It has been about 2 months since this California Artist did any oil painting. When I take a long hiatus*, I wonder if I will be able to paint any more.
I used to have that little niggling worry about drawing when several weeks would pass without my picking up a drawing pencil (unless I was using one to balance my checkbook).
Because the season of Mineral King is upon us, it is time for me to supply the Silver City Store with oil paintings to sell.
This happens in steps:
- Inventory existing paintings
- Make a list of subjects that should always be on hand and for sale
- Go through photos
- Choose photos to paint now and ones to paint later.
- Write the titles and inventory numbers on the inventory list and backs of the canvases
- Turn on the swamp cooler. Yes, in April. This gives me hope that we will have a shorter summer in terms of heat.
- Find something to listen to while painting. If the internet is working, I can listen to podcasts online. If it isn’t, I can listen to the radio or to my iTunes music.
- Wonder where Perkins is and if he’d like to hang out. Miss Zeke a little. Miss Kaweah a lot. Go back into the house for something or another thing.
- Paint! Just do it! I just listened to a podcast on productivity that said if you find yourself procrastinating, there is a problem. OF COURSE there is a problem if you procrastinate – you won’t get the work done! Then there is the Steven Pressfield book called The War of Art in which he discusses something called “resistance”. I’ve listened to podcasts and read blogs about this.
- Fix/finish those California poppy paintings I started 3 months ago.
- Use the leftover paint on your palette to base-coat canvases for the next painting session.
Any questions?
*Hiatus means pause or gap in sequence. Why use a one-syllable word when there is a great three-syllable word to do the job?