Crossroads

Six months ago, when I started this blog, creating a complete new painting everyday was my original goal. I was inspired by the daily painters I encountered online, and I still admire this group immensely. Becoming a member of an online artist community has also been extremely rewarding. I really enjoy our exchange of ideas about painting and life.

For me, however, it is time to change and redefine my goals and the purpose of this blog. Painting everyday, or as close to it as I can manage, has been a good discipline, and is still my goal. But I have not enjoyed the rush to finish a painting by the stroke of midnight,like some artistic Cindarella, and I need to start creating some larger works for shows and the like.

I do enjoy keeping the blog, as a visual record and written diary of my efforts, and so I will continue to update it when I have something new to post.

Onions, Garlic and Scallions - 18 x 24" Pastel

Today I spent my painting time finishing the Bar Mitzvah portrait(see below), so I am posting an older still life that I like alot. Had trouble taking the photo, since it is under glass and I couldn't eliminate the reflections, but it gives the general idea.

Bar Mitzvah Portrait - Done!

Finished the portrait exercise I set out to do. I had forgotton how painstaking portraiture is...unlike painting landscapes, stillifes or even pets, there is no room for error. Unless you're Picasso, the nose, eyes and ears, etc. have to end up exactly where they should be, and that requires a level of precision I just don't enjoy. Bottom line - I learned that I really don't want to make a business of doing people portraits. Despite the problems, however, this was a useful exercise.

Portrait WIP

First day painting in almost three weeks, and boy am I rusty! Anyway, I began this portrait as an experiment. I wanted to see if the idea of a a Bar Mitzvah portrait would have appeal as a silent auction fundraiser for my synagogue. More time is needed to bring this to completion, however I am really struggling with the overall likeness, the skintones, and the background. (Have I left anything out?)To me, besides a good likeness, a successful painted portrait must have a beauty and character that the photo reference does not have. At this point, this attempt is still pretty rough, and it is unclear to me how it will turn out. However, usually by this stage I feel pretty excited ...let's just say with this one, unless I get very lucky, I am not optimistic.

Clancy and Chloe (Two Schnauzers)

I had posted this previously and then taken it off my blog, so as not to spoil the surprise, but now it is safe to post. This was commissioned as a gift for a couple of doglovers. I recently learned that they were both surprised by the gift and happy with the likeness, which made me happy.

After about three weeks of not painting, I am very happy to be back!

Still Life in Blue and Orange - 18" x 24" Pastel

Today I went to my Sunday sketch class, where we had an incredible model whose body was a cross between the Venus de Milo and the ancient Venus of Willendorf. It's funny how by today's standards, no one would consider this ample, voluptuous woman beautiful, but in a different time she would have been a goddess. Anyway, for some reason, my efforts at sketching her just got worse with each pose, so I don't have anything worth posting, although I wish I did, because her curves were amazing. Instead, I am posting a still life that I did a while ago, which I have always liked. The complementary colors really pop.

On another note, I am putting a freeze on my feed to the Daily Painters site for the next three weeks. With several projects to work on, and some travel plans, doing a daily just won't happen with any frequency. I will update my site with WIP instead, as things progress.

Pasture (Horses in Mist) - 11" x 14" Pastel

This is another painting based on a photo from the Wet Canvas Reference Image Library. It is really a painting about mist and fog, which is what captured me about this scene.

Spring Foal - 7" x 11" Pastel

I walked this morning with a neighbor whose daughter rides horses...well, one thing led to another, and I was in a horsey mood! This little spring foal was done from an image I found in the Wet Canvas Reference Image Library.