Friday

I have done so much stepping back is these last few weeks and really feel I have had a setback of sorts in my confidence as a painter. I haven't experienced this before and hope to use it to make me a better painter, a more creative artist. Some strange internal thing is going on and I wonder what God is telling me about my work. Painful, but redemptive.

My sister and nephew are coming up tomorrow, so a day of cleaning. My Ikea desk came in, and though I enjoy these sorts of projects, putting it together was a major feat in itself. Out with the ancient, massive antique taking up my studio and in with a smaller, sleeker desk. All the while, my tragic simian hero and the "memory stag" are staring at me.........

Oil Painting Research Day

I had coffee with a friend this morning and spent the afternoon researching color theory, tcehnique and my medium of choice. This is quite an overwhelming task as everyone who uses or has used oil considers themselves an expert with opinions on even the minutest of details falling anywhere on the spectrum. From brands, to mediums, to palettes colors, to suitable palettes, to brushes, to how you hold the brush, to...well, you get the idea.

I was afraid to use oil paint for a long time. In my mind, it is the Mother Superior of all mediums. The smell, the messiness, the technical aspects and careful treatment required had me paralyzed and stuck on acrylics. Even now, there is a lot of hit or miss and trial and error involved for me in working on oils. I probably do a lot of things the long way around.
Bill Martin's site has great vital info to refresh the experienced and inform the fledgling oil painter.

So, with my brain exploding from information overload........I look forward to "The Office" tonight.......... cheers.

Hope you all had a great creative day......