Marybeth Heikes

Paintings in Watercolor & Mixed Media

Post Archives

Below the Coral Sea

Below the Coral Sea

November 4, 2009

I created this because the design has been in my mind for a long time, so I went back to my sketches of tropical fish and plant life from 1995. This particular subject matter has interested me since a gal from St. Louis commissioned me to do a special piece for her. I’ve been working […] more »

Isis

Isis

October 26, 2009

This is a picture of my brother’s Great Dane, Isis. I was given the photo and worked from that. He is kind of a speckled dog, with a Christmas hat that he was dressed in, besides the velvet collar. more »

Fish Wish

Fish Wish

October 23, 2009

I had the idea first for this motif and played around with painting the watery background before adding the shapes. My first attempt wasn’t successful and I had to redo it. The resulting marbled effect is what I’d planned on. The yellow tabby with lavender stripes breaks up the solid coat of the cat. I […] more »

The Pier

The Pier

October 15, 2009

This horizontal design consists mostly of ultramarine blue papers. The added texture of the rice paper gives it some depth by subduing the under-layers and adding a soft quality to the darker shapes. It is a low-key painting, consisting mainly of darker values. The lighter orange and pink shapes connect and interlock the design patterns. […] more »

Cinnabar Opus

Cinnabar Opus

October 14, 2009

This artwork was made using both torn and cut paper shapes — triangles, circles, and rectangles in bright red with yellows and greens. It took me a while arranging, then re-arranging, pieces for a pleasing design. Texture plays an important role too. It reminds me of some musical passages I’ve listened to in classical music […] more »

Ladder Cats

Ladder Cats

September 25, 2009

I’m using this painting as a sample of pet portraits that I can do. The cats on the ladder are my daughter’s cats Saoirse and Doyle. It’s always a challenge to paint a black animal — I just indicated the black-mop shape of him. more »

Mondrian’s Des Moines

Mondrian’s Des Moines

September 10, 2009

I created this piece because I had an interest in completing some cityscapes from 2000. We visited Des Moines in early spring and I walked around the capital and downtown area, taking lots of photos. I’ve completed a few paintings since then and recently visited and took more photos of the Farmers Market and surrounding […] more »