Just Keep Swimming

sold. (3x5in. - GOUACHE on 24-ply illustration board, starts at $75)

Painting these animals with gouache really helps me loosen up with color! I'm learning so much. I think it's a really good idea to try subjects with more than one medium. I've been hearing that from great artists for a long time. How did it take me this long to actually do it?!

Passing By

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I end up using some artistic license with these fish, but mostly with the space around them. The photos are almost never perfect, and often I end up changing the background in order to help keep the fish as the center of attention. Also, if you squint at this particular reference photo, you'll see that the values (and colors) at the bottom of the photo are very similar to those of the fish. Your eye can separate these in the photo, but it's harder to make that clear in paint. So I left out the sea floor. That's easy with water - tougher when the background needs to make sense, and you've got to make it up. That's where choosing the photo carefully is important. 

I See You

 

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In my playing during the past month or so, I did a small fish painting in oil. The next day I decided to try it again, in gouache, and ended up liking the second version a lot better! One thing I noticed in particular was that the gouache was lighter and brighter. This realization has really helped me with my oil painting. It also inspired me to do lots more gouache animals, which is what I'll be posting for now.

Fish in the Sea

 

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I started painting and posting (almost) daily 14 years ago, and it has been wonderful for my career, in so many ways. Painting daily improved my skills quickly and ... a lot. Getting my work out there regularly boosted sales and prompted others to invite me to teach and write books. Etc. I recommend it to ANY aspiring artist!

But I've learned that the creative spirit (mine, anyway) is a delicate one, and must be handled with care. I am not a machine who can crank out endless ... well, anything. In order for me to remain sane and happy, I must follow what is in my heart, which is always evolving. Unfortunately this does not always coincide with making money. So art is a tough career choice if you want to be happy and rich!! Also, posting daily and being in the public eye - it can be tough to make changes, even little ones, because people will tell you what they think, and it does not often align with what's in the heart. And for sensitive people (like me), the pressure from that can be ... quite uncomfortable.

So I had to take a break. And while I wasn't posting, I was most definitely creating. I have played and experimented with many of the ideas that have popped into my head over the years. I call it "chasing butterflies," in that I have allowed myself to follow any idea, anywhere, until it ran out or I got bored, and then I chase a new butterfly. It has been a wonderful. And a roller-coaster. Most of it no one will ever see. But I got so much out of it!

What have I learned so far? In general, two things:

1. I need variety to keep me interested and challenged. I've always painted a variety of subjects, but going forward I want to avoid only painting things that I think will sell, and I want to experiment with all kinds of mediums and subjects. Even if it never goes anywhere.

2. The unknown is scary but exhilarating. I've always avoided the things that scare me, but lately I've been diving in head first and some amazing things have come from it - things I never could have done on purpose! I want to do lots more of that.

So, while I'll be posting again, whenever I think you might be interested in something, I will continue to chase those butterflies. Because that's what makes me happy. Thank you all for your support!