Summer Studio Painting

Gratitude
24x24 inches
Oil on Stretched Canvas

Some artists enjoy painting plein air.  I've done my share of painting outdoors, painting directly from nature.  But over time I come to realize that I'm more of a "memory painter".  I can observe the landscape in silence.  From there I record with my camera or sometimes simply from my own interpretation of memory.

Even if I paint from a photograph, the painting never looks like the photo.  For me the painting needs to come from somewhere inside.  Only then does my painting look truly authentic.  

Editing

Posies

24x30

This is a painting I did in oil about a year ago.  I haven't done a lot of flower paintings because usually I get so caught up in the details, that I'm not happy with them.  But in this painting, I painted just the very basics.  I admire other artists who are able to capture the subtle nuances of flowers.  I'm just not one of them.  

It's that way with my other work too.  In landscape art, if I start recording too much, I feel the painting isn't me for some reason.  I prefer the distilled version.  I enjoy capturing the vague impression of the landscape.  To me, this feels real - authentic.

It's taken a lot of time and tons of paint to come up with this final analysis of my work.  I've only come to this conclusion because now I can look back more objectively.  Painting the very essence of a still life or landscape requires more thought for me because it requires more editing and planning.

On a different note, I'm thrilled to have received a Lemonade Award from Kathleen Krucoff.  She's an amazing glass artist and if you haven't checked out her blog yet, you're in for a treat.  The only problem I'm having is downloading the badge (a requirement) onto my site.  So I'll have to wait for one of my twenty-somethings to help me!

    

Finding One's Authentic Voice

Strolling Along

9x12

 My work is about to take a detour.  I've always been in search of my true voice and it's been a long, winding path.  Trying to get in touch with one's authentic artist voice is a push and pull of learning from others and listening to oneself.  Sometimes the listening to oneself is the most difficult.  

Being objective and critical of one's work takes some distance and time.  It's a matter of knowing what works and what doesn't .  When it doesn't, I feel it's a waste of time and energy.  But in fact, all those "mistakes" are how I've learned.  And all those "mistakes" have shown me where I want to go.  

I'll be talking more about where I want to go in future posts.  In the meantime, I'm taking an on-line course with Deborah Paris.  She's a gifted artist and an amazing teacher.  She knows how to pare down compositions and paint in a truly luminous style.  I'm learning so much from taking this class.  But  I don't want my work to look exactly like hers (which is beautiful and unique).  I want my work to look like mine.