Splashing Through Life - Art by Patricia Henderson

Okay, I'm REALLY going to make an attempt to keep up my Watercolour Wednesdays! LOL  Today I'm posting a little Chicadee that I am submitting to the Grambacher Trading Card swap. This month's theme is birds. You can check out the swap page HERE . Each time you submit a card, the punch a rewards card. I will have three holes punched after submitting this little birdie, so that means I get three tubes of paint! I love Chicadees and wish that they came to my feeder. I have heard them in the small woods at the end of my block, but they don't seem to want to venture over to my yard.  Chicadee-dee-dee 2.5" X 3.5" NFS

I seem to paint a lot of geese...I just find them so comical! This was a fast, little tiny painting, done this morning. I added a bow to this guy and he looks so proud! Christmas Goose Watercolour and Ink 2.5 X 3.5" (Border is computer generated) Find this cute goose in my Etsy store!

Seeing these sturdy little "fishing tugs" in the waters of the Great Lakes reminds me of summers along the shore of Lake Erie. We were always happy to see these unique boats and the hard working fisherman bringing up catches of Yellow Perch, our favourite summer meal! This collage incorporates pieces of maps and navigational charts of the Great Lakes (mostly Erie), and other fun stuff related to fishing and fishermen. The Fishing Tug 18" X 24" on Gallery wrapped canvas

A little history for those who are new to my Facebook Page or Blog. I recently retired from my "day job", and have been enjoying spending more time with art. I've really fallen in love with collage or "torn paper paintings", but want to keep in touch with my  watercolour  beginnings. I challenged myself to do some kind of watercolour every Wednesday, just to keep my brushes wet. And then I post them, no matter if they turn out good or bad. It's also a good drawing exercise, as I have been starting to sketch the majority of them from life.  The Easter Lily that my hubby got for me is still blooming away on the kitchen counter, so I sat and sketched it this morning. I love the unpredictability of Hot Press paper. It is not very absorbent, so the paint sits on the surface a little longer while wet. It tends to create some interesting "blooms" here and there. Especially when you are impatient like me and don't let things dry long enough! Easte...

I have been showing my Work in Progress on this little lady on my Facebook page for the last couple of weeks. I gave myself quite a challenge, since this is the largest collage I have done so far, and the first animal that is not a bird! I think she is complete now, but I'll give it a rest for a couple of days, then take another look to make sure I don't need to make any changes. Check out the WIP on my Facebook page HERE . I used a lot of paper in the background that I printed with my Gelli Arts Gel Printing Plate , that I just love! Lots of papers from old, beat up cookbooks and storybooks were used on the cow. Sometimes, I use photocopies of the pages that I like and then paint over them, so I can use the words more than once. Cow Collage (Untitled - for now!) 18" x 24" $560 (click to enlarge) Here are a few closeups: