Robie Benve Art

Bouquet 1 Watercolor 4"x6" I'm so excited! Tomorrow I'll be at the Dublin, OH Art Fair with my own booth. It may not sound like a big deal to many, but for me it's quite an event. It's going to be my first Art Fair, and I am a little nervous but also very excited for the great opportunity. A true ice breaker, and a wonderful learning experience. Unfortunately the forecast announced 105 F for tomorrow and Saturday.  I hope I don't melt in the process. The Dublin Art Fair , on 6-7 July 2012.

Maple Tree Watercolor painting 5"x7" After two acrylic paintings of the same Japanese maple tree from the Portland's Japanese Garden,  I tried it with watercolors as well. A fun project. :)

Cypress and Olive Trees, 9" x 12", watercolor Three things I associate with Tuscany: lines of cypresses, bluish olive trees, and hills. This watercolor has all three, and kind of makes me home sick. I keep painting Tuscany, even though I'm actually from Venice, where the landscape is totally different, but Tuscany has always been a joy for my eyes and soul every time I visited, and I enjoy representing it with watercolors. The best part, I love how I learn something with each painting. :)

Tuscan Landscape, Watercolor, 9" x 12" Here comes another of the Tuscany Hills watercolors. When I use acrylics I'm much bolder with colors because I know I can paint over if I don't like it, but with watercolors I'm quite conservative and almost shy when loading the brush. They also dry lighter than they look when wet, so the result is a pale palette, but I like it. :)

Tuscan Hills, Watercolor, 9" x 12" I've been attending a watercolor group that meets every Tuesday, and I was pretty much the only one working with acrylics. Seeing the wonderful things that the others were creating with watercolors, really inspired me to try some on my own. I had several pictures saved in my computer from Google street view in Tuscany, and here is the painting of the second of those. I really enjoy experimenting with watercolors. :)

Cypress Shadows, Watercolor, 9"x12" One day I was in Google Street View, looking around the Italian Tuscan countryside, and I found so many great views. Besides making me a little homesick, it also inspired me to paint them, so I saved several images in a folder. This painting is from one of those photos, I don't remember exactly where it was, but surely in the neighborhoods of San Gimignano. I was inspired to start painting this particular view by the Daily Paint Work challenge of the week: The Shadow Challenge. It has been fan to play with watercolors again, I think I want to do another one. Hopefully soon. :) "Constant development is the law of life,  and a man who always tries to maintain his dogmas  in order to appear consistent  drives himself into a false position."     - Mohandas K. Gandhi

Gotta love the Holidays, they fill your life with so many things to do that routine becomes a foggy memory.  I'm working my way through holiday parties, kids on winter brake, friends visiting, cooking, playing, and house-chores. In the meanwhile I'm so looking forward to the new year. So many ideas in my head that want to come to life!  Hope this new year has longer days, so I can fit them all.  :) Hey, I just found my new year's resolution: getting better at time management, finding the time for all I need/want to do, and try to do my best always. In the meanwhile, Happy Holidays to all!  And may the New Year bring plenty of Love, Joy, and Health in each household.

"French waitress" 7" x 8.5"  watercolor on paper This is my humble contribution to the "A day not wasted" site painting challenge.  I'm still on my watercolor journey, and this is my first person painted with watercolors. Thanks Lee for great monthly challenges, you always get me try something new, which leads to some learning experience. :) To see the reference photo and other entries click here .

 "Sunflower bunch #1" 3” x 3” (7.6 cm x 7.6 cm) Today I got my old watercolors out, and embarked in some small paintings. I hadn’t used watercolors for years, but amazingly none of the colors had dried! Everything was in great condition… the only rusty thing are my skills. Lol I did a couple of versions of this sunflower bunch, a great exercise to get the juices flowing. If you have tips for me on how to get better results, please share them in the comments. Thanks! :)   "Sunflower bunch #2" 3” x 3” (7.6 cm x 7.6 cm)