Watercolors by Celia Blanco

"Pushed by the Wind" watecolor on paper 8" x 12"/ 20 x 30 cm I was back painting plein air at my favorite beach spot this weekend. I tried to narrow down the focus on the enormous clouds and the water. The kitesurfers were out trying to catch the waves, driven by the wind. It's a very daring sport. I threw the surfer in at the last moment while he stood still for a moment.There are a lot of varying colors in this landscape. It always makes me think back to my painting teacher's lessons. When painting landscapes,  avoid the sky is blue, grass is green approach. Painting what we think we know but not what is actually in front of us. I saw every part of the landscape was the color it was not "supposed" to be. The ocean, for instance, had an array of colors. In the distance there were turquoise and blues. As it came nearer it changed to purples and the browns-reflecting the sand below. The sky seemed yellow and violet, the sand green. I tried to fi

I have taken up a 30 day marketing challenge hosted by Leslie Saeta . She is a marketer turned artist, offering daily ideas on marketing artwork. She has some great suggestions, one is to  create a collage that features your paintings. I used PikMonkey for mine or you can also use iPiccy. These are some of my favorite paintings, I think they do show an array of subject matter. I don't like to stick to just still life’s or portraits but am interested in light and color, showing the joy intrinsic of simple moments and objects. I'm not after ground breaking ideas, I just love the process of painting and illustrating the world around me. I am representational but do not strive for photo realism. I admire people who achieve it but would never have the patience for it.  Thank you for taking the time to visit my blog!

Beach day plein air sketch I was able to do a plein air painting at our local beach recently. These works are in order to help me improve and increment my landscape painting skills. I wanted to catch the mood of the morning which was somewhat overcast and despite the ominious weather there were a  few people out on the water enjoying the sea. What I find the most challenging about landscape painting is trying to pick out what is important and dealing with the landscape constantly changing. With a medium like watercolor it can be daunting because you need to plan things in advance. I like the way this approach pushes me to be quicker and to prioritize in order to have the important bits down as I observe what is in front of me before it changes. when I was getting ready to leave, the beach was filling up in spite of the bad weather I dropped my pallette in the sand :(

"Purple Tulips" 10".5 x 14"/ 27 x 36 cm I began this painting back in March and was hoping to have it finished by Easter ... well I'm a little late. I worked on it and in trying to imitate the purples in the photo it was just coming out terrible! I am even too embarassed to show you what level of horrible I achieved. I didn't want to give up so I wiped it out and started over. I'm happy with it enough now, I've discovered how difficult it is to work with the color purple. There's a lesson in every painting! Gratitude goes to Deb Brookshier Photography for allowing me to use her image: fresh tulips would have never lasted this long. Have a great weekend everyone and thank you for visiting my blog!

plein air sketch from Pineta Sacchetti Park I have had one of those weeks where you have a million things to do all at once and you don't know quite where to start. Fortunately an appointment brought me next to this park which happens to  look over St. Peter's Cupola and allowed me to have some painting time while I waited. Pineta Sacchetti Park is an integral part of the Regional Park of Pineto , a protected natural area of about 240 hectares , located between the districts of Aurelio in Rome , Primavalle and Triumphal Way . I packed my Cotman pocket box and some paper and managed to get some sketching in while I waited. What I find impressive is how large the cupola appears live even if it is far in the distance. I felt I might have made a  mistake in my sketch but it really is that massive.  I had to be back in the same location again later in the week  for yet another appointment and did some drawing in my sketchbook while waiting. This time I wanted to

 I would like to share with you some sketches I did this morning. The beach is not  far from my house and we enjoy going there as often as we can. We were out early to try and beat the crowds and found a lot going on.  I didn't bring an eraser with me in order to force myself to draw and avoid trying to get the drawing just right. I often end up spending more time erasing than drawing! I wanted to capture a moment and challenge myself with a moving subject. I have difficulty with people moving, which they do especially when caught up in activities like fishing or enjoying a family day at the beach. There was a fishing contest and I tried to capture the fisherman in action. This family came out for a playdate. If you get  far away enough you don't bother them, obviosly people don't always take so well to being subjects of someone drawing them.

"Rainbow Oranges" watercolor on paper 10" x 7"/ 25 x 18 cm. I had a hard time getting going after the Easter holiday but I've been slowly working on this painting every time I had five minutes to spare here and there. I feel it's finished, I am afraid to overwork it at this point. For those of you who are not familiar with the Tarocco blood orange, it is a treat around this time of year here in Italy. They explode with juice and color when sliced. In our family it's almost like a prize to see who gets the darkest and juicest one at the table.  Some people have it down to a science to know which one will offer the darker flesh just from the color of the peel. I was hoping to capture the explosion of juice and color as the warm Roman sun hits across its dark flesh. I would like to rename these fruits rainbow oranges for the celebration of color that they contain.

