Tag Archives: painting practice

Solo time at the coast

For the past week I’ve been staying in a little cottage in Waldport all by myself, enjoying silence and creative time and walking on the beach twice a day. It’s been heavenly!

I bought a folding table to set up as my workspace in the dining room and spread out my supplies. It was great to have the whole day–the whole week!–to alternate working on paintings with taking breaks outside. The past few days it was so warm that I took my book about Henry Miller’s watercolors onto the deck and soaked up some sun.

I’m heading home refreshed and restored and with a stack of new work and many, many photos for future inspiration.

 

You know it’s hot in the studio when…

Paint bottles

…the heat is making the paint bottles pop open! The Portland area is having a heat wave like nothing I can remember in my 24 years here. I don’t have air conditioning in the studio, so paint is drying too fast even in the late morning. Paintings are coming along very slowly and I’m keeping busy with other projects for now.

WIP for the Art Challenge

This will be the third year I’ve participated in the annual Art Challenge fundraiser at Village Gallery of Arts. In fact, it was the Challenge that got me interested in joining the gallery, and now here I am on the board of directors.

I really like these kinds of “come one, come all” events where you can find work by experienced artists hanging alongside pieces by beginners, or even kids. They’re fun to do and it’s amazing to see the variety of techniques. People find ways to attach fabric, glass, clay, or whatever else they want to use. There are always gems to find.

I’m sticking with paint. Here are my four pieces, about halfway done. I wanted to limit my palette this year as an extra challenge to myself, so I’m using black/white/gray and probably red to finish them off.

6x6" canvases for the Village Gallery of Arts' 6th Annual Art Challenge in May 2015.

6×6″ canvases for the Village Gallery of Arts’ 6th Annual Art Challenge in May 2015.

Painting outside

We’ve been having the nicest spring I can remember in 24 years of living in the Portland area. Yesterday I was in the studio looking at the sunshine outside and realized I could be painting out there! I didn’t even want to take the time to set up an easel. I grabbed a big canvas I’ve been working on and propped it on the chairs from the studio. It was so good to paint with the sun warm on my back. I’ll be doing more of this for sure. Though next time I may need to get some sawhorses or a table–something more stable than the chair method.
Painting in the backyard