This week I have created 13 pastel Art Cards, ACEOs.  Art Cards are 2 1/2 x 3 1/2″ – in any medium … the size is what makes them ACEOs.  They have become a very popular, affordable way to collect an artist’s work.  I had mainly been making digital paintings that I made into Art Cards … and prints of some of my larger vibrant, colorful paintings.  But by popular demand (and the call of my muse), I am painting new vibrant, colorful pastels using traditional mediums right in the studio … totally away from the computer.  And it feels great!

Summer Morning, Pastel © Diane Clancy

But today I have been realizing part of what is so so great about working digitally – once you create the piece, you have it already to go!  It is easy to print because the colors on my computers generally match reasonably well with the printing from my archival printer.  The prints I make are rated to last 100 years … so the prints I create will last you a long, long time …

But when I scan in the little ACEOs, the color doesn’t translate as accurately to the computer.  I also need to protect the scanner from the pastel, so I use this shiny paper I bought years ago.  I read about it as a way to protect your scanner and still have fun, messy things to scan.  Once I get the digital file, I need to analyze what the color shifts are.  Some of them need to just be lighter, or shift the reds more toward magenta … or … or … and the beat goes on.  So it is a lot more work to get from a digital file to the printed art when I start with traditional medium.  But the pastels and other paints and papers are SO much fun to work with.  Yes, I know I could photo them too … and that is another set of problems.

This is one of my very favorite ones of the new Art Cards … I love the way certain blues and yellows bounce off each other – I have loved this color combination since I was a child .. even though you would never know that by the lack of frequency I use this combo.  My favorite colors – as you  may have have guessed – are magenta/hot pink, aqua/azure  and violet/purple. These colors just make my heart sing … I love them!! I love the way this trio interacts with each other .. I go around and around with which one is my favorite of the moment depending on the shades.

But also the way this particular bright, light, vibrant blue plays together with a clear, bright, light yellow – oh, it always grabs me and transports me into joy.  Did I ever mention that the unifying theme of my work is color?  Thanks for stopping by and I would love to hear about you!

Thank you for stopping by!

~ Diane Clancy

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These two vibrant, colorful paintings are identical except for their colors … So their structures are the same, their composition, but the hue (color) is different.  Which one do you like?  How does the difference in color change the feeling of the image?  I get such dissimilar feels from each of these.

Name VIII, Digital © Diane Clancy

Is there anything you would like to share about how each of these affect you?  Do you have any names?  When I am working with a digital image, often I play with shifting the whole hue/color of the painting to see what grabs me, which version sings to me.  This was one where 2 very disparate versions each spoke to me very loudly, clearly and insistently.  Usually I choose one version and then that composition is locked into that color for good.  All other versions are banished forever.

Name IX, Digital © Diane Clancy

When 2 distinct translations each speak very strongly to me, then I wait until the allure of one disappears … then we have a winner.  Neither of these deferred …  they each insisted … so I am sharing them with you to hear what you say.  I would love to hear how the different colorations speak to you .. and of course, if you have any ideas for names, I would appreciate hearing them. Thank you for stopping by! I would love to hear about you!!

~ Diane Clancy

Technorati Tags: Diane Clancy, vibrant colorful painting, color, hue, mood

How about this vibrant, colorful painting ..  what does this say to you?  There are fantastic comments from yesterday’s painting ..  I haven’t been able decide the name for yesterday’s painting yet … but I would LOVE to hear what you say about this one!  Today I was also very busy and not able to write very much today … but I will sometime soon.  Thank you for sharing your thoughts with me!!

How About This One?, Digital © Diane Clancy

Thank you for stopping by!  I would love to hear about you!!

~ Diane Clancy

Technorati Tags: Diane Clancy, vibrant colorful painting

Technorati Tags: color

I know I entered one the last 2 days, but I had so much fun that I wanted to make another entry that would feel very different! I like to enter the 2 Things Challenge each week. This week is Dead & Alive. It was fun once I thought of the concept of live emerging from death!! I thought you might like to see last week’s entries …. they are here. Anyone can join in, and I hope you give it a try!! We would love more people playing with us! Details are at this link above.

Renewal Dead & Alive, Digital © Diane Clancy

I have done 12 versions of this … 6 of them in this color scheme. I was going to show you the 6, but … I make these in Bryce and Bryce creates a tif file that is a Preview type (a generic graphic program.) I open the Preview file in Photoshop and do my prep work there, make it bigger, add a signature and generally make it mine.

This morning I had the 6 Preview files open trying to decide which I liked the best … to show you. I was going to show you all 6 because I thought it would be helpful to see the difference … but then I opened all 6 in Photoshop and it changed the color drastically. So there were sort of 12 versions … Then I went back to Bryce and the color looked different yet there …

Saturated Renewal Dead & Alive, Digital © Diane Clancy

So I got discouraged and decided instead to write about color shift from program to program. I knew the colors shifted between Preview and Photoshop … but usually the more vibrant color in Photoshop is what I like. This time it reduced the subtleties and differences between the images.

I am learning so much about Bryce as I am working on these paintings … shifting fog and seeing what happens … shifting haze and seeing what the difference is. I learn the most when I have a picture almost where I want it but not quite .. so I tweak and tweak.

I have now gone and reduced the saturation in Photoshop so I like the painting better – it was irritating me. But I have decided to show you both versions so you can see the difference.

OK, now I have gotten both versions up online and they don’t look all that different to me … and!!! they are less saturated than they were on my computer screen.  Yet I am looking at them on my computer!! But even between browsers there is incredible color shift. Well, you have a post about color … and perhaps that is interesting to you. I sure hope so!

Yesterday I made it to my Remicade day for the Crohn’s Disease I have. They were a little leery about giving it to me since my lungs are still not very good … but they decided it was ok. It had been hard to walk for about a week from arthritis, and the Remicade helped immensely!! The initial use of Remicade was for Rheumatoid Arthritis – I guess the 2 diseases have a lot of similarity because we with Crohns often get their medications after they get them.

I got a higher dose than I have ever had because it was being less effective … so hopefully I will notice a great difference and start to feel more energy than I have in months!! Thank you for all your caring and healing thoughts!!

~ Diane Clancy

Technorati Tags: 2 Things Challenge, Bryce, color, color shift