Warm Ups As Avoidance Behaviour

Study on Raymar archival canvas panel, first attempt, revisited.

I admit it, I started a study the other day, and I have been using it entirely as an avoidance tactic.  Big, detailed paintings are intimidating.  Little studies are easier to tackle.  If they get messed up, it seems to be easier to take.  I started this most recent study on Thursday and sure enough, I messed that up! I did something I very rarely do - I started over, on a completely different surface, abandoning the quick sketch of paint on canvas, for a new quick sketch of paint on linen.  Smaller dimensions, which, apparently, I could handle better than the first, slightly larger attempt.

Today I worked on the smaller study, and got it to the point where I'm pretty sure it's done.  Then I looked at the discarded start.  Another thing I very rarely do, is work from the same photo more than once, but as I'd let the sketch in paint dry, and ghosting isn't something I wanted to contend with, I thought I'd see what I could do with it as is.  I already had the palette set, a very limited one of four colours (and a combination of colours I hadn't used before).  So I played.  And avoided the big painting.  And now I'm writing this blog post, to further avoid the big painting.  It has, at least, made it back on my easel.  Time to pony up and get to it, I guess!  :-D

Study on unstretched linen, second attempt, ready to abandon.

Five Days In February – Days Four and Five!

"Baby Parker" 6 x 4 oil study.

Apparently I forgot to post the last two paintings on the blog!  The last two were both 6 x 4 on Raymar archival cotton canvas panel.  Day Four was a study of Parker (formerly known as Billy) as a foal, looking all sweet and innocent (yeah, right!). Day Five was a portrait of Sheldon, who celebrated his fifth birthday this week.  All five studies are now on my website in the "Studies" section, and for sale, $65.00 each including shipping in North America, until the end of the month.  After that, they'll be going to Equis Art Gallery to replenish the supply of my studies there. They seem to get snapped up there, so if you're thinking about it, don't wait too long!  ;-) 

"Sheldon," 6 x 4 oil study.

Paint. Every. Day.

"Ask," oil on linen study in progress.

June.  Finally we are getting some seasonally appropriate weather.  It’s amazing what that does for the psyche.  After a difficult winter and a tentative spring, it’s looking like just maybe we might have a reasonable summer. I even wore shorts yesterday!

I was tempted to do another Thirty Horses, Thirty Days to jumpstart myself this month. It’s been a while, and I have enjoyed the ones I’ve done in the past.  What holds me back is, well, reality, basically.  For one, getting a painting done every single day with everything that’s going on at the moment would be extremely difficult.  Then there is the fact that I have many small paintings, and I really don’t want to accumulate another 30.  So, what I decided was to commit to painting something each day.  It might be working on one of the larger WIPs, it might be a new study/sketch.  As long as the brushes and paint make contact with some ground or another at least once, that’s the deal.  The other motivation for not doing a Thirty Horses is that I don't want to limit myself to just horses, so we'll see what else I come up with along the way.

Sunday, (June 1^st) I started a small oil on linen study (above).  Yesterday (June 2^nd) time was tight and I was literally picking up a brush at ten to midnight.  I wiped out what I did, because I wasn’t happy, but I’m going to accept that's the way things are going to be some days and just go with it.  Today might be another one of those days, but we'll see.  Hopefully by the end of the month I'll have a few new small paintings, have finished some of the larger WIPs, and maybe even have started some new ones.  Bottom line is, I need to get back into some kind of routine to get past a particularly dry spell. I should be painting almost every day anyway, so this needs to carry into July and beyond!

"Victor," a start that I ended up wipng off.  Perhaps I'll try again today!

 Just.  Paint.

"Sheldon Sleeping," 5 x 7 oil on linen

I put the final touches on this little study tonight - I do love to do these loose, sketchy studies to balance out the more complex, detailed pieces I do.

First Portrait of the New Princess

Just a little study of Jubie's new baby girl from one of my favourite photos so far. This is 5 x 7 oil on Raymar canvas panel. The first of many, I'm sure!

The Other Half of the Entry

Today I painted Peaker's best friend, Maria. Maria only left a couple of weeks ago to join Miss Peaks at the training centre - I wonder if they were reunited! Maria was purchased as a weanling last December. She was a little backward, but the last few months really started coming together. She's a very pretty thing, and while Peaker gives the impression of being somewhat modest and innocent, Maria is the opposite! She has a dishy, almost Arabian face, and a mischievous eye.

This painting is 8 x 10 oil on panel. I knew my time would be tight with this one, as I had plans to go to the re-opening of the Art Gallery of Ontario this afternoon. I'm content with the sketch-like quality of this one. I've always liked the freshness of oil studies on panel, where one can see the tone of the panel showing through. Once again I was using the limited palette.

I did get some writing done last night, and I need to keep on top of that! Time is ticking!

Remembering that I'm doing these horses by age, and this takes care of the yearlings...that means the weanlings are next! I've really been looking forward to doing them. They have such irresistable little faces! Well...if I can still call them little!