The Scenic Route

 

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This is from a day drive I took last year. I headed East from Missoula and then south on a "scenic route" towards Phillipsburg. This little dirt road was an off-shoot from the main road. At the start of the road were signs that warned this road went through private property and that one shouldn't stop or get out. I wondered if stopping to take pictures was permitted, but there wasn't a good spot to turn around, so I kept going. 

It turned out to be a gorgeous area, so at one point I did stop to take a few pictures. I heard a sound so I turned around and suddenly there was a swarm of 4-wheelers coming up behind me, fast. So I hopped back in my car and kept driving. I thought for sure I was in trouble, but after a few miles I found a spot to pull over so I could turn around, and all the 4-wheelers passed me with friendly waves. Whew.

Over the Top

 

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Here's a slightly bigger one that combines both the apples and flowers that I've been working on lately. I made the little vase with the knobbies on it, years ago. Starting next week I'll be taking another pottery class and hope to produce something else I can use in my still lifes. We'll see.

Rise Above

 

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Here's a little gouache landscape from a hike I took in the summer along Blodgett Creek. I have a few of these little landscapes left that have been sitting around my studio. Today I pulled them out and they inspired me to do some new ones. So you'll see those soon.

Back to Square One

 

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I had the idea recently to search online for some common phrases for potential future painting titles. There are about a billion of them, so I started keeping a list of the ones I like. Then it occurred to me that I could START with a title and have that inform the composition. Which turned out to be great fun! Here's the first one of those.

Daisy Trio

 

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Mostly I paint still lifes from life, but these little daisy paintings have been from photos. The reason is that I intend to eventually paint larger versions, and I just find it's easier (and less pressure) to have a photo to work from in this case. Flowers can change from day to day (and sometimes minute to minute), and often big paintings take more than a day to finish. Also I took a whole bunch of pictures that will last forever, but the flowers are already done for.

Jumping Off

 

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Want a challenge? Try painting 8 apples with basically the same local colors, but in varying degrees of light. Some in bright light and some in progressively more and more shadow. And still have them read as all the same basic local colors.

Wistful Kitty

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What is this kitty thinking about as it stares out the window? Mice? Birds? I shared a cat once in college with a roommate, and he would bring us grasshoppers and katydids. They would be mangled, but still alive, and left on our doorstep. My roommate and I would debate over whether or not we should put the poor things out of their misery, even though neither of us wanted to actually do it.

Out of Place

 

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I posted recently about having been in a bit of a funk lately, painting-wise. What happened, in a nutshell, was - I did a number of paintings in a row that "didn't work out," and got so discouraged that I became paralyzed. It felt terrible. I kept trying to think of things that might get me going again, but nothing worked. I was in a deep hole, and in that hole nothing even looked good to me. Not old paintings, not even other people's paintings.

Finally I thought of something that has worked for me in the past - a return to my comfort food: apples. I found a container of tiny apples at the store, and brought them home. I've painted maybe a million apples at this point, so I was comfortable doing it. And after this first one, I thought, "OK, I actually don't hate this, maybe life hasn't gone off a cliff after all." So I kept going. And pretty quickly I was back in my groove. Whew.

I picked a small size because that is also in my comfort zone. And after just a few apple paintings, I landed on a composition that called for a larger panel. It made me realize that these little ones are GREAT for 1. warming up, 2. dusting off the cobwebs, and 3. practice. Sooo, even though I said a few months ago that I wouldn't be doing these small still lifes anymore, well ... umm, nevermind.

Hot Car

 

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Here's another one that I just couldn't figure out how to make interesting with oil paint - but gouache pulled it off. I've been having fun combing back through my old files, looking for possibilities like this. For example, this one is from a very old wander in Eugene, OR. It was probably summer since the sun is out. I have to admit, now that we're in Montana, I don't miss the rain!

