Category Archives: Art Groups

30-Day Creative Gathering, February Day 21

Day 21, FEB C.G., 8 x 8, watercolor on paper. © 2020 Sheila Delgado.

This is a Mexican Fencepost cactus. Also called an Organ Pipe or Organo. I like that one. It is shaped like a star from the top. The spines are along the edges, they are short and give the appearance of “hand-stitching”. Dressed and ready for the ball! Work in progress. Nothing is working here. Oops, hehe.

Here’s a winner though. Saved by the sunset!

An intellectual says a simple thing in a hard way.
An artist says a hard thing in a simple way.
Charles Bukowski

Day 20 Of The 30-Day Creative Gathering

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Day 20, FEB C.G., 8 x 8, watercolor on paper. © 2020 Sheila Delgado.

I have to admit, I have had a hard time getting started each day. Seems I think about what to paint, longer than it takes for me to actually paint. Haha. Indecision. Not procrastination. I have a folder full of images, cacti, that I would like to paint. I just have a hard time deciding.

I guess that’s not a bad problem to have. I would like to start earlier. And finish before midnight. Tonight I set a goal for myself. To complete the piece in 2 hours. I wasn’t sure I could. I haven’t been timing myself. I stop for breaks and get distracted. Sometimes. But I sat down to work and didn’t stop until I was done. I had 2 minutes to spare.

Did you know cactus spines are actually highly modified leaves? This helps to prevent water loss from the surface of a leaf. The spines can also provide shade for the cactus and reduce airflow around the plant.

I know quite certainly that I myself have no special talent; curiosity, obsession, and dogged endurance,
combined with self-criticism have brought me to my ideas.
Albert Einstein

Endurance is not just the ability to bear a hard thing,
but to turn it into glory.
William Barclay

February 2020 30-Day Creative Gathering, Day 19

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Day 19, FEB C.G., 8 x 8, watercolor on paper. © 2020 Sheila Delgado.

I love how the sky turned out. This is the inexpensive paper I bought from Hobby Lobby. This time, the texture is really noticeable. Love it! The key is using a sedimentary color.

A work in progress. I think. I need to add shadows. And the sand feels too… something. Too orange, too red, too busy. Too hot. Scottsdale was extremely hot the day I took this photo. And what are those rocky shapes along the edge?? And why does the sky have horns? Haha!

Still, I would say that I am happy with this piece. I had fun working on it.

I haven’t found a name for this plant. I think it is an Octopus Agave. It looks like a giant air plant. Most of the Octopus Agaves grow out from the center. This one was shaped more like a mohawk.

I want to paint this again. I used the photo as a reference for the shapes, but for some reason, I didn’t use it for the light.