 I started this painting to experiment with texture creation. I first poured a diluted wash of yellow and blue onto the paper. It was raining, I let the rain fall onto the paper. I then poured salt onto the wash to see what would happen and I laid down different items onto to the paper to create patterns. I exposed it to the outdoors on a table for about a day and a half to dry. I drew the eggs and then masked them out while I worked the background. Next, I painted the eggs and finished off  the grass by adding more splashes of color. I used dental floss and a hair comb to create the "blades of grass" effect. All in all, I'm happy enough with the finished painting to share it with you! "Egg Hunt" watercolor on paper 11.5" x 8"/ 29 x 20 cm Best wis hes of serenity and happiness to everyone! work in progress pictures

"Lily" watercolor on paper 10" x 7"/ 25 x 18cm.     SOLD   Imagine the delight to discover this flower growing in your garden. I painted this from a reference photo, once again inspiration was provided by the Wet Canvas image library. I am trying to work on loosening up my edges more, but it's not as simple as I would hope it to be.  Spring is here, spring is not here - the weather doesn't make up its mind and I have a terrible cold to boot!  I wish everyone a happy Monday!

"White Roses" watercolor on paper  10" x 7"/ 25 x 18 I have been struggling with flowers. I started a painting last week which wasn't working out and ended throwing it away. There was too much going on and no inspiration. It's also a  nice feeling sometimes to be able to separate oneself from what we are creating and have the courage to start over. Next, I chose this image for its monotone color palette, attempting to simplify things for myself.  I've been noticing that I get more hues when I use less colors in my palette. Funny! I think it's the magic of watercolor. Gratitude goes to the fantastic free image library at Wet Canvas where I found this photo reference to work with. Today we celebrate Father's Day here in Italy. It's celebrated on the Feast of St. Joseph. I wish everyone, especially all the fathers and Joseph's out there a special day!

"Poppies alla Jan Kunz" watercolor on paper 11.5 x 8 inches / 29 x 20 cm.    work in progress, developing the flower shapes and adding detail my wash drying  I  recently acquired a copy of  Jan Kunz's   watercolor art book "Painting Watercolor Florals that Glow" . I've been pouring over the abundant, valuable information she offers: she is an excellent teacher. I have followed up with an attempt at one of her demonstration paintings which can be found at the end of the book. This excercise contemplates "discovering shapes within the composition." It means trying to pull out shapes in a background, in this case leaves and stems within a charged wash in the watercolor. She provides step by step instructions on how she approached this particular task. It was a huge challenge to attempt to emulate her work - mainly because I wished my painting to look somewhat like hers, I felt discouraged when it did not. At her suggestion, my palette was

"Here Comes the Sun" watercolor on paper 11" x 15" / 28 x 38 cm. I took the photo in December, the sun just couldn't manage to stick around for long. It must have been around 3pm, the sun was already setting. I was hiking in the Monti Simbruini mountain range, in central Italy even though it looks like it could be anywhere in the world.  These mountains are a beautiful protected area and great place to enjoy the peaceful sounds of nature, healthy air and sun. I wish everyone a great weekend and many thanks for the attention!

"Sweet or Sour?" watercolor on paper 9.5 x 6.5 in./ 23.5 x 16cm Not everyone likes onions, maybe because they make us cry? Lemons are sour, if you have some of their juice drip on a cut you won't forget to avoid it next time! There are a few metaphors about onions and lemons. I n the movie Shrek, for instance, it is mentioned that a person can be like an onion because you may find yourself pulling back the layers . Or the famous quote about making lemonade when life gives you lemons. My painting is no longer just a still life anymore or just the thought that the color of certain items look pretty together. It is hard to always find such deep meaning in what we are doing nevertheless sometimes it emerges effortlessly as we work.   As I painted I discovered onions do have many layers, they sprout at a moment's notice and as much as lemons, are indispensable in any kitchen. In a word, sour but sweet!

