I took a pass yesterday

I just didn't have it in me last night. It was hard enough keeping my eyes open for the drive home from work. Rather than fight the process, I gave myself the night off, had a beer (Sam Adams Black Lager - yummmmm), a melatonin, and crashed early. Refreshed for today.

I already started the setup for today's painting. Looking back at it now, I will most likely make some changes to the drapery and the arrangement. But the process is afoot.

Pardon this interruption

I was just sitting here, thinking over this decision to commit to a painting a day. It seems, on the face of it, insane. It feels like a monumental undertaking, without a pre-arranged endgame. Perhaps that is true, on the surface.

While, there will undoubtedly come a time where I will plan a change of venue, I have already felt the impact of the daily paintings. Each day I feel like I am accomplishing something. Even if the sketches (which haven't been scanned in yet), don't go well, or if I my meager study in paint is pictorially unsatisfying, I feel good. It feels like I have made a positive step and commitment to my overall artistic development. As Craig Nelson repeatedly points out Brush Mileage holds a lot of weight. I can't help but agree with that statement, even at this early stage.

Now back to our regular scheduled programming. . .

Keeping up with the Dailies!

Here are my daily forays for April 19th and 20th. Both are oil on canvasboard, 6"x8".

Starting Over

I have let this blog flounder. So I am trying to resurrect it as a daily painting/sketch forum. My entries may not always be daily, but I hope to keep the entries (art) dated as close to daily as possible. So here goes my first daily painting entry.


Spice tin (4/18/09)
8"x6" oil on canvasboard

Part Three

Here are three more 6x8 inch oils. Fun studies to do! Comments and critque are always welcome.

Andrew

Update - Part Two

Here are a few of my near daily warm-ups. Each are on 6x8" canvas panels, done in oil and completed in 25-40 mins. Please feel free to critque and comment.

Thanks

Well I am back - With a Vengence!

Sadly, I have been away from this blog far to long and I have a great deal to cover. Quite possibly there will be multiple entries throughout the day. This first one, I shall deliver what I promised. A quick review of a one man show, which I believe is still up at Indian Hills Community College.

I was unable to get permission to display actual photos of his work, so you will have to be content with the flyer. I missed the grand opening (which would have been the best time to get with Richard and talk to him again), but I have been back several times to enjoy the work displayed.

Richard is a retired instructor at Hills, and although I didn't have the pleasure of having him as an instructor, I have met him several times at art festivals and galleries. I even have a few of his prints. But, this exhibit was slightly divergent from previous showings I have attended. This show was a blend of traditional watercolor landscapes and bold abstracts. I am more familiar with his landscapes and cityscapes, but it was these abstracts that caught my eye. Its seems odd to say that, my choice of viewing pleasure leans way into the traditional. But these were not the work of your run-of-the-mill paint flinger. These works were bold in colour, and were built up on broad shapes, supported by controlled variations of hue and value. They showed an easy confidence that comes from years of representational painting. Each piece read just as easily as the more typical lanscapes with a distinct order and orientation. They didn't look like anything in particular, but they also didn't look souless and directionless. And none of them needed long descriptive passages of prose to define a meaning, purpose, or to elicit an emotional response.

In other art news, to my knowledge, I am still up for the 30 Day artist. I will keep you posted on how that continues. I also urge you to check out this months participant. Give them the support we all need from time to time. For those of you interested in sculpting, this weekend 1listSculpting (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/1listSculpting/) is hosting a quick sculpt exercise. A see what you can model in 6 hours (or less) deal, not including setting and curing times. As of right now, I am intending on participating. From todays vantage point it looks like a clean shot. If all goes well, I will be posting the WIP photos here and the finished piece here, and over at group folder. This group is more aimed at miniatures (i.e. wargaming), but there are some wonderful artist in the group, I encourage you to check out the group and members websites.

And finally, as I close this installment of the current update, I want to bring a new book to the attention of my readers. As artists and art lovers, we are by our very nature free thinkers. We typically are more open to what the world and the universe hold for us. This book isn't about art, but is definitely worth the read. The book is American Fascists: The Christian Right and the War On America by Chris Hedges. It is not a long winded left wing propaganda book, nor is it a piece of political satire. Hedges is a journalist with outstanding creditials and a Masters of Divinity from Harvard. This book is a document of policy and practice that is, in my opinion frightening. And he provides pages of endnotes referencing his sources, which are even more disturbing. It is an insight into a wave of politics that already has had some bearing on the arts and arts funding. The final tally has yet to be revealled. I just finished the book, and I was riveted. It is definitely worth the read if you are concerned about the direction of US policy and the principals the Founding Fathers laid down.

Nuff Said!

I will be back later today to post some paintings. Take care everybody!