Caution:Artist at Play-Artwork by Shana Rowe Jackson

Just Me © Shana L Rowe Jackson Phew...Time really flies!! It has been far too long since I have written. I have had a lot going on lately and it has been a whirlwind. Most recently I have been getting myself prepared to go back to school. I will be starting in the fall to get my Bachelors in Art, very exciting and nerve wracking but I am ready to start this new chapter in my life. In between work and preparing for school I have been falling deeper in love with colored pencils! May 8th was my one year anniversary with this medium! I have been delving into realism, and my skills as an artist have really grown. My interest lately has been portraiture, but I really love drawing anything that comes up. I think I have found my medium of choice! As an artist I am always growing and experimenting though, so check back in a few months and that may change :). It's funny because I went a very long time always painting and never drawing, and now it seems I always draw and never

I just ordered my first few copies of my calendars for 2015, and can start taking orders at anytime. Calendars will be $15.00 ea (additional shipping charges may apply). Here are the previews for each calendar!! Email me at shanaroweart@gmail.com or shanarowejackson05@aol.com for more information or to order a calendar.   In other exciting news, one of my colored pencil drawings, "Being a Girl" made it into the gallery section of the September 2014 issue of colored pencil magazine!!! "Being a Girl" 11"x14" © Shana L Rowe Jackson 2014 To get prints of this drawing click on the picture of it above!! For more information about Colored Pencil Magazine, and the September 2014 issue or to get copies of it , click the link below. Colored Pencil Magazine

   Sometimes, when you work a lot, or have a limited income it can be hard to travel very far to get inspiration and reference photos. This can force one to look closer at the things around them, and find compositions that they wouldn't ordinarily think of. This has been what I have been up to lately, partly because I don't travel much, but also because I think there is something wonderful about taking something simple and using it to make a beautiful painting. Growing up I learned at a really young age that you work with what you have, (hence the fact that some of my first paintings were done entirely using q-tips because I didn't own any brushes at the time.) Spring is the perfect season for this, and the macro setting on my camera has been my best friend. I have been scouring my own backyard looking for small flowers, plants and animals that call to me, waiting to be painted. I have also taken reference photos of clothing and random things around the house, when you find

   I have to say one of my favorite things about being an artist is learning new techniques. The possibilities are endless, and there is always something new to learn, no matter how seasoned of an artist you are. I love the feeling I get when I read something or see something that I didn't know before, especially when it comes to a classic medium. Artists as a whole are innovative, we love to push the limits, experiment and see where things go. Because of this, on the internet and in books, you will find so much information just waiting to be learned, put there by generous artists who want to share their hard learned treasures with the rest of the world. No man is an island. This is especially true for fine artists, and a surprising reality for the self taught. Being self taught does not mean you do not learn from others, it's that you go and seek the information out for yourself instead of having it thrown at you in a classroom setting.    Recently I have been playing around

"The Big Countdown" First Painting of 2014!! "Free as a New Years Resolution"  Well, another year has passed! 2013 was an interesting year for me with a lot of ups and downs personally and financially but overall I had a lot to be grateful for, especially with my art. I participated in my first gallery show in 2013, and was a part of three in all. I have my work displayed at the Maine State Capital building in their Senate Republican office and at a local restaurant, also firsts for me. I believe I reached new heights as far as technique goes, I was able to explore more in oils, which has been a wonderful experience, and have grown in realism technique. I started two new series', My "Summer Flight" series and my "Revival" project. I added multiple paintings to my "Life in the 'Dale" series making it my largest ever series, and my Freedom Fairies Collection, making it a close second. Recently I have been getting b

  I have been in the throws of inspiration this lately, and have created SIX new pictures since last week. One was a landscape strait from imagination, the next was inspired by a photo my husbands friend let me use,  then a heartwarming photo of my dog Max, a sketch of my cat Puff and the other two were additions to my "Revival Series" I think I pretty much covered every medium this week. :)   On Tuesday the 9th I had the opportunity to paint with a local painting group called the Tuesday group. It was nice to paint with others for once, and after we took sometime to critique, which was a really nice change for me and I learned a lot. I didn't really know what I wanted to paint, so the night before I did a quick landscape sketch from my head, and that's what I ended up doing. It's called "Daisy Lane" it's 11"x14" acrylic. I finished most of it there, then did a couple updates that were brought up during critique when I got home. I can'

"Every portrait that is painted with feeling is a portrait of the artist, not of the sitter." -Oscar Wilde "My True Colors" Self Portrait, Colored Pencil and Marker © Shana L Rowe Jackson 2012   Portrait and figure painting is very exciting for me. There are many things to factor in, not only do you have the same challenges with composition and color mixing as with any other painting, but you also have the challenge of creating a likeness to the sitter. Likeness is not only shown in a persons face, but body language as well, so it is important to pay attention to both in order to capture a persons essence. Likeness paintings can come in many shapes and sizes, they can be of one person, many people or even of pets (just because it's a Dalmatian doesn't mean it looks like all Dalmatians). Whether you are doing a close up (shoulders up [Portrait]) or far away (whole body [Figure]) view, likeness is very important. Looking at the painting below you