No Whining

Finally! I'm not sure this one is done - but I am. And it's past my bed time. I'll see it with fresh eyes tomorrow. I'm so happy to have completed the challenge and now I can reflect on lessons learned. There are always many, if I'm listening.

Second Wind

One more painting after this! I did paint last night, but I didn't post. (Sad face.)  Scrapped  that one off at the last minute.  I've never been a fan of alcohol that comes in a brown bottle, it sure has great color.

Pickled

Hmm. It took me several tries to get a decent photo of this one, and it's still a little off. I took a few shots outside, but the color was too cool. This is slightly warm. I didn't play with editing very much, but the writing is on the wall. I may need a better camera than my iphone and I may need to learn an edit program one of these days. Just one more thing to add to the list of things I've learned (or acknowledged) during this process.

Lemon and Mint Promise

Today was a beautiful day, full of sunshine, and I picked a few sprigs of mint. I'm starting to look forward to painting larger without the goal of finishing in one shot, so today's bribe is to have an exotic beverage made with the above and watch an episode of something on Netflix...

Wine and Chinese

Stop moving the glass! Tonight's rule was to hurry and paint this and then I could enjoy the wine. I cheated a little but I think it's OK. Tomorrow is Friday - let the weekend begin! Tomorrow is also the opening for the Prairie Lakes Annual Juried Art Show (mouth-full!) in which I have a couple of  paintings.

Tomato. Tomahto

What do they say? Anything you do for more than 21 days becomes a habit?  I'm not so sure at the moment.  I'll decide tomorrow if this is finished. Right now it's off to bed!

Night Flowers

I'm enjoying the flowers again. Everything looks better in low light. Tonight's lesson: I may need to take pictures with something other than a phone or an iPad at some point in the future. I had a heck of a time avoiding glare and the background color is a bit off. (It's not really black, it's a purpley, grey-green.

Captive Models

Guess what we're having tonight? It's in season somewhere, right? Yesterday was gladiolus day. I did paint a 5x7, but I really feel like they deserve a larger format so they may not be invited to play in the daily paintings any more.   I wiped off the painting I attempted last night. (sad face)

Glad it's Saturday

I haven't posted for the 30/30 challenge for a couple of days and here's why - I did a painting Thursday, but at the last minute I admitted that it just wasn't working and I wiped it off. Ces't la vie. Yesterday I was just tooo tired after the first full week with students.  But I have a new lease on life now. I was hoping something else would grab me at the farmer's market this morning. Instead these very robust gladiolas jumped into my arms so I guess I have to paint more flowers.

Last week I hedged my bets and submitted two paintings for the Prairie Lakes Annual Art Show and both were juried in! I'm very happy to have some paintings hanging out in such good company :-) The opening is next Friday, the 25th.

Relaxed

The sienna colored glass of a typical beer bottle makes it seem pretty appealing. Love the paint, but not so much the beverage. I'll have a nice glass of malbec, thank you. This was a pretty fast painting. I spent part of the night watching the republican dog and pony show. No political comments here though. ;-)

Flowers to Go

I'm still getting a little mileage from the farmer's market bouquet. A little caffeine might help, right?  Maybe I need some too. I need to paint two in one day to catch up!

Velvet Elvis

This painting and I fought the entire time. That's why it gets the snarky name - revenge! Anyway, the flowers are fading fast and so am I. The photo has a lot of glare due to wet paint and indoor night time lighting.

Day 12 (I'm falling behind!)

Another one from the farmer's market bouquet. I want to get at least one more out of this bunch, but the flowers are starting to get weary, so I  need to get on it.  Some people love to paint flowers. I have a love/hate relationship with the whole process. For me, a portrait is almost easier somehow.  At least, that's what I'm saying right now...

Farmer's Market Bouquet

The farmer's market was especially crowed today. I ended up buying maple syrup and local honey and some lovely peppers and then I just couldn't pass up a fresh bouquet. I am not a painter of florals or a gardener, so I have no idea what I bought, but the colors were so delicate.

Shy Friend

Today was the first day of school for students and the halls were full of excitement with a certain amount of anxiety. Kids worried about who they would sit by at lunch and what if they couldn't open their locker and what if they were tardy. They will sleep better tonight. I will too.

Orange and Orange

On a hot summer's day, which one would you prefer? My husband is a Pepsi man, but in some countries s it's just not available. No matter where we are, though, someone is selling orange Fanta!

I Got You Cornered!

My apple was willing enough to poise again for a painting with a primary color scheme. He may regret this soon.

Sweet Tango

I never got caught up in the whole Honey Crisp frenzy that swept Minnesota  because I not really an apple person, but having visited Argentina recently, this name caught my attention. Being offered a sample helped too. It was delicious! And very fresh. I've heard that if the stem looks like it still has some life in it, that's how you tell. I could actually smell them over the odor of my paint! They may volunteer for a few more paintings before they meet their demise... 

Alizarin

What a day! We are all our own harshest critics, right? Today I painted two different paintings on  this surface and scrapped them both off! I was  feeling pretty frustrated,but now I am starting to feel that I've had a break through, of sorts. So, there's a lesson here about perseverance. 

Half Empty of Half Full?

It took me a long time to sit down and paint today.  I could be/should be getting ahead! Once I got started, this was really fun. A good exercise in breaking things down into simple shapes without making mud.  I wish I had been able to photograph it in day-light though.

Whose Kitty?

 

I'm still playing "catch-up" and the art gremlins are making it hard.  A dear friend of mine had to say good-bye to her beloved furry friend, so it seemed like painting a picture of her kitty-cat was the obvious project for me. But...the entire time I was  painting this, my old cat who departed in 1984 kept creeping into the picture!   Cats are freaky that way...

A Corner in Tel Aviv

I'm already on the verge of getting behind. This one will be just under the wire. The scene here is from a photo I took last year when I was  in Tel Aviv. This is near the Carmel Market. I walked and walked that day and got a little sunburnt, but I stopped and had a glass of white wine just outside the market and felt much better. I love buildings with curves and balconies, don't you? 

"Try to Fit In"

                                                       

Today is day one of the 30 Paintings in 30 Days challenge and, guess what? I'm already feeling a wee bit stressed!   Real life, you know..  Anyway, one of the great things about doing this in September is  having the opportunity to get  props from the farmers market. I learned last time that small, simple compositions are the way to go. Not an apple orchard with people having picnics - just an apple that may suggest those things.  Vinettes, if you will.

Early Girls

Early Girls, 8x10 oil on canvas

Welcome to the first post for my art blog! Am I late to the party? Well, maybe, but I have a burning desire to be a blogger! Why?  I am really excited about painting and I want to share my passion.  I've been thinking about this for a long while and, finally, the time to start is NOW because on September 1st, Tuesday, Leslie Saeta's  "30 Paintings in 30 Days" challenge will begin! I'm going to participate and I want to document it this time! This will be my 3rd time, Ya'll. The first time - not so great. I only painted 6 paintings. But I figured a few things out and the next time, in January, I did it! I painted all 30! So now I have the confidence to try it again. The intention of the competition is to simply paint more and to support each other. AND to have fun! One small conundrum for me - this is also the beginning of the school year and I'm going to be slightly (!!!) busy with that. I'm not sure how this is going to play out, but, to be honest, my teaching job (which I love, by the way) has a way of quickly taking over my life. I hope coming home and painting every day will help me set some boundaries and stay balanced... in addition be growing as an artist. So, follow me! Lets see what happens.
*Please know that my blog is in the early stages. It'll get better as I figure this out. Someone said, "Start before you're ready." and I took that advice.