Beta Laying Down

11x14

Charcoal on Paper

I'm sorry that I have neglected to post (or make art for that matter) in the last few months. Sometimes things that you love fall to the wayside when major life events occur. Since I last posted, my family and I have moved to the wonderful state of Georgia and more recently, my beloved family pet has become critically ill. She was diagnosed with encephalitis, or swelling of the brain, of which unfortunately there is no cure. Needless to say, my recent days have been spent caring for her. I realized today that the best thing for her is if I can stay calm & grounded and what better way to do that, than to make art? 

I drew this charcoal portrait of Beta today while she was resting. I think she is in a lot of pain today and layed very still all day- unfortunate for her, but fortunate for the sake of the portrait, I suppose. 

Backpacking in Stone Mountain

5x7

Watercolor on paper

This weekend I went on my first backpacking trip. We decided on Stone Mountain State Park, located just South of Sparta and the Blue Ridge Parkway in North Carolina. We had previously hiked almost every trail in the park and felt it was the most comfortable for our first overnight camping trip. In an attempt to keep my pack weight low (it was already over 30 lbs) I decided to bring only a pen and watercolors with me.

We hiked the 3 miles to our campsite, set up camp and cooked our lunch- leaving only a few hours of daylight left to paint. Hiking another half mile past our site, I found a nice spot to sit on a tree which had fallen some time ago and set up my paints. Unfortunately at this time of night all the bugs come out and my dog and I were being eaten alive so I had to abandon my painting before it was finished.

Hanging Rock

 

The Spring weather is finally upon us so we went for a day hike yesterday. With our packs full of camera equipment and art supplies, we headed to the top of Moores Knob, about a 5 mile hike. Moores Knob is a 2,579ft  peak, the highest of the Sauratown Mouintains, located in Hanging Rock State Park about an hour North of Winston-Salem.

The sight from the top of the summit was breath-taking and I was really glad to have brought my canvas and paint. Despite the 70+ degree heat and the exertion from the hike, the wind was biting and I had to find a protected area under a tree to sit and paint.

  

8x10

Acrylic on Canvas

North Carolina in Bloom

8x10

Acrylic on Canvas

My husband took me shopping yesterday to get some new brushes. Although I already had about 30 in my tool box, they were not the right ones for painting little landscapes. So off to the store we went and now I am the proud owner of 36 brushes! I couldn't resist trying them out today and painting the beautiful flowering azalea bushes in my garden.

Content

22x30

Pastel on Paper

I decided to take a break from painting and focus on keeping my drawing skills current. Of course when I can't think of anything exciting to draw I resort to a self portrait. I started this drawing on Thursday morning and when my husband came home from work, I was still half-naked and standing in the bathroom amongst a pile of pastel and eraser dust. "Why is it that when you do self-portraits, you are always in your underwear?" he asks me. I had to think a while about that question... I am still wondering what the answer is. Maybe it is because I miss drawing the human form so much- as I have not done any figure drawing since moving to NC over a year ago. Or maybe I find it amusing to see how I portray myself- lumps and all. Either way, this drawing was very fun for me to complete and I feel that I have improved my drawing skills... just a little bit.

Across the Street

11x14

Oil on Canvas

The weather has been delightful here in North Carolina so I decided to take a break from painting indoors and set up outside. This was a quick painting of my sleepy little Greensboro neighborhood. Everything is just starting to bloom and as I painted, I was pelted with little seed packets falling from the trees nearby.

Lounging at the Kiddie Pool

My day started out a little rough having just returned from a long weekend at the Outer Banks of North Carolina. Needless to say I was a little upset to leave the beach and return to Greensboro. So I decided to postpone my feeling of despair and filled up the the kiddie pool in the backyard. Not exactly the same, but the cool water was refreshing on my feet nonetheless.


12x18
Oil/ Oil Pastel on Canvas Paper

Mayor's Cup Regatta T-shirt Design

This year I was asked to create the T-shirt design for the 2010 Mayors Cup Regatta. Co-sponsored by the Lake Townsend Yacht Club and the Greensboro Parks and Recreation Department, the regatta will be held June 4-6th at Lake Townsend in Bryan Park, Greensboro North Carolina.

I created the T-shirt design with Microsoft Expression Design 2, using several photos for reference. The image depicts two sailors on the high side of a boat as it heels to the wind. Part of my goal was to incorporate the green from the Lake Townsend Yacht Club's logo, which I used as a background behind the sailors and racing flag, reminiscent of the abundance of trees surrounding the lake.

Scuba Portrait- Bonaire Series

This is part of my new series of paintings about Bonaire, Netherland Antilles. As I stated in one of my previous posts, Bonaire is known for its unparalleled reef system. So I thought it only fit to paint a scuba diver.


