30 in 30....done!!

Here is a collage of my January 30 in 30 day painting challenge!
23 paintings finished, about 3 or 4 paintings started and not finished, and I painted every day! Nine chickens, a bunch of other birds, abandoned buildings, old buildings, snow, mist, barns, a couple of flowers, a ballerina, some Amish kids and an orange and a bowl of eggplants. Sort of all over the board with subject matter...but a learning process in every brush stroke. It was hard, it was great, it was quite the month...Now I will take what I learned, look out February, here I come!!!

"Swan Song"...almost done, but Beth Bathe

"Swan Song", #29/30, 6 x 8, oil on panel

So I titled this painting "Swan Song", because it is getting close to the end of my 30 day challenge. Tomorrow will be my last painting! But don't worry, I'm on a roll and will continue to paint as often as I can. I photographed this swan on an Amish Farm last week. The temps were in the low teen, and there was ice and snow covering the ground. I was freezing and kept wondering why the swans and ducks seemed very content, weren't they COLD?????

Below is the reference photo for the painting

"Still Snow" by Beth Bathe

"Still Snow" #28/30, 6" x 8", oil on panel

Today's painting was started yesterday (I thought I would get ahead. It started as a still life of three flowers in a delft pitcher. I got it blocked in, it had a very dark background and low lighting. I then worked on it all this morning. It just wasn't working. I ran some errands and got back to the studio at 4 pm...I then wiped the whole canvas down (first painting of the thirty that I scraped). So at 4:15 pm, this landscape was born. I wanted to continue to work with snow, and I like how the winter grass peaks through this wonderful snowy drive to an old barn.

"Mama Hen" by Beth Bathe

"Mama Hen", 26/30, 8" x 8", oil on panel

I'm on a roll with the "poultry series". I have even been called the "chicken lady". I had a request to do a hen and chicks and couldn't resist these cuties. I spent a lot of time on the details of the feathers. I usually paint somewhat looser, but I think all the detail works in this instance.

"The Three Amigos" by Beth Bathe

"The Three Amigos", #25/30, 6" x 8", oil on panel

Yesterday while we were out photographing the snow we stopped at one of our favorite bakeries, "The Bird in Hand Bakeshop". They have a small barn and petting zoo by the parking lot. All the animals were inside the barn but came out to see us. I photographed these three fellows, coming out of the barn door. They came out, checked us out, realized we didn't have any food and promptly went back through. 16 degrees, with a windchill of -5 is COLD, even for our feathered friends.

"Rosy Reflections" by Beth Bathe

"Rosy Reflections", 24/30, 9 x 12, oil on canvas

Baby it's cold outside. The high in Lancaster PA, was 17 degrees. We have plenty of beautiful white snow on the ground. I would love to go outside and do some plein air painting! I did go out yesterday afternoon and this morning to get some photo references of the countryside, and brrrr, it was COLD. I love the reflections of the sky in this creek, it was clouding up and the sky was had a warm rosy glow.

"Two by Two" by Beth Bathe

"Two by Two", #23/30, 6 x 6 oil on canvas

So today I didn't get a painting even started! Here is painting done a while ago. I like how complementary colors really make the subjects pop.

"Ballerina at Rest" by Beth Bathe

"Ballerina at Rest", #22/30, 8" x 8", oil on panel

This image was from one photographer Bill Taylor's photo sessions. Biggest hurdle today was painting a figure so darn small, on an 8 x 8 panel her face is barely larger than a quarter! This was a nice study for possibly a larger painting, and I loved painting the tutu!

"Misty Reflections" by Beth Bathe

"Misty Reflections", #20/30, 12 x 12 in, oil on canvas

So here is yesterdays painting...#20 of 30 daily paintings for January. It was too dark to photograph it last night, so here it is in the light of day. This was painted on a black canvas, it was an easy start, very impressionistic, I was really liking the outcome, then as it got later in the day I started to get into the details, first I got too detailed, which was ruining the feel, so then I reworked parts. All in all it was a frustrating, great day of painting, I really learned a lot. I had to deal with the black canvas, a very detailed photo, the atmospheric mist and the reflections in the water...hard, hard, hard....

