Laura, 12x16"

Laura is a very special student of mine.  She started in my teen class when she was in middle school, and now here we are, several years later, and she's become a wonderful artist and a lovely young lady on the brink of adulthood.  I look at "my kids" sometimes and wonder how it's possible that they've grown before my very eyes and I don't feel a moment older.  But I also feel very lucky for having known each of them.

Jose, 12x16"

First, let me say that Jose is a very very nice man. He provides many of our frames at the studio, and was gracious enough to sit for us for a couple of hours yesterday.  He looks slightly menacing because I decided to paint him that way.  The direct stare and lowered lids can give the viewer an uneasy feeling. As a contrast, I painted the background in "friendly" pastel shades to try to lighten the mood!

"Still Water", 7x5"

Don't worry folks, the snow hasn't hit Illinois already.  I painted this one from a photo that one of my students brought in to class.  Thanks, Dixie!  Once again, I painted on top of thick gesso applied to a hardboard which gave wonderful rough textures.  Another painting with a mind of its own!

For purchase information, please click on Ann Feldman Still Water.

"Red Scarf", 12x16"

The last session of my portrait class at Mainstreet was last Monday.  We spent six weeks together, going over the fundamentals of portrait drawing and painting.  We started out drawing portraits in charcoal, and then progressed to painting with a limited palette of colors.  The painting above was painted with Ultramarine Blue, Cadmium Red Medium, and Cadmium Yellow Pale--  that was it!  So interesting to see how many colors can be made using just the three "primaries".

We ended the session with a live model sitting.  Nerves gave way to intense concentration, and some wonderful paintings were produced!  I was so proud of my class!!!

For purchase information, please click on Ann Feldman Red Scarf.

Frozen Creekbed, 7x5"

This one was fun to do. As a demo in my Impressionism II class, I took a hardboard and spread super thick gesso on top of it.  After it had dried, there were all kinds of cracks and crevasses to paint on top of.  It was impossible to be too exact with this one, since the thick gesso dictated the direction of much of the paint.

I think everyone enjoyed stepping outside of their comfort zone on this one.  I know I did!

For purchase information, please click on Ann Feldman Creekbed.

Aspens in the Snow, 6x8"

I love it when the snow falls and the Aspens still have their fall colors in Colorado. It's a magical time that is irresistible to paint!

For purchase information, please click on Ann Feldman Aspens.  Thank you!

Bridges Over the Neva, 10x8"

Even though I've been teaching like crazy these last few weeks, I haven't been able to get St Petersburg out of my mind, and I return to my easel to paint my memories of this unforgettable place whenever I get a moment.

For purchase information, please click on Ann Feldman Bridges.  Thank you!

"Don't Fence Me In", 10x8"

This painting was done from a photograph on a wonderful website called Lee A Brown Photography.  Lee Brown is a professional photographer who shares his work with us and invites us to paint using his references.  This piece is from Telluride, and is this month's painting challenge.  You should check this website out!

I painted this landscape upside down.  No, I wasn't upside down, but I flipped the reference over and painted the entire thing without looking at it right side up.  This is the result.  I challenged my Impressionism students to try their hands at it, and we were all amazed at how quickly and loosely they covered their canvases.

I may never paint a landscape right side up again!  I may have a small problem when I paint outdoors.  Time to sign up for yoga!

For purchase information, please click on Ann Feldman Fences.

Morning, Neva River, 10x8"

The dome of St. Isaac's Cathedral is visible almost everywhere in St. Petersburg.  Luckily, our hotel was just across the street from this landmark, so we knew which way to point ourselves at the end of the day.  My favorite time to photograph the city was in the morning when the light hit the sides of the yellow and white buildings along the river.

To bid on this painting, please click on Ann Feldman Neva River.

Early Morning, St. Petersburg, Russia, 10x8"

We are back from our unforgettable trip to Russia.  A week in St Petersburg was barely enough to scratch the surface of all the city had to offer.  Naturally, the highlight of the trip for me was a day spent in the Hermitage--I made a bee line for the Impressionist wing, then I wandered about aimlessly for the rest of the day, getting lost and surprised at every turn.  I'm told that if a person took one minute to look at each object in the Hermitage, it would take seven years to see it all.

This painting represents my impression of early morning on the Neva River which runs throughout the city.  Wandering around the city is an adventure in itself, considering that all signs are unintelligible to American eyes, and the language-- forget about it!  I felt like I was truly in another world.

To bid on this painting, please click on Ann Feldman St Petersburg.

Autumn Reflections II, 10x8"

The fall here in the Midwest has been spectacular.  I couldn't resist painting another scene with our autumn colors!

