You Are My Sunshine, A Lesson Painting, Part II of II

Shall we recap?

Yesterday, in celebration of little Mona Lisa's 1st birthday, I began a kitten lesson painting. You can see what was accomplished in my blog entry from Monday.

Picking up where I left off, I began laying glazes* down on the background/floor. (*A glaze is a transparent layer of paint which allows the layers underneath to peek through, while also creating an illusion of "floating" brushwork.)

Multiple layers of glaze have reduced the color saturation of the yellow and orange without reducing any of the "shimmering" effect they created.

I also started putting more color into the kitten, molding and sculpting her form with my brushwork. Working from a 1" flat to a smaller 1/4", I finished Mona out with a handful of carefully placed whiskers and fur. There's no need to paint all of them - the viewers eye will fill in the necessary details.

And here she is, all finished: "You Are My Sunshine," a Gratitude Painting, 11" x 14", depicting the studio's littlest muse and rescue kitty Mona Lisa. Done in Golden Open and Heavy Body acrylics on an Ampersand Gessobord, $568 to the first one asking "purr-ty please." Which can be done via email.

SOLD.

Thanks so much for sharing my art with your friends and family,

Kim

ksantini@turtledovedesigns.com

Gratitude Paintings

I'm currently working on a series of paintings starring rescued animals, which I have titled "The Gratitude Project."

I've called them such because only an animal can overcome homelessness, being abandoned or mistreated, to willingly supply a lifetime of faithful companionship. It's a life lesson I can personally take note of while trying to be more open hearted and forgiving myself.

Each original in the series is earmarked for proceeds to benefit a particular group. Usually it is the group that initially rescued/rehomed the animal. Furthermore, when reproductions (giclees and notecards) of the same painting are sold, the proceeds also benefit animal welfare.

It's my way of staying focused on the positives and working to make a difference. Even if it's only a few lives, it's a few more lives touched than were I to sit on my butt all day and eat bon bons.

If you know of a rescued animal or a non-profit group that deserves to be part of my Gratitude Series, please let me know.

Thanks in advance!

Tabby Kit

"Tabby Kit," 5" x 7", acrylics on a museum quality panel, depicting a tiny little orange striped guy from Morgue File . This painting can be yours for $289, which includes s&h inside the US. And in case you didn't see it, a little doodle of him is also available for sale here . Inquires may come directly to me . Although it certainly doesn't FEEL like spring here (snow and ice and wind chills, brr!), I can tell that spring is coming. The mercury is rising a wee bit each day and the days are getting longer and brighter. Over the weekend we drove with the moonroof open just to feel the sun's meager and oh-so-very-welcome warmth (although the heat in the car was cranked, too, in the interest of full disclosure!). I wanted to work with spring-like colors today, and this little guy was still on my mind , so I grabbed a small panel and got to work. Of course, I also have Poppy to finish and some changes to make to another po

“Rapt (Shadow),” from the Larger than Life series, 16”x22”, acrylic black lab mixed breed pet portrait on gallery wrapped canvas, $699. Inquiries to ksantini@turtledovedesigns.com . SOLD. This is Shadow, who went missing on Sunday night. He belongs to a friend of mine, and has been a fixture in our community for many years. Errant fireworks scared the silly old guy into running off, and his family is busy searching for him. (If you happen to be in the Lake Orion/Oakland County area and have seen Shadow, please call 248-391-0867 or 248-391-6817) I’m confidant that he is safe (somewhere!) and awaiting discovery, but meanwhile, couldn’t help myself from posting his portrait as today’s dog a day painting . He’s constantly on my mind, and probably will remain so, until he finds his way back home. Hug your four legged guys while you can! Thanks, as always, for looking. And for sharing these paintings with friends and family, Kim Kimberly Kelly Santini http://www.turtledovedesigns.com/ dis

NEW! Etsy Store

One of my favorite unsold paintings from 2008, "Lashes & Corkscrews," 5" x 8", acrylic on canvasboard, depicting a tobiano buckskin curly horse, $289. Inquiries to ksantini@turtledovedesigns.com (but read further on how you can get a special deal on this painting!). Now it's ridiculously easy to browse my painting archives. All you have to do is visit my Etsy store . Etsy has a Shopping Cart (so you can pile it high with purchases from a variety of artists), is integrated with Paypal (although you may still pay by check if you prefer to), and is terribly simple to navigate. When the week has ended, I will have listed almost 100 of my favorite (UNSOLD!) paintings here, grouped loosely by subject matter. During 2009 I'll update the shop regularly, and add non-Dog-a-Day pieces as a bonus, thus making it easy to search for that perfect gift. Watch my daily postings for announcements, promotions and discount codes. If you do not receive the Dog-a-Day emails (

Paintings With Soul

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