Remember “The Most Beautiful Fruit Bowl I’ve Ever Seen“? I was ambivalent about painting it. But, something has overtaken me. Courage? Wanting to test my skill? Idiocy?
Not only did I decide to paint it, I decided to paint it 24×30”!
Ooo-ey, Girl, you bin dropt on yer head??
Maybe.
Today I decided that I am a poser who just has been faking you all out. I started the painting and just couldn’t get things to fit.
When my drawing students can’t get things to fit, I have them turn their paper and the photo upside down. Today I found myself acting as my own teacher, because I was really struggling with making these shapes fit in the space. This is how I tackled this challenge:
I even resorted to putting a grid on the canvas to see if that would help my tortured self. It did, but now I am hard pressed to tell which are the shapes and lines to keep and which are the ones to paint out.
Who told you that you can paint?
No one – I just started, I do paint, and I still don’t claim to really know how.
Come to think of it, does anyone really feel as if they know how to paint? There are a few out there, prolly those people with 10,000 hours of practice. I haven’t kept track of my hours at the easel yet, but chances are it’s not 10,000!
Tell that inner critic to just shut up and let the inner teacher take over.
Yeah. That’s what I’ll keep doing.
3 Comments
Well,I can always throw mine away and I often do. There’s no painting over, sad to say. I am going to try other mediums when I get more space. My so called studio is pretty limited. And, the only way to grow and improve is to work, work, work…I’m getting a bit obsessed with this whole new venture. When I can’t work every day, it makes me a little anxious. I know you know what I mean.
Jim, three things help me tackle difficult projects:
1. Knowing I can throw them away or paint them over
2. Feeling accountable to my blog readers – it provides interesting reading to watch someone struggle
3. Needing to always learn and grow and improve
Do you get bored repainting the same subject? (and yours will appear in Thursday’s post!)
Aha! Somehow, I knew you couldn’t resist the challenge. I’ve decided that I’m going to do this again, too. Mine is 9 x 12, by the way. I’ll incorporate the things you suggested if I can.
Good luck. Oh, and being a neophyte in the art realm, I am pretty sure no one really EVER feels confident in one’s work – just putting oneself on the line with each piece takes some cajones.
Blessings, Jim
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