"Still Standing" by Beth Bathe

"Still Standing", #19/30, 6 x 6 in, oil on panel

This small little outbuilding is located behind a highly photographed and well know grand red barn in the Brandywine Battlefield National Park. This little guy, behind the big barn kept saying to me "I'm here too!"

"Dark Shadows" by Beth Bathe

"Dark Shadows" #16/30, 6 x 6 in, oil on panel

So yesterdays #16 painting rolled over into day 17. for Such a small painting the devil was in the details...I painted the dark shadows first then painted in the light brick colors. Next time I think I might reverse the process!

The subject matter is another of my "Abandoned and Forgotten" series. This is an old snuff mill.

"Waiting For Spring" by Beth Bathe

"Waiting for Spring", 6 x 8 in, oil on linen panel

Ok, so another gray day here in Central PA! It is also day 15 of the 30 day challenge, "hump" day of the week and the challenge! I was wishing for Spring today, and what a better pick me up, a crocus in the snow, announcing that Spring is on its way.

"Eggplant to the Nines" by Beth Bathe

"Eggplant to the Nines", #14/30, 12 x 12 in, oil on canvas

So today I decided to switch it up a bit. First I decided to paint on a black canvas, on a larger size than I normally paint, and to paint a color that is not on my palette, PURPLE!

This was tough start on the black surface, with a dark subject, I blocked in the lights first and tackled the purples second. All in all I think it turned out rather well.

"In the Pink" by Beth Bathe

"In The Pink", #13/30, 6 x 6 oil on panel

#13/30...didn't even get near painting two paintings today, the real world took control. Dealing with contractors in the house, a dead car battery, mailing out three sold paintings (a good thing!), and coming down with a head cold. But this is a quickie...and the model was very still and quiet...Thank you!

"Posies in a Jar" by Beth Bathe

"Posies in a Jar", #12/30, 6 x 6, oil on panel

Another painting with the blue ball jar, #12 of 30. Tomorrow, Monday, I will try to do two paintings in one day...we'll see!

"Seeing Red" by Beth Bathe

"Seeing Red", #11/20, 6 x 6 in, oil on panel

I loved this juxtaposition of rock wall and red window frame. I thought the simple compostion would be an easier painting to paint, I was wrong...

Tomorrow will be day 12 and I hope the sun comes out tomorrow, I need some natural light in my studio!

"Belle of the Ball" by Beth Bathe

"Belle of the Ball", #10/30, 6 x 6, oil on panel

Day, 10 of 30. Wow, 1/3 way through. I must admit the original #10 painting is still on my easel, about half done. This is a stand in #10, one that I did a while ago but haven't posted to my blog. This was a demo in glass and reflections that I did for a beginning oil painting class that I was teaching.

Tomorrow I will post the original #10 that has now been upgraded to #11 (which by the way is my lucky number!

"Forgotten", 8 x 10, oil on panel

Painting #9/30. I have a great love of old abandoned buildings. Buildings that were once useful and powerful structures, are now forgotten, but have become just a visual part of our landscape, loosing their original purpose, but still grand in presence.

"The Flock" by Beth Bathe

"The Flock", #8/30, 6" x 6", oil on panel

Day eight of the thirty day challenge! I had taken this shot while traveling out west in Kansas. The birds were flying all around the cattle, all part of the same "flock" or "herd"...

"At The Fair" by Beth Bathe

"At The Fair" #7/30, 6 x 8, oil on linen panel

Baby it's cold outside! Here is a little girl bundled up at a fair we attended early this past spring. She was loving being near the pigs. So now I have finished #7 out of 30 daily paintings for the month of January. This definitely takes some planning and time, and putting up with less chores getting done around the house. But being that it is so cold outside, it is a perfect time to be in the studio!