Sunday in the Studio

 A few new "Whispers"

"Cairn" 20X36" oil on canvas

Ahhh.  A Sunday morning with a hot cup of coffee and some studio time is a rarity and AWESOME!! Have I mentioned how much I love my Aunt and Mom who make moments like that possible?!

The kids and I spent the weekend with them since Hubby was working all weekend. So I got some rare weekend painting time. I'm still in this frenetic creative state and there just seems like there is not enough time to get it all out. I feel like the ideas are going to disappear before I can realize them. I was in the zone yesterday but had to break it up to feed kids and put them down for naps. How do Artist Moms do it?  I am thankful for every moment I get, that's for sure. 

Now back to playing with kiddos, feeding everyone, and attempting to keep things running smoothly on the home front.  I'll find some time to sketch and catch up on the paperwork of being an artist too. 

Oh, and hopefully get to jump on this webinar tonight. Wish me luck!!

Time Flies

 Whisper Series TL to BR "Bloom", "Cocoon","Cluster", "Whisper", "Become", and "Stones" 4x6" encaustic on panel

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 Whisper Series "Rest" 4x6" oil on encaustic

 Whisper Series "Build" 4x6" encaustic on panel

 Whisper Series "Flight" 4x6" encaustic on panel

This series started as a way to work out small ideas and compositions.  I think of them as little moments of thought.  The newest three have changed with a new palette, a little bolder. The 4x6" size is fun to hold in your hand, which the tactile quality of encaustic makes you want to do anyway.  I've envisioned them hung together, but able to stand on their own as well.  The panel is cradled, so the depth would make it easy to just stand up on a bookshelf or mantel as well as hung on a wall. I'll have some pictures of them in interiors soon. 

I spent the first part of my studio day cleaning up, and unearthed a few items I've been look for!  Isn't that the best?  I'm coming close to finishing up a large oil painting too, but It's fighting me.  Lucky for me I may get a few extra hours this weekend to work it out.  

My Commute

Since we moved to the country last year my commute to work and the studio is a lot farther, although not always longer.  I can usually avoid major highways for most of it. 
Most of my studio days start off earlier than my job days and those drives are the best.  Not only is the countryside lit more dramatically, I've got two small co-pilots to keep me company and a hot cup of coffee to enjoy.  There is also that anticipation of some uninterrupted time to paint ahead of me and the time to think over my plan of attack as I drive. I look forward to it.

Sweet Spot

"Atmosphere" 18 x18" encaustic on panel

"Float" 12 x 12" encaustic & rust on panel

"Atmosphere" 10x22" encaustic, rust & metal findings on panel

As a runner, there is always talk about a "runner's high".  I'm not sure if I ever felt that specifically, but I do find that sweet spot everyone once in a while.  For me, it's when I am just in the zone and it's effortless.  On Monday night I had just a couple hours to be in the studio and in no time I found myself in that sweet spot.
I turned around "Atmosphere" and found what I think it needed. (You can check out the before here.) I was able to pull together "Abandoned", I started it last week and I wasn't sure what direction to go in with it. But I was just moving in that rythym where every decision I made turned out to be the right one for that piece.  
I kept moving and with my last remaining blank panel "Floating" appeared.  I'm sure it was a good thing that it was my last blank surface. At least that's what I am going to tell myself.  I mean, what if I could've just kept going like that?  It was great to have such a productive evening!  That sweet spot is like a drug.  If I had another surface I'd be out there tonight trying to capture that feeling again. 

Finding myself

Not in the philosophical sense, who has time to ponder that now a days!!  So, I Googled myself. (Like you haven't done it too.) I was doing research for my new Etsy shop and web page.  In the process I found this article from a hot minute ago.  It was written by one of my talented clients and it was back in my single tree house (what I called my apartment) days.  The studio pictured was the other half of my bedroom!!It was a tiny apartment, with a large bedroom luckily.


*I couldn't find the photographers name!! I would like to give credit to him.

Murphy

Here's a peek at the newest dog portrait. I had wanted to document the process to share, but got carried away! So here it is at the middle stage, red under painting, shadows, background and a few highlights. Isn't he just the cutest?! I'll be sure to post the finished piece soon.

This Weekends Accomplishments

 

I got two nights in the studio this weekend, and no frost bite!  If my fingers didn't get numb I may have gotten even more finished.  These are some snippets of a new encaustic piece. I started with an oil under painting for the first time, and have been including some metal findings.  I can't even express how amazing it feels to paint again consistently.  Although, I hate when Hubby works a lot of overtime, it motivates me to get out into the studio after Miss V goes to bed.  Tonight I have to turn my attention to a pet commission, but I'm sure I'll spend a little time on my own stuff too.  I hope you had a productive weekend too!

Somethin's Cooking

(I'm sure Hubby wishes it was dinner.) 

I have been getting 45 minutes a day in the studio/garage this week. (not counting heating things up and blowing fuses). It's been amazing. There is lots of stuff cooking! I'm trying out new techniques combining oil and encaustic. My two worlds colliding. There are some new collage materials in the works too. So much fun! I can't wait to share some new work!! 

P.S. The above piece is a variation on an image I have been working on in the years since my Father passed away.  It always seems to become trite, and not at all what I am going for.  Yet, I keep trying!  So I set out to scrape it back off and use the panel for another image.  (I did the same to the oil paint version too.)  But, now that I have a lot of it scraped down, I may end up toying with it a little more before scrapping it all together.  Wish me luck!

Studio Day!!

I didn't have as much studio time as I would of liked but I am grateful for the couple hours I did have and it wasn't even too cold today.  Like I mentioned before I am working on a piece for an upcoming show called "By Proxy".  The image below is that work (in progress).  I think I want to make the star like image on the left larger, and the new transfer to the right was a last moment addition.  My xerox transfers turned out pretty well.  I can't wait to utilize that technique more.  I'm going to live with it over the weekend and see what happens when I finish it on on Monday. 

"Conical" 10 x10"  encaustic on cradled birch (unfinished)

This fun chair drawing made it out of my sketchbook and onto this encaustic piece - also a work in progress.

Studio

This is my studio. A lot of you ask where I do my painting, so here it is!