Waiting For the Holidays

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"Waiting For the Holidays"

Oil, 6" x 6" on museum quality canvas panel

$200.00

Click here to purchase painting.

One of the things about teaching workshops is we forget how much they benefit the teacher. We all know that painting is the best way to improve your skills. But teaching students is so much better! In my workshops I spend a lot of time at the easels of my students. It's my job to teach them "the process" and the steps they need to follow to create a great painting. We spend a lot of time with color mixing, values and temperature. With 10 students, I can estimate I get at least 70 opportunities to help my students, at their easels, improve their paintings per day. What most of us forget is every time I do this I am learning too!

I just spent three of the last four weeks teaching workshops and I am thrilled with the results ... my students progress, their finished paintings and even my demo paintings! I am so excited about how much I learned over these past few weeks and am noticing it at my easel already. Yippee!

The painting above is one of my demos on the first day of my Newport Beach Four Day workshop that was held last week. I figured it was time to get in the mood for the holidays. If you follow my blog, you might recognize this painting from a blog post last week about photographing still life.

And here are a few more pictures ... check out the amazing paintings created in the workshop!

 

 

Next webinARTs class starts January 2013!

Check out my upcoming palette knife painting workshops at http://www.saetastudio.com/Leslie_Saeta_fine_Art/Workshops.html.

Front and Back

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"Front and Back"

Oil, 12" x 12" on museum archival canvas panel

$550.00

Click here to purchase.

Teaching three workshops in four weeks is a lot but I am so happy! This week I am on Balboa Island teaching a workshop with the Debra Huse Gallery. We spent the last two days painting at the yacht club. we have already completed three paintings!

Tomorrow we head out to the docks to paint plein air. If the weather holds up we will be doing the same on Friday. I'll post pictures soon!

My next webinARTs class starts in January 2013.

Check out my upcoming palette knife painting workshops at http://www.saetastudio.com/Leslie_Saeta_fine_Art/Workshops.html.

Photographing Still Life

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Still Life Photography in the Carriage House Studio

I thought I would share a few photography tips I use to photograph still life. I take these photos every month to use in my workshops as painting exercises. They are great for the first day of the workshop for learning how to apply paint with a palette knife.  In my October workshops we painted pumpkins and we will paint these in my November and December workshops.

The photo above shows my "photography studio". Actually it's just a counter top in my Carriage House Studio that I quickly set up. You can set up a similar "studio" just about anywhere! I have one of my glass palettes on the bottom (which are normally used to mix paint in my workshops), a piece of hardboard as a back drop and I use my leftover scrapbooking paper for the background. For a light source I attach one of my cheap hardware store lights to a table top easel. 

I took about 200 photos during this photo shoot, which is about typical. I constantly move the light source, change the items and configuration of the set up and change the background. I used pears, a pomegranate, apples and holiday ornaments for this photo shoot. I use a manual setting on my 35mm camera that allows just enough light but no flash.

As I take the photos I am looking to capture great light on the objects, shapes, shadows and reflections in the glass. I try to get exaggerated shadows that can easily be painted in shapes in my workshops. I upload all of the photos to iphoto and crop and edit the photos. Here are a few of the finalized photos from my photo shoot. You will see the completed paintings of some of these photos on my blog in the next few days as I start teaching tomorrow in Newport Beach.

I am writing a book about Palette Knife Painting which should be available sometime in early 2013. There is a chapter about photographing your art which includes still life set ups as well as photographing your completed paintings.

My fourth annual "Twelve Days of Christmas" promotion starts next month. Make sure you are signed up to receive my blog posts so you don't miss out. I'll be giving away over $1000 worth of free stuff!

My next webinARTs class starts January 2013.

Check out my upcoming palette knife painting workshops at http://www.saetastudio.com/Leslie_Saeta_fine_Art/Workshops.html.

Calming Waters

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"Calming Waters"

Oil, 12" x 12"

$550.00

Click here to purchase.

