Caution:Artist at Play-Artwork by Shana Rowe Jackson

   If you follow my YouTube channel, you know that in the past year I had the joy of trying the Holbein Artists' Colored Pencils for the first time. Along with the pencils I was also given the Holbein Meltz Colored Pencil Blender (thanks Holbein!)    I usually use Gamsol Odorless Mineral Spirits (OMS) to blend my colored pencils. However, OMS is poisonous, so I was really intrigued to find out that Holbein Meltz is a water-based formula that does not give off any harmful fumes!    While using the Meltz, I also discovered a trick that I could not do previously with OMS! I could make my pencils act like watercolor! That is, I could scrape pigment off my colored pencil onto a different surface, dip a brush into my Meltz, then pick up the pigment and paint it onto my surface! This is something that is not as easy to do with OMS because of the way it stains the paper. Typically speaking, you need a lot of layers of colored pencil down on your paper before blending with OMS because it

"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

In honor of "Cyber Monday" and the Christmas Season, I am offering a 25% discount on all my prints on FAA. This discount only comes off what I make on the print, and not the material cost (Only FAA can discount on their end) Good through th e 18th, which is the FAA deadline for Christmas shipping!! Good on anything in my shop, no limit to how many times you use the code!! Here is the code!!  VTUFJE    http://shana-rowe.artistwebsites.com/

  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'

    It has been a while since I have written, I have been very busy between my day job and promoting my artwork. I figured I would stop by and share my newest art accomplishment. I have recently gotten seven of my pieces hung in the Senate Republican Office in the Maine State Capital Building!!! The office is just next to the Senate Chambers so I expect that my art will be placed in front of some very important eyes. This may be my biggest opportunity as of yet!! It feels as if my hard work is really starting to pay off. Here are the pieces that I have hanging!! "Summer In The Dale" Oil © Shana L Rowe Jackson "Watch Over Me" Oil © Shana L Rowe Jackson "Morning in The Mountains" Oil © Shana L Rowe Jackson "Hiking in Maine" Acrylic © Shana L Rowe Jackson "Roasting Mallows" Oil © Shana L Rowe Jackson "A Fort in Maine" Watercolor © Shana L Rowe Jackson "Let's Go Fly a Kite" Acryli

   Inspiration is an artist's best friend, but at times it can also be an artist's worst enemy. When I am inspired I feel like I am on top of the world, but even being inspired has its down sides, like lack of sleep, and an obsession with a certain project that can take over my life. The only thing worse than being inspired is being uninspired. When I am uninspired, in a slump, I don't even feel like myself, I'm depressed and irritable. I second guess my artistic talents. It is one of the worst feelings a creative type can go through. These ups and downs on the roller coaster of creativity is one of the main reasons I think artists have a history of mental illness. Just saying ;).  "Inspiration-The Musician" Part of my "Be Inspired" series © Shana L Rowe Jackson 2012   So how do you get out of it? How do you break out of the slump? The best way is to keep on keeping on. It is so easy when in a slump to just give up and say you are throwing

"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