Earlier this year, I wrote down many ideas for subject matter to paint. I intended to do a music series after the guitars and violin. For this piece I used my reference photo taken at the Museum of Making Music in Carlsbad, California. Beginning with a very loose pencil drawing and weaving colors and shapes […] more »
Flowers are a consistent theme in my work. I work from life, drawing my garden flowers and taking numerous photos. I began with an idea for the design and sketched it out on tracing paper the same size as my paper support; in this case I used 300# Arches watercolor paper. The heavier paper doesn’t […] more »
This lovely bouquet was painted from my reference photo taken last spring. The colors are fresh and my goal was to capture the big shapes without getting bogged down with the details. It was a challenge painting this on my easel using the wet-in-wet technique. more »
Flowers are a favorite subject matter for me — they are so fresh and the vibrant colors are lovely. This bunch of peonies were set up in a vase on my table outside in direct sunlight, and I took many photographs from various angles. The result is not a duplicate of my photo, but an […] more »
Marybeth Heikes recently received the Third Place Award for her watercolor painting Soldiers & Sables at the 2016 National All Media Show. Her subject matter includes chairs and paint brushes on a full sheet paper, 22” x 30”. This exhibition is currently open at the Octagon Center for the Arts until April 7. Ms. Heikes’ […] more »
This is a small watercolor still life of some of antique bottles and jars. I have done numerous sketches because the transparency of glass interests me, and also the unique bottle shapes. Among the shapes are a clear, frosted larger bottle, an amber square necked jar and two red ones. I usually work from my […] more »
Marybeth Heikes’ acrylic collage Flute Music and Petunias is on display this week at Hoyt Sherman Place in Des Moines. This is the 108th Annual Art Exhibition sponsored by the Des Moines Women’s Club. The free exhibition runs from February 21 through February 28. This exhibition is open to artists in central Iowa and are divided into […] more »
This was an exciting design to work on using my “Royal” Teapot given to me by my mother. It has various kings and queens of England on it and is decorated with intricate patterns. I edited much of the patterns and added other teapots from my collection to the composition. After that, I superimposed a […] more »
Marybeth Heikes is pleased to announce her acceptance in the Rockies West National 24th Annual Exhibition. This exhibition will be held at the Center for the Arts in Grand Junction, Colorado, from March 1 to April 2. more »
This design was specifically done for the annual Mardi Gras celebration. I used my reference photo of garden sunflowers. I love the big, bold shapes of the flowers! I cannot resist painting them because they are happy flowers and my favorites. After drawing the design directly on the archival foamboard, I begin with specific shapes […] more »