End of Week

A few pieces of fruit are all that are left by the end of the week. Tried this simple set up only to quickly realize it's not simple at all. I am really hoping to hone my skills with this more concentrated process of small paintings. I'm in the incubation stage- not 100% sure what my next series of larger paintings will be.

Newport Art Museum Members Show

Wanted to share the good news of my acceptance into the annual juried show at The Newport Art Museum. The juror this year is Maya Allison who is the curator at the David Winton Bell Gallery at Brown University. There were 242 entries and 71 works were chosen. So you know how it is, if you've entered shows and not been picked, it's so hard not to take it personally. But we must develop a thick skin and just keep on doing the work. This painting is 2 canvases 30x30,framed with 1/4" between the 2 canvases.

Pear 3

Same pear seen from another vantage point. Hmmm,do I continue with the pear or move on to something else? No pears at home and it's so cold I don't want to leave the warm house.Really cold spell here in the Northeast. Am I changing the subject? Yep, how do those daily painters do it?

Pear 2

The next day, at a different time, so of course the light changes it all. I wonder if I should be using a box set up? That worked pretty well when I painted the angels last month.Feel like I'm getting back to basics with this simple (ha, not easy) set up. A good way to start the new year.

Pear 1

After looking at (and being inspired by) so many blogs of artists who paint daily, I've decided to spend some time doing small studies of simple objects. I am curious to see how it affects my abilities to observe, to edit, to simplify, to get the paint ON without being fussy. No expectations, no judgment, just painting.

After Diebenkorn

I just finished this for the Fakes and Forgeries at Spring Bull. Remembered that several years back I did a copy of an Edward Hopper painting, a woman in a rocker looking out at the city titled "Room in Brooklyn". Two painters I have definitely been influenced by, interested by a woman sitting alone in a space. Is someone with her? The artist, of course, but who else, and why? Explores questions of solitude vs loneliness.

Studying Diebenkorn

Did a value study in graphite of a painting by Richard Diebenkorn.Plan to copy this work, 8x8 in oil, for a show at The Spring Bull Gallery in Newport: Fakes and Forgeries. Diebenkorn (1922-1993) abandoned his work in the style of the Abstract Expressionists in favor of more figurative work. He was associated with the Bay Area Figurative Movement and lived in San Francisco, one of my favorite cities.

Take a Break

This is my 100th post! Plan to post 2'x a week this year, a commitment I can stick with. Under commit and over deliver, a quote from my husband, who always sets his goals high. I tend to overcommitment and under deliver. So hard to say no! But saying no sometimes gives me the space I need to be creative. This is a companion to the previous post, painted in oil on 5x7 canvas.

Waiting

This 5x7 painting is a study and part of the larger group of cafe paintings that I continue to work on. My emphasis this new year of a new decade will be on the human figure, alone and interacting with others. A subject that fills me with wonder.