Sharing a Bed

 

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Every once in a while I think of a title like this and I am baffled that after 3000+ paintings, I haven't used it before! I took photos of these tulips in Dallas a few years ago at the Botanical Gardens with my good friend, Jackie. I kept passing them over to paint in oil, but man it works in gouache (IMHO)! Which is the great thing about using more than one medium.

Protective

 

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I posted the reference photo for this at the beginning of the month/year. It was for this month's Daily Paintworks Challenge, all about resolutions. One of my personal resolutions is to paint more flowers on larger panels, but the past few days I've been doing a few little paintings as a warm up (and to try and get myself out of a funk I've been going through). It worked! And this is one of the little ones I did.

I have a bunch more references of these flowers that I'm going to play with. One thing I realized is that I was intimidated by going large, so these little studies are a GREAT way to get warmed up, try some ideas for editing, and just see what works and what doesn't. So expect more, and eventually, larger versions.

Mind Your Own Business

 

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Thank you for all the feedback on yesterday's post! It makes me very happy/sad to hear that so many experience the same emotional turmoil when art doesn't work out. I'm happy to know I'm not alone, but sad that we all have to suffer. : ( Someone suggested that the bad feeling usually comes before a breakthrough. Looking back, I would say that's usually true. Unfortunately it doesn't make the bad feeling any easier to slog through, especially when you have no clue how long it will last. Someone else suggested that winter often comes with an ebb. I wonder if that's linked at all to winter weight? Seems like they might go together. Ha. ; )

Three Vases

 

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I'm going through an ebb in my studio, which is why I'm really glad I still have some paintings from before that I haven't posted. I was particularly happy with this one.

My husband said to me once that my mood is only as good as my last painting. Over the years I have realized just how true this is! When I do a painting that doesn't work out, I feel discouraged. When I do five paintings in a row that don't work out, I feel like crawling into a hole. Nothing seems possible, so I don't feel like trying. And while I've done it many times, it's awfully hard to crawl out of that hole. So I'm wondering - is it just me? Or are most artists this sensitive? How about you?

Fishmonger

 

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I have a particular fondness for waterfowl, and I have no idea why. Actually, I think all birds are beautiful. We have a feeder in our backyard, and a pair of binoculars inside by the window so we can see them up close. Unfortunately we don't get many water birds here in Montana. 

Green Placemat

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This one ended up being tough to paint, and I had to do it in two goes. The main reason is that the bright green color was SO bright (saturated) that any contamination (which is oil paint's middle name) made it look dirty. To get the color I used phthalo blue and cadmium lemon yellow (neither of which contain any red), and waited until the first pass was dry before I put the new color on.

Clouds Rising

 

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This is from a photo I took back in summer. Our Montana winter has been really beautiful as well, but we haven't ventured out nearly as much. I'm sure I will get braver with time. Meanwhile, I'm looking forward to the great hiking opportunities summer brings!

Angry Alarm

 

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I found a new source for royalty free images - unsplash.com. I've been regularly scouring this and other sites for images, and saving them into folders by animal. Unfortunately I have completely neglected to jot down the names of the photographers, which would have been necessary to give individual shout-outs. So I would just like to put out a big THANK YOU to all who share their photos for us artists to use!!! Your generosity is very much appreciated.

Also, I recently posted this month's Daily Paintworks Challenge, in which I ask you to share your resolution(s) for the year, in art. In it I share this photo I took recently of a subject I plan to paint more of this year. Feel free to use it if you're inspired!

Cautious Kitty

 

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Here's something tiny and innocent, born into a crazy world.

Love Notes

 

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When I was 21 and attending university in Texas, I signed up to teach arts and crafts at a summer camp in Maine. A couple of months before I flew there I met the man who would become my husband. Over that summer I wrote more letters than I ever had in my life (and probably since). And he wrote me even more. It was a bittersweet summer that I'll never forget, and it was definitely on my mind while I painted this. Ahh, the adventure of life.

Mama Cow

 

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A belated happy new year to everyone! I know it's been said a billion times already, but I hope, for all our sakes, that this one goes better than the last. So here's a cow to start us on the journey towards greener pastures.