So I've lost direction...

I am admitting it.  I've lost direction, focus and to an extent desire when it comes to my artwork.  I have desire but just don't know WHAT I want to do anymore.  I have lots of ideas floating around but they seem a bit incomplete.  my previous work I feel has been stuck in between two places and not quite where I want to be...

That being said I do want to try two specific ideas I have floating around - both drastically different from things I've done in the past -  but just need to get that inspiration going.  A few weeks ago I did get in the studio and just moved some paint around.  Trying to enjoy the process and not get caught up in trying to create anything specific.  I love working with thick paint as shown here, but it just costs a fortune so these small canvases were the perfect time to do that.  I actually had about 5 little things going at the same time which was nice to move from one thing to another when I got stuck with one.

I guess a lot of it is about priority and I have to decide is making large art pieces a priority right now?  I have so many projects I need to tackle and so many life moments I need to start experiencing and living.  SIMPLIFYING has been the word of the household and a moving toward a new way of life for our family.  Evaluating all the "stuff" and deciding what we really need and what we don't.  It's been hard to get rid of things because as an artist I will save every scrap of paper, fabric, ribbon, wood, (insert random object) because I just MIGHT need it someday for a project.  And believe or not they do come in useful sometimes!

 I suppose the conclusion of this rambling of words is sometimes we need a break from the pressure of the need to create a "masterpiece" that has this deep "message." something I've been caught up on too much I think.  Getting back to just enjoying the process of creating is something I need to do.

Children's Portrait

This drawing is another piece that I did a couple of months ago.  It's always a challenge to do more than one face in a piece of art... especially when working in pencil or charcoal or another unforgiving medium.  I was able to work from one photo and with the wonderful benefits of the computer, reposition everyone in a favorable layout while keeping the relative proportions accurate.  From past experience I think I'm making it a requirement to be able to use one photo with all subjects in it if I am not taking the source photos myself, otherwise it's just too tricky to make it work.

I really enjoy pencil work and hope to find the time to do more of it someday... I may even want to try loosening up my hand with it a bit, although that is often easier said than done.  For me, so often a piece of artwork comes out completely different than what I envision.  Of course I guess that is part of the process!

I see beautiful, detailed - yet loose - pencil and charcoal drawings dripping with emotions that draw you in, with such depth - and light - on toned papers... and long to be able to do something like that.  I did buy a book of nice gray paper that I hope to be able to try out - but first I need some appropriate subject inspiration fitting for such to strike and lately I'm just not having any of that.  For now I'll just go in to the studio every so often and rub the paper between my fingers - it really has a nice weight.. and I guess I have a bit of a paper fetish as that is probably fed by my graphic design work as well.  Although these days I never get to use any of those wonderfully textured premium papers that fill all the swatch books for the printed projects as most jobs tend to go to short run digital printing - which of course doesn't justify buying a pallet of parent sheet designer paper!

First Painting of a Car in quite awhile!

So i went out of my comfort zone on the background on this one!  This is a good example of how I had what I thought was a crystal clear picture and plan of how I wanted the painting to turn out when I started.... and then it turned into something completely different!

 I originally planned to have the dark car on a background of lime greens/blacks - choppy palate knife style brushstrokes that I like to do.   But after getting the car mostly blocked in and detailed, I realized it just wasn't going to work that way.  So I was thinking what would work with some of the highlight colors I had already placed in the reflections of the car body and a sunset seemed to pop into my mind.  Landscapes aren't typically my cup of tea, so I was nervous to try it but after lots of work in the end, it turned out ok I think! 

I must say painting a black car is not very easy at all!  Well painting any car is quite a challenge.. but the black seems to be more difficult than other colors... especially when creating a completely different background than any of your reference photos as the reflections where photos are taken are such a major part of how the car appears.

I also was able to find a great deal on those extra thick canvases which I think are really cool.  They add more dimension to the painting giving extra impact when hanging on the wall... or even allowing for the finished work to be set on a shelf! 

A return to sharing some art... maybe!

Well despite my best intentions.. I haven't posted anything in almost a year!  Can't believe it - well yes I can, Life has been busy and that is a good thing.

I don't know where to start really so I will start with some portraits commissions I did.  I haven't had any time to be in the studio working on any personal things lately.  I have lots of ideas though and hopefully will have some new pieces - or at least one - done within a month. In fact just tonight - with another sleepless night I went in and started throwing around some paint.  Nothing serious just getting back in the groove.

These portraits are 8x10 pencil drawings.  I do always enjoy portraits even though they can be challenging and stressful but I was happy with the way these turned out.

Another piece in the Birth Art Series

 

Here is another piece I did for my Birth Art series.  This is the 2nd interpretation of this idea. The first one, click here, was the watercolor on yupo paper that had the large blooming flower. 
    This one is a mixed media artwork on canvas where I combined acrylic paint, pastel, fabric, and a twine/yarn material.  I used a photo taken while I was in labor for this piece.  Titles are always difficult for me but I decided to call this one Bringing a Blessing.  I played around with swirling the white paint in the figure area mixing it with heavy body gel medium to retain the brushstrokes a bit.  I really only have a couple of more pieces done to show.   One was very large and way out of my comfort zone..  not really sure why I chose such a large canvas for it!  I'll share that one at a later date.

Birthing Art - Post 1!

Well it has certainly taken me awhile to get around to posting some of these.  While I was pregnant, I created some sketches as I went through some birthing preparation.  Sketches about different ideas of birth, translating feelings, perceptions and such.  This is a painting I actually did before I gave birth to my baby although I did go back in to work on it last year also.  The few other paintings I did were done over the past year. This one is an acrylic on canvas and is definitely one of my favorites!

A Painting in December

Although December seemed like a month set out to crush me, I did have the opportunity (and found the time amazingly) to work on a commissioned piece that someone wanted to give as a Christmas gift.  So working from a photo, I painted this 9"x12" portrait of their family dog in acrylic on one of those 3" thick canvases.  I like those thick canvases because you can display them easily on a shelf or on a wall.  After not doing much painting over the last year I was nervous as I begin, but was really happy with how it turned out.