Thanks A Latte, 8x10"

Hi Friends,  Thanks to all of you who have been showing support to me these last several months.  You know who you are-- blog followers, students, teachers, neighbors, friends old and new.  You've taken the time and effort to give me encouragement in some way, and I am so grateful.

Thanks a latte!

Vasanti, 12x16"

Hi Friends,
Several people have asked if I could show my painting process when painting from a model. This morning, I painted Vasanti at Mainstreet in a span of about 2 hours, and for once, I remembered to snap a few photos as I went along. I hope that you enjoy seeing how a portrait evolves!

Starting with a greenish-gray tone on my canvas, I use charcoal to make a horizontal mark for the top of the head and the bottom of the chin. I use the width of my hand to determine the size of the head on my canvas. I decided to make this one slightly smaller than life-sized, so the span of my hand will account for the entire head. Life-size would be just the chin to the hairline.

Using a measuring stick, I compare my model's head length to her width. In this case, her width is about 3/4 of her length. I drew vertical lines with my charcoal to show this relationship.

Next, I found the horizontal halfway mark on my box and drew a line through it. I found the halfway mark on my model and realized that the halfway mark went through the space between her eyebrows.

Using the halfway mark as my guide, I sketched in the major shadow shapes on her face.

Switching from charcoal to paint, I started to mass in my darkest values.

Once my darks have been established, I switch to my lighter skin tones.

Using the dark shadow areas as my guide, I can "see" where the dark irises belong.

I add detail to the features,

And swipe the color of her scarf across the canvas using a palette knife. I'm happy with the likeness of the portrait, and I like the bold color of the scarf. I hope that you enjoyed the journey with me!

Alex, 12x16"

Hello Friends: I had about 2 hours with Alex to paint his portrait the other day. Since I know that I'll only have a short time, I know that I won't have a complete, detailed portrait at the end, but I do like to have a few things achieved:

1. Do I have a decent likeness? The only way to get a painting to look like the sitter is to spend a lot of time in the beginning with the underlying drawing. I try to never rush the drawing. Careful, slow observation and measuring are so important. I'd rather have a well-drawn portrait with no color than a badly drawn portrait in beautiful hues.

2. Do I have a good sense of light and shadow? The excitement in a portrait often comes from the lighting on the subject. With Alex, I pushed the lit side of his face to contrast with the shadows under his cap. I also tried to remember that the black of his cap in the light will not be black so the light will show on it.

3. Do I like the painterly quality? At the end of my time with the model, I'll stand back to see if I can lose some edges or add some thick opaque paint to give the painting more interest. I went back into the lit side of his face to lay thick new color on top of what I had already established. I scumbled the paint a bit on his shoulders and added highlights on his nose and cap.

I love painting from the model because it forces me to be decisive and quick. This method of painting is a lot like perfecting a golf swing or playing the piano-- the more you do it, the more automatic it becomes. And the happier you'll feel!

I Swam Upstream for This? 6x6"

This is the latest in my "Sushi Monday" series.

For purchase information, please click on Ann Feldman Sushi.

A Slice of Paradise, 6x6" (Sold)

What can I say?  It's sleeting outside, and I needed to paint a little corner of paradise.  Have you heard of the challenge site The Virtual Paintout? Every month, a new location on Google Earth is chosen, and artists  can look around virtually and find locations to paint!  This one is from Elba Island, off of Tuscany.  And it was a breath of fresh air for me!

Nichole on her Birthday 12x16"

Harvard Yard, 6x6"

I captured this brief peaceful moment in my sketchbook when I was visiting daughter Emily in Boston.  I transferred it to a board and did an oil sketch of the scene, trying to keep it very spontaneous and impressionistic.  The scattered colorful chairs were a visual treat!

For purchase information, please click here.

Peppers & Potatoes, 6x6"

Did you know that the "Color of the Year" is Tangerine Tango?  Well, neither did I!  This week's painting challenge on the Daily Paintworks site is to use this super bright warm red as the basis for a painting.  I used it undiluted in the red pepper, then mixed it into most of the other colors in the painting.  Then, I fried up an omelet and ate my setup!

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Breakfast T, 6x6" (Sold)

This little painting is a study in "controlled chaos"!  Many students ask me how to loosen up their painting style and become more impressionistic in their approach.  In this case, I used large flat brushes and lots of thick paint to lay in the color after I drew in the major shapes.  Then, I went back in with a slightly smaller flat brush to put the structure of the pot and its contents back in.  I tried very hard not to touch the color areas that were working, so that the freshness of the paint wouldn't be ruined.

One other thing that I kept in mind throughout the painting process was to use straight lines whenever possible.  Look at the top of the teapot.  Even though the lid is circular, I painted it in consecutive straight lines.  It reads as round, but the straight lines give it a spontaneous quality that I like.