During open water scuba certification, one of the things you learn is that as you descend, the visible color spectrum is filtered out. First, red is lost, then orange, and so on as you go deeper. The final color to disappear before total darkness is blue. I tried to portray this color sense using a very limited palette. While preparing my paint, I mixed blue with every color I mixed- a very hard thing for me as I usually mix a wide range of color when painting portraits.

This scuba portrait is 16x20, painted with oil.

Regatta- Lake Townsend Series

16x20

Oil on Canvas

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This is part of a series of paintings from Lake Townsend, North Carolina. I started this painting after I was asked to create the 2010 Mayor's Cup Regatta t-shirt design for the Lake Townsend Yacht Club. I was hoping that it would help me to generate ideas for the design and get me back into the spirit of sailing.

Painted from a photograph, I used a lot of red in the under-painting and decided to keep some of that in the shadows for the water.

Orange Boat- Bonaire Series

This is my newest creation... an 11x14 oil painting depicting an orange boat in front of the beautiful calm waters surrounding Bonaire, Netherland Antilles. This is part of a series of paintings that I am working on from my visit last year to the small island off the coast of Venezuela. Bonaire is known for its tranquil waters and abundant underwater life.

For purchasing information, please visit AM Custom Art on Etsy.

German Shepherd

9x12

Pastel on Paper

Horse Sketch

9x12

Mixed Media on Paper

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Tanner

This is an 11x14 oil painting of my nephew, Tanner when he was about 2 years old. Considering most of my subjects are adult females, I found this painting to be a little more challenging than usual. As you know, a child's facial structure and proportions are vastly different than that of an adults. As a general rule, children's eyes and foreheads are much larger than their grown counter-parts. Also, children lack distinct skeletal structure and muscle tone, resulting in an overall rounder, softer face. The image on the right was my first attempt at this painting. Needless to say, I was not satisfied with the way the proportions looked. With a little reworking like widening the eyes, heightening the forehead and softening the harsh brushwork on the cheeks, I think the outcome is much more agreeable.

Regina and Matt

One of my greatest loves as an artist is portrait painting. I find it both challenging and immensely rewarding to try and capture my subjects "spirit" and likeness. I can hardly believe that after the hundreds of paintings and drawings that I have completed over the years, this is my first oil painting with multiple people as the subject!

Regina & Matt

16x20

Oil on Canvas

AMCustomArt.com had a makeover!

We've been working diligently and have completely redesigned our website. We've added  exciting new graphics to every page and even added a few new pages all together. These are just some of the major renovations that were made:

• New customer Comments page where you can view before and after pictures (photo to painting/drawing)as well as comments that customers have left about the art
• New Frequently Asked Questions Page
• New Weddings page
• Improved slide show Gallery, complete with faster load time and improved user options

But don't just take my word for it,

Check it out yourself at AMCustomArt.com!

Visit AM Custom Art on Facebook

AM Custom Art  is on Facebook !

For all of you that are addicted to social networking (like me), it is important to have up to date information and to receive notifications when something exciting happens. That is why AM Custom Art now has a facebook page!

Become a fan of AM Custom Art to talk with other art lovers and get the latest news on AM Custom Art.

We now offer Wedding Portraits!

Turn a photo of the most important day of your life into a

Beautiful Handcrafted Piece of Art

Currently, I am working with Jessica Oleksy of Impact Images to offer a custom art option to their wedding and portrait packages. This art option adds value to their already impressive range of services provided. Customers can choose between a pastel drawing, like the one below, or an oil painting.

11x14

Pastel on Paper

Weimaraner

Oh, who doesn't love Weimaraners?
Originally bred for hunting, they are always on the go, eager to seek out something to chase or someone to throw a ball for them. This is a portrait that I just completed of my beloved Weim, Beta, who will be celebrating her third birthday this year. Please check out the AmCustomArt marketplace for purchasing information.

11x14

Pastel on Arches Cover Paper
Purchase

Welcome to AM Custom Art

I would like to welcome you to AM Custom Art!

I am Ann-Marie Vallone, the artist responsible for creating all of the images that you see on our website, amcustomart.com as well as on this site. I will use this blog to keep you up to date on my most recent paintings and drawings as well as any updates to our business.

With that said, this painting titled Sailing is my newest creation. Painted with oil on an 11x14 canvas it depicts a man and his wife on their Flying Scot. I gained an interest in painting sailboats last year after learning how to sail with the Lake Townsend Yacht Club here in North Carolina. It was an intense week, but by the end of it I had learned how to tie knots, rig, and sail 3 different sailboats.