I am gearing up to teach my third workshop in as many weeks. I feel so blessed to be able to share my passion for palette knife painting. Although I must confess that for me personally, I think my workshops are just as much about discovering and enjoying the "love of painting". It may sound corny, but all artists struggle to find that wonderful sense of joy when painting. Life tends to get in the way and when we bring "outside stuff" into the studio then "outside stuff" often ends up on the canvas. So I like to create a joyful experience in my workshops. We paint, laugh, spend tons of time color mixing, laugh, paint, eat and paint some more. 

This week I head to Newport Beach for four glorious days. Two will be spent inside covering basics such as color mixing, values and palette knife painting. The last two days will be spent painting on Balboa Island. Does it get any better than this? And one night I am cooking a gourmet dinner for my students. That will be fun. And yummy!

If you would like to attend one of my workshops, I have space after the first of the year, starting with my January workshop taught at my home in South Pasadena. You can learn more here. I'd love to share my joy of painting with you!

My next webinARTs class starts in January 2013!

Check out my upcoming palette knife painting workshops at http://www.saetastudio.com/Leslie_Saeta_fine_Art/Workshops.html.

Take Care of Yourself!

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"Fall Harvest"

Oil, 6" x 6"

$200.00

Click here to purchase this painting.

Sometimes our bodies give us signs that something is not right. 

At times like these, we all need to pay attention.

Two weeks ago I was talking on the phone (with someone I did not know) and suddenly I felt dizzy, my arms started tingling and my tongue couldn't keep up with my speech. I immediately hung up the phone and ran upstairs to swallow two baby aspirin. I knew something wasn't right but fortunately within a few minutes I felt fine. I thought for a second about calling 911 (and I have since promised my family I will do so if this ever happens in the future) but grabbed my purse and got in my car to head to the hospital. I was able to get my doctor on the phone and went to his office instead. He admitted me to the hospital for a million tests and the first 19 were negative (so I was feeling pretty healthy and good about things!). The last test found a small hole in my heart (called a PFO) which the doctor determined led me to have a tiny TIA, which is a minor stroke.

The good news is that it was minor and there are no after effects. More good news is that it is 100% treatable with medication (no surgery needed) and I am going to be fine. The best news is that I discovered this and I now can prevent anything much worse from happening with medication.

Strokes and heart attacks are the top killers of women. There is an acronym for signs of a stroke and it is F-A-S-T. If you or anyone sees signs of:

1. Facial problems - such as drooping of the facial features on one side.

2. Arms - does one arm drift downward when you raise your arms?

3. Speech - Is speech slurred or strange?

4. Time - if you observe ANY of these signs, call 911 immediately. 

I was lucky and hope that you will all pay attention to these signs if your body calls out for help! Please share this information with your friends and family. It could save somone's life!

Check out my upcoming palette knife painting workshops at http://www.saetastudio.com/Leslie_Saeta_fine_Art/Workshops.html.

Maui Sunset

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"Maui Sunset"

Oil, 12" x 12" on museum quality panel

$550.00

Click here to purchase. 

I am so fortunate to be able to share my love for palette knife painting! I taught two workshops this past week on two different coasts ... South Pasadena and Charlotte, NC. I Charlotte I had 16 wonderful artists join me for three days. We painted, laughed and had way to much fun!

It seems that painting with the palette knife actually isn't that hard (right ladies?) and in three days color mixing can be mastered. The paintings created in this workshop were fantastic!

Check out my upcoming palette knife painting workshops at http://www.saetastudio.com/Leslie_Saeta_fine_Art/Workshops.html.

Painting With Friends

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"Red Pears"

Oil, 6" x 6" on museum quality panel

$200.00

 

I am in the middle of teaching a Three Day Workshop in the Carriage House and we are having a blast! It's only the middle of our second day and we have already completed two paintings (well, almost ...).  We are about to start painting boats (gee, what a surprise!) and I love teaching how to paint reflections.

