More
Contact
Submit
Premium
I've been painting a lot lately, more than I ever have in my life probably. Thats saying a lot. A lot of people make comments like, "How do you produce so much work? Do you ever sleep?" or my Mom, who asked, "You aren't on speed, are you?" in a tone that implied she wouldn't be surprised by any response I gave. Well, to answer these questions, no I'm not on speed and yes I do sleep, a lot. My tricks? Simple. I am completely obsessive and on top of that I don't have a TV. A lot of acquaintances and friends insist that this makes me an impertinent snob. Yes, I suppose it does. I've learned to keep my mouth shut about it for the most part and try not to explain my ignorance of modern TV by saying, "Oh I don't have a TV". Telling anyone that you don't have a TV is like going to a barbecue and singing the praises of vegetarianism. It's not the best way to make friends.
Now that I've informed you of just how hard I'm working, I have a confession to make. Its almost the end of January, and it looks like I'll have 7 paintings done, tops. If I keep up this pace, that leaves me at the pathetic count of 84 by the end of the year, way undercutting my original goal.
Because I refuse to accept defeat, I've decided that it's time that I start planning out the paintings i mass. I have 11 painting ideas planned and sketched out right now, but that will barely last me until the end of February. The good news is that working so much has totally opened up my creative faculties. (Sorry, I can't think of a more eloquent way to put that.) I'm constantly getting ideas for new paintings, new songs, and I've started thinking about plots for a novel. (Don't scoff at me!! Why not?!) For the past 2 or 3 years, I've listened to Audiobooks while I paint. This solves the problem of feeling guilty when I read because I feel like I should be painting. Recently, I've stopped though, and instead listen to classical music and one of my favorite groups ever, the Kronos Quartet. And HOLY HELL, kids, when I don't have all that chattering in my ears I am completely bombarded with such inspiration, its incredible. So as an experiment, I'm shutting off the audiobooks for a while longer to see how it affects my work.
I've been reading the Gerhard Richter book that my Mom gave me, "The Daily Practice of Painting", and feel as if I'm reading words that I might have written myself. His ideas and thoughts on art, on his technique and style mirror my own. More than that, he expresses feelings about art and painting that I haven't had the maturity to articulate yet.
One good thing about this project is that it is pushing me to work faster than I ever have before, which is forcing my style to change in degrees. The last painting I did (Painting Number Four: Visitation) was somewhat of a breakthrough. I was a lot more lose with color, allowing myself to place bright purples where there might have been muted greens, browns and blacks. Letting go of control felt good and a little scary.
The painting that I finished today, painting number five, is atrocious. I'm not even sure if I can include it with the rest of the paintings because I feel that it is not truly awesome. Here she is, Jellyfish Number One.
Honestly, I don't want to talk about this painting. It feels like an unwanted pregnancy. Right now, I think I could still terminate and feel like I'm doing the humane thing despite all the "what ifs" that might plague me in the future.
I'll be working on Jellyfish Number Two tomorrow, and also starting my collages.
Now, its time for bed.
Now that I've informed you of just how hard I'm working, I have a confession to make. Its almost the end of January, and it looks like I'll have 7 paintings done, tops. If I keep up this pace, that leaves me at the pathetic count of 84 by the end of the year, way undercutting my original goal. Because I refuse to accept defeat, I've decided that it's time that I start planning out the paintings i mass. I have 11 painting ideas planned and sketched out right now, but that will barely last me until the end of February. The good news is that working so much has totally opened up my creative faculties. (Sorry, I can't think of a more eloquent way to put that.) I'm constantly getting ideas for new paintings, new songs, and I've started thinking about plots for a novel. (Don't scoff at me!! Why not?!) For the past 2 or 3 years, I've listened to Audiobooks while I paint. This solves the problem of feeling guilty when I read because I feel like I should be painting. Recently, I've stopped though, and instead listen to classical music and one of my favorite groups ever, the Kronos Quartet. And HOLY HELL, kids, when I don't have all that chattering in my ears I am completely bombarded with such inspiration, its incredible. So as an experiment, I'm shutting off the audiobooks for a while longer to see how it affects my work.
I've been reading the Gerhard Richter book that my Mom gave me, "The Daily Practice of Painting", and feel as if I'm reading words that I might have written myself. His ideas and thoughts on art, on his technique and style mirror my own. More than that, he expresses feelings about art and painting that I haven't had the maturity to articulate yet.
One good thing about this project is that it is pushing me to work faster than I ever have before, which is forcing my style to change in degrees. The last painting I did (Painting Number Four: Visitation) was somewhat of a breakthrough. I was a lot more lose with color, allowing myself to place bright purples where there might have been muted greens, browns and blacks. Letting go of control felt good and a little scary.
The painting that I finished today, painting number five, is atrocious. I'm not even sure if I can include it with the rest of the paintings because I feel that it is not truly awesome. Here she is, Jellyfish Number One.
Honestly, I don't want to talk about this painting. It feels like an unwanted pregnancy. Right now, I think I could still terminate and feel like I'm doing the humane thing despite all the "what ifs" that might plague me in the future.
I'll be working on Jellyfish Number Two tomorrow, and also starting my collages.
Now, its time for bed.
