Her Dowry Linen
5×7 acrylic mixed media collage portrait painting
daily painting: 365 day project
Day 33/365
Prints
I do not understand how anyone can live without some small place of enchantment to turn to.
Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings
Mixed Media Artist - daily painter of portraits, flowers, abstracts and birds
Her Dowry Linen
5×7 acrylic mixed media collage portrait painting
daily painting: 365 day project
Day 33/365
Prints
I do not understand how anyone can live without some small place of enchantment to turn to.
Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings
Rest in Peace
4×4 oil portrait painting on panel
daily painting: 365 day project
day 32/365
To live in this world
you must be able
to do three things
to love what is mortal;
to hold it
against your bones knowing
your own life depends on it;
and, when the time comes to let it go,
to let it go
― Mary Oliver
For my mom, who passed away 7 years ago today..there never is a day that goes by that I don’t think of you, and miss you. Always, and forever, this will never change.
Wherever You Go, There You Are
Acrylic mixed media collage portrait painting
daily painting: 365 day project
Day 31
Prints
Do not wait; the time will never be ‘just right.’ Start where you stand, and work with whatever tools you may have at your command, and better tools will be found as you go along. – George Herbert
So true. When I first started painting I bought the cheapest craft paint I could find, some gesso, and watercolor paper at Michaels. I also bought some library books at a sale to use for altered books. I think I got a whole bagful of books for only $1.00. Voila! Economical surface to paint on. Easy peasy. If you want to paint, why not start today? 🙂
Month 2!! Yay! A couple changes are coming, which I’ll tell you about soon. See you tomorrow.
Sympathetic
Acrylic mixed media collage portrait painting
daily painting: 365 day project
Day 30
Prints
Today I thought I’d write about some of my struggles throughout the first 30 days of the 365 day project. For the first two weeks I was painting, photographing, editing the photos, listing the painting and print, and creating a blog post every morning. It was a bit too hectic for my liking. It was like a race against the clock, which I had lots of energy for when I first started. However, that high energy waned as time progressed, and the newness of the 365 day project wore off. I knew it would happen, and I’d have to make some adjustments.
Then I quickly hit hard against the it’s not always possible to start and finish a new painting within a couple hours wall. There’s one painting coming up that’s taken me two weeks to finish, and it’s just a small 5×7. I had to keep working on it until I liked it, and it just. wasn’t. happening. I remember having to rush to get something else painted that morning, so I could make a blog post.
I also struggled with the amount of time it takes to write some blog posts, especially a long one like this. I need plenty of time to process, and work through whatever I’m trying to say. This post has taken me 3 days, and I’m still editing it right up to the last minute. There’s no way I could pull this all off in a morning.
Speaking of blogging, I already told you about the issues I was having with Blogger. Luckily it was resolved quickly when I moved back over here. There was no way I had the patience required to deal with the crappiness of Blogger on top of everything else.
With all these struggles going on, I knew I had to find a routine for this project that worked better for me. I wanted to slow it all down, and stop scrambling to meet my goals. A 2 to 3 hour window each morning wasn’t enough to get it all done. I have a neurotic type A personality. I sleep better at night when I’m slightly ahead of the game, so I pulled a double shift or two, and painted a couple extra paintings ahead of my blog schedule. It’s made a world of difference.
Now I can start preparing the photos, and blog post a day ahead of time. It gives me a little room to breathe, and if I decide I can’t live with a painting, it can go back to the studio without causing a major freakout. I’m less stressed in the morning now, and can take my time painting something new. No more rushing!
The bottom line is this: I somehow got through the first month, and haven’t missed a day in the studio yet. I actually had extra studio time because I painted a little ahead. I feel good about that. Here’s hoping the 2nd month goes a bit smoother than the first.
I’m Thanking You
Acrylic mixed media portrait painting on paper
Day 29 of my daily painting: 365 day project
Prints
I’m coming up on the end of my first 30 days of painting. If you’ve been following along, I’m thanking you, and I’m grateful!! It’s been a lot of fun, at times a huge struggle, but it’s all been worth it.
Out of Line
Acrylic mixed media collage portrait painting on paper
Daily painting day 28/365
Prints
The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious. It is the source of all true art and science.
Albert Einstein
I hope you got to experience the eclipse today. I wasn’t in the direct path, and wasn’t able to obtain any glasses, but it was still pretty cool.
Find Her Strength
Acrylic mixed media portrait painting on paper
Daily painting day 27/365
Prints
The most important thing about art is to work. Nothing else matters except sitting down every day and trying. ― Steven Pressfield
I finished War of Art. The second half wasn’t nearly as good as the first, so it was easy to finish it in one quick sitting. It got a bit out there for me for reasons I won’t go into here. I will reread the first part again, probably several times, but I’ll be skipping the rest. It wasn’t my cup of tea.