I am thrilled the new easels I bought for my classes are working out so well. They are great for standing or sitting and have allowed for a lot more room in the studio. I have eight easels, tables and glass palettes so traveling to my workshops is now a lot easier!

Look how wonderful the paintings are from our first day!

Check out my upcoming palette knife painting workshops at http://www.saetastudio.com/Leslie_Saeta_fine_Art/Workshops.html.

Joanne's Carriage House - SOLD

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"Joanne's Carriage House"

Oil, 12" x 12" framed.

Click here to view this painting.

Sold.

I recently had the pleasure of painting this commission which features a Carriage House and backyard in one of the most beautiful estates here in South Pasadena. The house sits back off the street and is one of those lovely homes that I have always wanted to tour ... both inside and out. So you can imagine my delight when I had the opportunity to tour the grounds, home and Carriage House while taking photos for this commission.

I really enjoyed painting this painting and have been told the recipient shed tears when presented with her gift. I am so thrilled!

I sent out one of my newsletters this past weekend. I know it was a holiday weekend and probably not the best time to push the SEND button but I have been very delinquent in getting them out. So I decided to finish it and just go for it! I have been busy but that's no excuse. In the future you will receive my newsletter on the first of every month. I promise. The reason for my new "self-imposed deadline" is that the response to my newsletter was so incredible I will never again miss sending one out. Thank you.

WebinARTs kicked off yesterday and so far it has been terrific. Tomorrow's class features the start of a two day video tutorial on how to build a website from start to finish. By now everyone should have completed their homework (can you believe I actually gave homework?) and will be ready to design a website. So much fun!

 

the best way to learn how to sell more art

Check out my upcoming palette knife painting workshops at http://www.saetastudio.com/Leslie_Saeta_fine_Art/Workshops.html.

Getting Ready

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Early Afternoon Sun

Oil, 12" x 6"

$450.00

Click here for information to purchase painting.

Click here to purchase a print of this painting.

Yes, as the title of this blog states, I am "getting ready". My first webinARTs course starts on Monday so I have been incredibly busy creating twenty on-line classes. They all feature videos and lots of information and I am thrilled with the outcome. But exhausted at the same time! 

My painting time has suffered although I have been working on two commissions this week. I really need to get in to the studio and just paint. But that will probably have to wait another week. Boo.

I still have two more sons to ship off to college. All three of our boys will be gone so we are gearing up to becoming empty-nesters. I am not sure what to expect. I am scared and sad but excited for all the exciting opportunities that await our boys. I suppose I will have more time to paint and focus on my art and that is a good thing. But my heart and house will feel very empty for quite some time ...

webinARTs ... everything an artist needs to know to sell more art

Check out my upcoming palette knife painting workshops at http://www.saetastudio.com/Leslie_Saeta_fine_Art/Workshops.html.

Early Morning Sun (including painting video demo)

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"Early Morning Sun"

Oil, 24" x 18" 

Click here to purchase.

Click here to purchase a print of this painting.

This is the second "large" painting I have painted this week. Some of you are laughing that I consider 24" x 18" large, but considering I use to consider a 12" x 12" as large, this is huge! I decided to take photos of my progress while painting this so I have also put together this video painting demo. Enjoy!

If you would like to learn how to create a video like this, check out my webinARTs class. I have created videos of lots different formats to create videos of your painting demos in the September class.

Check out my upcoming palette knife painting workshops at http://www.saetastudio.com/Leslie_Saeta_fine_Art/Workshops.html.

Resting on the Beach

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"Resting on the Beach"

Oil, 24" x 18"

Click here to purchase.

Click here to purchase a print of this painting.

This is the first painting from my trip to Sandbridge, Va. last week. Although I had intended to paint while I was there, I was just too busy having fun with family, taking hundreds of photos and putting together a highlight movie of the week.

I have hundreds of photos that are worthy of paintings. Surfing was a big part of the vacation (although not for me!) and these surfboards were well used throughout the week. It was rare that I could get a photo of all five here at once!

