thank you Jen!). And of course I take my sweet old time with this one, savoring every brushmark, doing it all by the book, thinking it's all finished, scan it, and only THEN do I see some changes I want to make.  Grumble, grumble, grumble. Thanks for your interest in my artwork, Kim ksantini@turtledovedesigns.com  

"Selfie 1-1-16," 19" x 24", acrylics on bristol board, not for sale. NOTE:  When I first shared this on Facebook, I got flack because I wasn't smiling/people thought it wasn't flattering. But Glamour Shots wasn't my goal. Yes, I look tired here, and that's because I am. Holidays are emotionally and physically exhausting and I'm owning that outright. In my jammies, with wild hair and my favorite warm scarf. So there. I spent yesterday making a killer ginormous breakfast for my family. Then we all enjoyed quiet time with our own goals and wishes for this coming year. (Someone also chose to binge on Netflix but I'm not judging) For me it was both personal and professional - it's important (to me) to understand the difference, although they both inform each other. Part of that involved meditation and a review of my numerous journals, where I discovered a predominance of self portraits. I thought, "Self, what are you tryi...