@Knoxblox's Blank Canvas

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Hi, and welcome to my thread!

A little about me…

I’m an artist – an oil painter – living in Tijuana, BC, Mexico.

I have familial chronic depression, a lifelong issue. I also have a severe case of nasal polyps, which I shrink/treat with Prednisone. I have had surgeries, but until I can get surgery for the worst ones in my upper nasal cavities, this is my best option. Without it, I suffer from Anosmia, the lack of sensation of smell, which amplifies my depression to the point of severe lethargy.
Part of my reason to live in Mexico is to be able to afford to live and work solely as an artist, which wouldn’t be economically possible for me in the US, as well as easier access to Prednisone treatment until I can afford surgery.

My main goals in this thread are to avoid hogging the 2D Art thread, market myself a little, and be able to stray off topic if necessary, like @Wanderfound 's thread.

I post on social media accounts like Instagram and Imgur (occasionally), but I also have a Patreon account, which I hope people would choose to subscribe to. My IRL name is Kelly Hicks.

Feel free to PM me with inquiries, and note that you can also email me at knox672000@gmail or yahoo, which are also the profiles I accept payment for work through the payment platforms GooglePay and PayPal.
I’m sorry I can’t use Venmo at this time, because I don’t have cellphone service, only a landline. It’s not the best, I know, but nobody really calls me so it does not benefit me at all for the price I would have to pay.

My current prices are as follows, subject to change, but I will never change a quote after accepting a deposit, dependent on materials availability:

8"X8" panel: $125 Single, simple subject with no intricate details.
10"X10" panel: $165 Subject with no intricate details.
12"X12" panel: $200
15"X15" panel or canvas: $315
24"X15" canvas: $500

Other sizes are possible, just ask. I welcome the opportunity to work larger if you wish.

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ETA: Edited out a lot of blather about going hungry. I’m fine now. :+1:

Let’s start off with a very good boi doggo I met at the beginning of the summer when my landlord’s son brought Palomo home with the intention of keeping him…until he remembered that dogs eat and pee and poop and need to be taken for walks.
I hope Palomo has a good home now, but in TJ, that could be iffy. Anyway, he was so nice to pose for me, and photogenic, that I knew I’d make a painting eventually.

Blocking in: Some artists like to start with the eyes to anchor them, but the “negative space” is so well defined in this image I decided to work back to them. Also, white panel, white(ish) dog.

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Further progress…I’m really glad I was able to capture those beautiful eyes of his. I think I can complete him by Wednesday if everything works out.

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This is a 12" X 12" wood panel, suitable for framing if you like, and goes for $200, but you can put up a half deposit to secure it.

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Next up, I have a sunrise view in Tijuana full of clouds. I like this one enough I’m considering making a larger version for myself in the future.

Blocking in: Already the colors remind me of N.C. Wyeth. So beautiful.

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Further progress: It’s easier to see how this one’s going to turn out by Wednesday. Now that I’ve established most of the clouds, it’s back to the blues to work out the edges of the clouds and negative space in between.

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This one is a hand-stretched 15" X 15" cotton canvas that sits 1 1/2 deep. It can stand alone, but I think it would look very nice with a nice gold floating frame with a bit of filigree.
This one is $312.50, but I am also willing to take 1/2 deposit first, or maybe a discount for immediate purchase.

Too yellow, as pointed out below. EDIT: Lowered the temperature in Snapseed, but still no proper white balance tool in my phone’s settings that I can find.

Ah, well. I just have a crap cellphone camera. This is the kind of thing I’m working for, to be able to buy at least a used phone with the latest generation camera specifically for the art, not for phone service.

ETA: This one is now SOLD.

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And they’re working on the sewer lines. I can’t even boil water today. :pouting_cat:

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those photos do look kind of yellow

there might be a white balance setting to tweak

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Yes, I have difficulty even with white balance. I’m trying to find a free app that can help me with that, but Snapseed has turned evil, serving up Bluestack, which tries to load my computer with bloatware.

ETA: I’m working with a cheap Chinese computer/tablet, so memory and storage are primary concerns. Things were supposed to be much better by now, if it wasn’t for the major health problems of the past year.

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I use ImageMagick all the time but command line tools are not for everybody

I have no idea how people edit images on their phones

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Snapseed worked great when I had a better phone (LG G3, which had good white balance), but this phone (LG cheapdeal) sucks.

ETA: After, checking out ImageMagik, I think it’s too advanced for me. If anyone knows a non-evil free app that can help with white balance, I’d be grateful.

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What I don’t get is why Microsoft Photos has tons of filters, effects, etc. and no white/color balance tool. So frustrating.

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Here we go. I was able to lower the temperature on Snapseed on my phone. This looks much better compared to before.

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“Shatterpro of Tijuana™ — for all your shattering needs.”

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Happy to support a fellow BBS user and support the arts! Where do I send the $$?

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I’ve got both GooglePay and PayPal accounts, and my email is knox672000@ both Gmail and Yahoo (to send to those accounts). Once I have a few more of these, I’ll get my Patreon account tidied up, too.

Patreon can be a little difficult for me, but once I can get more recent work posted this month, I think it will be better for more sustained income. I do want to try and give patrons some insight into my process, despite the lack of video or fancy decent computer. With this new surge of creativity, I hope to improve things in the home computer department and get something more mid-range in the next few months.

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Just for teasers, I have a few patron pieces done. But I need to try and photograph them better. I just need to construct something that can reflect more “light on the situation”…re: photography.

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As a longstanding FOSS user I’m practically obligated to recommend the GIMP

There are versions for Windows, I’m sure they work fine

Beyond that, all I could do is post Google results for “alternatives to Photoshop” like anybody else

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I also have a lot of weathered spare wood scrap on the second floor where I live. I think I can construct a reflective box (with white gesso) for better photo taking before the actual need to edit, too. I just need to ask permission to use it.

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Getting back to work tonight and try to finish a couple that are close to done.

Does anyone have questions, or anything they’d like to see regarding painting or the living situation here in Tijuana? If my long-range plans get back on track, I’ll be moving out further to my landlord’s son’s property about halfway to Tecate.
More room there, and a bigger bedroom, too.

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You mentioned drying time and varnish, above — so, oil paints, then?

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Yes, I use Blue Ridge Oil Colors, out of Asheville, NC for professional quality at a reasonable price. I think it’s a couple steps up from student-grade paint, and I love their cadmiums.
Using a linseed/walnut oil mix gives me a little faster drying and curing time, I feel. Plus, I always have preferred oil to acrylic, because it’s how I trained.

There’s a link via the onebox. Not sure why it’s not showing.

ETA: I also think it’s important to do business with small companies whenever it’s possible.

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