I also tried to paint a bit larger than I normally do ... 24" x 18" is big for me!

webinARTs ... video tutorials for artists!

Check out my upcoming palette knife painting workshops at http://www.saetastudio.com/Leslie_Saeta_fine_Art/Workshops.html.

New website and 2013 Workshop Schedule!

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My new website

2013 Workshops

I never imagined I would completely re-do my website while on vacation, but then again that's probably something I would do ...  It all started with a new newsletter and the schedule for my 2013 workshops. Adding the new workshops required a few new pages to my wesbite and I just couldn't stand the thought of adding "new" pages to my "old" website. So, one thing led to another and within a few days of working on iweb (only a few hours a day, I promise!) the new website was done!

I had fully intended to move my entire website over to wordpress, but I found a new web hosting company that fixes all of the problems with iweb (since apple is no longer supporting iweb). I have also added two new webinARTs classes to the September course: building a website on iweb and building a website on wordpress. Combined with a free online web builder option and FASO, that's four options for website that will be featured in the online September class.

My workshops for 2013 are all posted. I have two very fun "destination workshops" that you will want to check out as they are affordable and very fun!

webinARTs

Check out my upcoming palette knife painting workshops at http://www.saetastudio.com/Leslie_Saeta_fine_Art/Workshops.html.

Win a Free Totebag!

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I have had a lot of inquiries and questions about webinARTs. Plus nearly a hundred artists have signed up for the September class! So I created this video or "commercial" to help explain and promote the webinARTs September course. Let me know what you think!

Also, if you go to Facebook and "share" the video, you can win this tote bag! I'll draw the winner on Friday.

Check out my upcoming palette knife painting workshops at http://www.saetastudio.com/Leslie_Saeta_fine_Art/Workshops.html.

Docked at Waikiki - SOLD

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"Docked at Waikiki"

Oil, 12" x 12" on museum quality canvas panel.

Sold.

Click here to purchase a print of this painting.

I was invited to paint a demo this morning at the Palos Verdes Art Center and I had such a wonderful experience! Not only was it a chance for meet 25 wonderful artists but I also was able to return to my old "stompin ground" as I went to high school in Palos Verdes. The entire morning was great. We laughed, talked a lot (oh wait, actually I was really the one who talked a lot) and the painting posted above was the demo completed just this morning.

The photo for this picture was taken by yours truly a few weeks ago when I was in Waikiki. I went down to the beach with my son and his baseball buddies and saw about 100 boats parked at the harbor in Waikiki. I noticed the palm trees right away as I rarely see any trees on the small dock areas. Although I was leaving on a flight the next morning I was up early at the harbor when the sun came up ready to take lots of pictures. One man actually stopped me and asked if I was a "tax investigator" taking pictures for the IRS! I still cannot figure out what that was all about!

Don't forget to visit my new website titled webinARTs. If you are an artist hoping to learn how to sell more of your art then this might be for you. Be sure to use the discount code webinartsSP for a $30 savings!

Check out my upcoming palette knife painting workshops at http://www.saetastudio.com/Leslie_Saeta_fine_Art/Workshops.html.

Happy 4th of July!

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Summer is such a wonderful time and the 4th of July depicts everything I love about summer! Grilling, playing in the park, local parades, flags, homemade ice cream, hot dogs, fireworks, cool drinks, sparklers, bbq chicken and for some of us ... watching volleyball. Yep, that's the way I am spending my 4th straight 4th of July ... watching volleyball! I can count on two hands the number of times I have seen fireworks in the sky ... from an airplane ... on the 4th of July! I remember the year we were in Paris and were so disappointed they didn't honor America's birthday with fireworks. Wishful thinking ...

So what is your favorite memory of the 4th of July?

Don't forget to check out webinARTs ... and the upcoming September online marketing class for artists!

Check out my upcoming palette knife painting workshops at http://www.saetastudio.com/Leslie_Saeta_fine_Art/Workshops.html.