Tag Archives: #saguaro

2022 Creative Gathering, Day 20

Day 20, 4 x 4 watercolor on Arches cold pressed paper. © 2022 Sheila Delgado.
Day 20, 4 x 4 watercolor on Arches cold pressed paper. © 2022 Sheila Delgado.

Drifting across the vast space,
silent except for wind and footsteps,
I felt uncluttered and unhurried for the first time in a while, already on desert time.
Rebecca Solnit

Loving someone who
doesn’t love you back is like hugging a cactus.
The tighter you hold on, the more it’s going to hurt.
Unknown

Day 19 of February’s 30-Day Creative Gathering

Day 19, 8 x 8 watercolor on Fabriano paper. © 2022 Sheila Delgado.
Day 19, 8 x 8 watercolor on Fabriano paper. © 2022 Sheila Delgado.

I was fighting with this one, and then I realized why it was not working. I was not using Arches paper. You can see in the sky, how spotty the paint settled. In the cactus as well, but the texture works there. I did nave fun with the saguaro. But I always do. Haha.

I’m like the trunk of a cactus…
I take in a dose of culture and time with friends,
then I retreat and go live on it for a while
until I get thirsty again.
Nancy Horan

The canyon country does not always inspire love.
To many it appears barren, hostile, repellent –
a fearsome mostly waterless land of rock and heat,
sand dunes and quicksand, cactus, thornbrush, scorpion, rattlesnake, and agaraphobic distances.
To those who see our land in that manner,
the best reply is, yes, you are right,
it is a dangerous and terrible place.
Enter at your own risk.
Carry water.
Avoid the noonday sun.
Try to ignore the vultures.
Pray frequently.
Edward Abbey

Cactus True, Or Cactus Cool?

Saguaro, 5.5 x 8.5, watercolor on paper, © 2020 Sheila Delgado.
Saguaro, 5.5 x 8.5, watercolor on paper, © 2020 Sheila Delgado.

I sat down to clean my palette, but instead, I started to paint. I used long strokes on the Saguaro, instead of blending patches of color. I used a blue Le Pen to define. Looking at the scan, I noticed that the cactus and the foreground were too much the same.

I left it overnight and then added blue Posca. Now it’s a bit too much like the sky. Haha. That is what learning looks like. Sometimes.

Had fun in the process, more fun making the animation. FUN!

Saguaro, revised, 5.5 x 8.5, watercolor on paper, © 2020 Sheila Delgado.
Saguaro, revised, 5.5 x 8.5, watercolor on paper, © 2020 Sheila Delgado.

Loved this true cerulean blue sky with a swish of puffy white clouds.

Mingus 3.27.20
Mingus 3.27.20

One clean palette, empties refilled.

Mijello Palette, 18-Well.
Mijello Palette, 18-Well.

New palette filled and ready to go. I bought this palette months ago, 40 or 50% off. Room for six more colors. I sorted my colors before I started filling the wells. I still goofed somehow and ended up with two empty slots. But that gives me room for new colors. My list of wanna try hues is long. Naturally.

I probably shouldn’t have included the two orange colors. I rarely use them. I’ll have to think of something fun to use them for. “Think. Think. Think.” As Pooh would say.

It’s still a wonky collection. But I do have warm and cool hues of the primaries. I’m working on the color chart next. If anyone is interested, I can share that in the next post.

Martin Palette, 24 well.
Martin Palette, 24 well.

I’ve only wanted paper and beautiful colors.
It was my dream, and it still is my dream.
And books.
They’re all I need, and the rest I can do without.
Karl Lagerfeld

Be well. Stay Safe.