I have started a new still life painting this weekend  and would like to share my progress. I found some ruby red onions at my local farmer's market and have fallen in love with the color. I thought of colors that would complement the purplish red peel and attempted to build the still life around them. Sunlight is my illumination of choice because I think it complements food well. I am lucky to have a copy shop near my home. I get them to print a full size photo so as to work simultaneously from both life and photo. This is necessary because I don't always manage to complete the project in one sitting. This way I keep a reference on hand of my original lighting situation, while still looking at the real still life. Thank you for taking the time to view my work! work in progress

"Sprinkling Love" watercolor on paper 10.5" x 12" / 26 x 31 cm. "Sprinkling Love" is a painting I hope will be able to extend its message beyond Valentine's Day. Barely a week has passed, just like Christmas, the message is always valid, we should keep that loving spirit going all year! Even a week belated, I wish everyone a Happy Valentine’s day full of sprinkling love and with the hope that I'm not turning intolerably sweet myself!

I would like to share my progress -it's going slow... I am not a portrait expert but I love portraits and like to tackle areas where I can improve, to avoid being bogged in conformity. I feel I can approach this much like I do a still life or city scene. It's always shapes, hues, light and trying to get a likeness, hopefully.  I think the main reason why people shy away from portraits is the fear that it won't look anything like the person you are painting. I painted a portrait of my daughter last year and most of my feedback was just that, it looks nothing like her. This is wonderful practice because this image is just an image. I don't have to show this painting to the family and get the "it doesn't look anything like her" bit. It's a great way to practice portrait painting! I'm also having trouble with either the paint or the paper. I'm not sure which. It's not letting me scrape anything off, the paint is just stuck to the paper (Strathm

work in progress  12" x 10.5 " I would like to share my very beginning progress of what I'm working on. It took me only two hours just to get the drawing down ... I really wish I were faster. I draw onto the paper because I don't like tracing. I thought it would be fun to paint this very cute little girl. The reference is mine and it's a section of a photo I took at my daughter's Valentine's Day party many years ago when she was in kindergarten. I love how she is completely taken up by her cookie and pouring on even more sprinkles.  It was not my idea to give the kids their own bottle of sprinkles, by the way! This is also my first experience stretching watercolor paper. I have been  keeping my work small but would like to work bigger. Hope everyone is having a great Valentines Day!

This is a collage of the 30 paintings created by me during the month of January. I wish everyone a good weekend!

" A Different Perspective" watercolor on paper 7.5 x 11 in./ 18.5 X 28 cm. my first painting in the challenge, 30 days ago This is my thirtieth painting-taddah!!! I titled my painting "A Different Perspective" because I feel I have a new perspective on life after having completed this challenge. Thirty days ago, I threw myself into this with the hope of sharpening my skills and improving, in some way. I can paint every day but the  challenge for me was to complete a painting everyday. I feel I've gained speed all around and am more confident . I've gainded a better understanding of color choices and know exactly what color will produce the effect I want. I feel I'm gaining in the ability to control the water. Once you get your creative juices going, you just want to keep going! I know this is just a drop in the bucket and I have still a long way to go in gaining skill but I feel I've learned an invaluable lesson. I started out with a c

"A Cool Pear" watercolor on paper 6 x 4.5 in./ 15 x 11 cm. A pair of pears painted with two different color palettes. At night, using only a limited cool palette consisting of: lemon yellow, alizarin crimson, cyan blue, pthalo green, coeruleum blue and vandyke brown. My daytime pears instead I used only a warm palette consisting of: cadmium yellow, cadmium red, ultramarine blue, burnt umber, permanent green and yellow ochre. I worked the colors using mostly wet into wet technique. It is very difficult for me to limit myself to only six colors. I have a "the more the merrier" approach to color and hope this excercise will, at least, teach me to be more selective and to think more about color properties. Day 28 and 29 can be checked off! "A Warm Pear" watercolor on paper 6 x 4.5 in./ 15 x 11 cm.

"Can It" watercolor on paper 5.5x 7.5 in. / 13.5 x 18.5 cm.    I was drawn by Carrie Waller's beautiful paintings of glass and especially her Ball Mason paintings to attempt to mimic her work. I am in awe of the beautiful darks she achieves in her paintings and the strong contrast with light in her compositions. It's a great practice to try and learn from artist we admire. I also am a huge fan of Ball Mason jars, I take great care of mine and have had them for years.

"Rainy Day Primrose" 6 x 8 in./ 15 x 20cm. watercolor on paper It's a rainy Monday and I thought that painting some flowers might cheer me up. I tried a looser approach with a bigger brush ( size 20 ). This is day 26, only four paintings left. See the other artists who are participating in Leslie Saeta's painting challenge by clicking here

"Citrus"  15 x 6 in./ 38 x15 cm. watercolor on paper I changed paper size in order to accentuate the composition for this still life. I have much citrus fruit around, it abounds this time of year. My mother-in-law gave me many freshly picked lemons from her neighbor's tree, which I plan to paint in the near future. This is day 25, I really plan to take a little break when this challenge is over.

