Reflecting on the recent drive to the coast on my last painting getaway, I worked from the recollection of the drive, similar other sunset drives, and the view of a sunset in-progress from the balcony of my hotel room. It was a fun quick piece that I did while the sunset flared to full vividness, and finished as it faded.
This piece is a war-themed piece, inspired by the terrifying devastation of drone strikes in modern warfare, and specifically the successful attacks by Ukraine which destroyed Russian ammo depots in the summer of 2024. This piece is not for sale.
Inspired by a vibrant September sunrise at a local trailhead. A favorite source of inspiration for me is the opportunity to watch the sunrise before a hike.
Early work in a new (for me) medium. This piece is inspired by September sunrises I have enjoyed this year at a local trailhead. This piece uses a combination of Sennelier and Henri Roche soft pastels, on Ampersand pastel board.
As was the case when I first picked up a paint brush, in the early 1980s, I find myself most inspired by landscapes presently. Perhaps it is as simple as “seeing them everywhere” that makes landscape painting so approachable when I am exploring the first work in a new medium? Watercolor, oil, acrylic…they each followed a typical (of me) flow, first landscape, then botanical work or some still life, eventually breaking things down in new increasingly abstract ways. I wonder where pastels will take me, over time?
It’s been a bit more than a month since I made the switch from many years (a lifetime, really) of working in acrylic and 3D mixed media. So much has happened since then, and I’ve been enjoying my first explorations in pastel. I’m definitely enjoying the brands I’d selected (a combination of Sennelier and Henri Roche, and a small assortment of iridescent hard pastels from Sakura’s Nouvelle Carre’ line, some of which I’d apparently purchased “back in the day”, and lay long-forgotten in a box).
I took a couple days of solo creative time, late in July, and “played in the colors” without any specific agenda or rigid goals. It was very much an exploratory time, and I enjoyed it thoroughly. The results were sometimes a bit humbling (how am I this messy??), and often satisfying and delightful.
Still, it’s not about neat vs messy, so much as the results, and I am pleased with those. I’ve surprised myself, too; of the new work, one piece is already sold, and two others are already spoken for. I did not expect that. This works for me. I also did not expect this medium to feel so… wholesome? Pure? Freeing.
I’ll no doubt do a post for each of these individually at some point, although they are part of the same weekend’s work. I hope you enjoy taking a look at my most recent work, and the first in this medium.
I’m enjoying a weekend in the studio, and finding much of my inspiration in recent sunrises and sunsets. Quite a bit of new work in progress. Details to come, once pieces are finished, but here’s a sneak peak…
I haven’t made enough room in my life lately for long weekends painting. It feels good to be back in the studio working creatively. I’m eager to see how these pieces develop, and getting them up for sale.
New work. I spent some time in the studio this past weekend (overdue). Filled with inspiration, I wasn’t at all sure my time would actually be productive. Decision-making paralysis is a real thing, and I had “too many ideas” and struggled to steady down and work on just one or two.
This particular small piece was inspired in part by the collaboration with my partner (a different sort of artist), who shot several airbrush backgrounds for me recently that got set aside for later use. “Later” finally came around, and I sat down on a somewhat stressful autumn afternoon to think things over and put those thoughts on canvas. I selected this unusual orange-yellow-peach blended background because it threw my usual color selections out the window and forced some fresh thinking on me. New perspective, and a fun result.
Once this piece is fully dried, I’ll charge up the glow and add an image of that alternate perspective on this largely very hopeful piece. Inspired by love, and gray autumn days, and an old love song.
Here’s the piece with the glow charged…
I recently went wild re-organizing my studio. During the pandemic my studio has also served as my office (as is the case with many artists, I have a “regular” job to keep things steady), and working from home has turned out so splendidly that it’s become a professional preference and a lifestyle. I was overdue to put real thought and permanence into how my working space is arranged. With that done, I have also found myself feeling more inspired. Feels good. I’m hoping to make a more regular practice of posting here, new work as it comes, and also getting some of the older work uploaded and made available for sale.
Yesterday I spent time painting and thinking about my “workflow” in my studio. I finished one small piece and started a couple others. It feels good to be back in the studio. The feeling of joy and creative energy hit the canvas as “California Poppies & Summer Sunshine”, a small 6″x6″ acrylic on canvas, with glitter and glow. I’ll photograph this piece again with other light sources once it has completed dried (there is a lot of glow on this one).
This small piece is intentionally playful. It’s been a lovely summer, and feels worth a little celebration. That’s what this piece has in mind. The smaller image above is intended to provide a perspective a bit more like walking past it (hanging in a corridor, perhaps). If you’d like a closer look…
I’ll update this post with the glow-in-the-dark charged up, later this week.
“Sunset Meadow” 11″ x 14″ acrylic on canvas w/pen&ink, gold, and glow 2015
This smallish piece, at just 11″ x 14″, is the first painting on canvas created in my new studio space. Painting from the perspective of feeling inspired and in love, it is a recollection of those sun-infused summer evenings when the orange glow of sunset seems to fill all the space between things. This painting is in a style I have recently favored, with an acrylic background on which a more delicate image in pen & ink is drawn. I used a gold leaf pen to add warmth to the details, and a bit of glow to give the impression of fireflies and hints of natural phosphorescence that I remember from childhood.
This 11″ x 14″ piece is available for $150.
The Art of M. Elisabeth Howell 