"Fancy Whiskey" 6x7.5/15x18cm Nothing like having a glass of whiskey in a fancy glass. This was a wedding gift and something that gets used seldom. With all its cuts and reflections, this would have been easier to do from a photograph and I can see why watercolorists prefer that. Our eye reacts to color so much more in reality than in a picture, it's good to have a balance between the two. This is day 24 of 30, see the other artists who are participating in Leslie Saeta's painting challenge by clicking  here.

"Brushes" 11.5 x 4 in./ 29 x 10 cm. watercolor on paper I am enjoying painting daily but find it difficult to keep up with the snappy titles. I usually give it a lot of thought but can't think of anything else except "brushes". It's also difficult to paint a painting in natural light with a quickly setting sun. At one point I was in the dark but couldn't turn on the light so as not to change the shadows too much. Maybe I should rename this painting " Twilight Brushes"?  A little more expressive. I never managed to catch up with the challenge, this is day 23 and I'm still a day behind. I will do 30 paintings nonetheless but I don't think I will manage to do them in the time allocated. Have a great weekend, everyone!

"Feelin' Blue" 6 x 7 in/ 15 x18 cm. watercolor on paper I'm feelin' blue, blue, blue...this is day 22! See the other artists who are participating in Leslie Saeta's painting challenge by clicking here

"Different but the Same" watercolor on paper 7 x 6 in./ 18 x 15 cm. These two pieces of fruit are different but the same, pretty obvious. What I also mean is I tried to work the two fruits at the same time, not just individually. I was thinking back to my art school days and remembering a lesson about not just focusing on one piece of the painting at a time but to work on it as a whole. As I used one color on one piece of fruit, I would also work on the other, trying to unify the painting.  So nine more to go...

"Blue Watering Can"  8x6in./20x15cm watercolor on paper This watering can is a favorite item of mine. I painted it already last spring (shown below, have I improved since then? ) and was happy to do a solo portrait this time. I seem to always get behind on the weekend.  I should be on day 21 today and this is yesterday's work finished only today. I feel a little slow but decided to take my time nonetheless, enjoying the process. This is my twentieth painting, painted from life for the 30 paintings in 30 days Leslie Saeta challenge. "Watering Can" 8x11 watercolor, painted last April 2012

"Little Carnations"10x15cm/ 4x6in. watercolor on paper   My last piece of postcard paper,finally! I'm happy because I normally don't like to work small. This is my last study of these little carnations. This is day 19 of the 30 day challenge.

watercolor on paper 8x11in./ 20x28cm. I wanted to try something out of my comfort zone and decided to approach this watercolor in a new way. I began painting with a large brush(#20) on a larger piece of paper than I've been using( the postcard size). No prelimanary drawing, just painting. This is number 18 out of 30 in the challenge.

"Little Carnations"  9.5x6.5in./17x24cm I'm just going to keep it short. I decided to work differently and experiment with my artist pen and watercolors. Hope you have a nice weekend! See the other artists who are participating in Leslie Saeta's painting challenge by clicking here

"Bromeliad" 10x15cm/ 4x6in. watercolor on paper I love Bromeliad plants because of their easy care and tropical feel, they make me think of Hawaii- a place on my bucket list (I would love to be there today!).  I am presently focusing on various greens and trying to create contrasts in the shadows. I have commited myself to painting a painting a day for the month of January, this is day sixteen. See the other artists who are participating in Leslie Saeta's painting challenge by clicking here work in progress

"Secret" 10x15cm/ 4x6in. watercolor on paper Ssshhh, I've got a secret. I've been in my daughter's room, looking at her nail polish collection. Please don't tell. I've fallen in love with the multitude of glittery colors, it is hard to pick just three to paint. I am aware that it is a girl thing. It makes me think of the "Pretty Little Liars" books/show she loves. I find it relevant that certain seemingly meaningless objects are so important to us and reveal much about us. My daughter is more than just a nail polish collection, of course, but it's seeing it there on her desk with a certain light, etc. that it's like listening to her whisper to me. I hope it makes sense to someone... Well, this is my day 15 out of 30 paintings.

"Bonne Maman" 10x15cm/ 4x6in. watercolor on paper Gingham style or french style. I love the red and white gingham lid of the "Bonne Maman" jams. They have such a homey feel and the labels seem like they were written by hand (even if they are mass produced). I didn't know this, Bonne Maman is the largest exporter of jam in the world. This is my day fourteen of the 30 paintings in 30 days (See the other artists who are participating in Leslie Saeta's painting challenge by clicking here).