Embrace the Struggle: Day #30

                                  "Painting is just another way of keeping a diary." Pablo Picasso

Day # 30 is here and to celebrate the end of the 30 paintings in 30 days challenge I decided to channel my favorite artist of all time: Pablo Picasso.  My work over the last month is a diary of sorts, a visual journey of what it was like to paint with the non-dominant hand setting no expectations.  Of course it was a struggle. It first took hours as my hand tried to interpret the instructions my brain was sending.  My brain tired from breaking every motion into several messages. Some days I felt overwhelmed just with the notion of keeping up.  But on the whole I enjoyed the struggle: I learned, I was distracted and I was proud.

So with a nod to old man Picasso, I present the last painting of the left handed series:

"Embrace the Struggle"

7" x 5" acrylic on cradled board

$30 here til january 10

This whimsy is probably another self-portrait of sorts but I think many of us can relate to the thought as well as the experience and symbols.  Enjoy the colors, honor the journey and milk that struggle for all you can. Here's Pablo again, "Are we to paint what's on the face, what's inside the face or what is behind it?"

Good question, no?

edge detail of "Embrace the Struggle"

Thanks so much for sharing this struggle with me.  I promise not to take such liberties with your mailbox again in the near future!  Back to once a week postings...I have really appreciated your comments, encouragement and, of course, your purchases.  Many thanks.

Cindy

to see more work from the 400 other participants in this challenge go to www.lesliesaeta.blogspot.com

Day #26, Rounding the Corner with Contour

I just couldn't bear to have the recently failed contour line drawing be the last.  So, in honor of my brave friend who is returning to (teaching!) ballet and tap after a 7+ year hiatus I decided to play with some toe shoes.  Contour is always like jumping off a cliff, you just have to take a breath and do it!

Here's my work page for both efforts.  I really liked the first one despite a little too much foreshortening on the foot in the air.  I think it is simple and clean.  I took a break noting my errors and came back to do another round.  Of course I made new errors in this one but i thought it was believable enough to go ahead and finish it out with some lines for shadows.  Then of course the watercolors were right there so one thing led to another.....

Toe Shoes

7" x 5" ink and watercolor on paper

I know very little about ballet so I couldn't even properly name this sketch.  But I think I like it.  Ballerinas sure can contort their feet...I can't imagine supporting my entire body on just my toes.  I went ahead and matted this piece because the black mat helps bring out the thin lines of the drawing.

You will find this on my etsy shop for $30.00 this month, or contact me if you won't need shipping.  I am definitely in the mind set to find some more ballet feet and try some more poses.  Hope you enjoyed your weekend.  Tomorrow marks the beginning of the last week of this 30 in 30 challenge.  Yippee!

#25 Uncapped the Paint

I think the muse was not finished with the fountain in Eola Park yet...because when I discovered I could get some of the tops off the acrylic paints it was the park I rushed in to paint.  With palette knife!

 You may not recognize this if you are not an artist...it is a palette knife and comes in many shapes and sizes and is used in place of a brush.  Why I thought it would be easier to work with than a brush is beyond me...it is sort of like icing a cake with the paint being the frosting; only you are going to use several colors of frosting and attempt to get a recognizable subject onto the canvas.

Eola Park Part II

8" x 10" acrylic on canvas

$30.00 plus shipping

It began as a very high key painting (meaning the darkest darks were relatively light) but I kept feeling at loose ends without some grounding deep colors...I think I am discovering that I really enjoy the lower keyed work where the lush darkcolors guide you around the composition.  It was not full sun when I did the photo so I will try another and see if the colors emerge better.  This 30 in 30 challenge makes for tight deadlines and the light outside doesn't hang around to help me out.  Oh, and yes, for this month I will include the 8 x 10 canvas in my $30.00 special.  It is a standard size so it should be a cinch to find a ready-made frame for it.

Here are a couple more shots of the work in progress.  It was wonderful to be back in touch with the paint and I didn't even mind the fact that when finished I was wearing quite a bit of it!

my set up as I begin to work...I took my composition from several different photos of the park

detail of the fountain; palette knife usually results in quite a bit of texture and I even found an old toothbrush to add a few more spatters for the water spray....I want you to feel like you may get wet if you stand too close!

to purchase: contact art@cindymichaud.com or check my etsy store here

Less is More: Colorful, Creative Contour

Day #21   LESS IS MORE

I sat down to do penance for missing a couple days in the 30 paintings in 30 days challenge and thus bit off a very complex Japanese stone temple I had spotted at the Morikami Gardens.  After erasing most of it several times I decided that my brain just wasn't ready to get around geometrically proper lines and scale. I looked up and there was my buddy and fellow painter, Carmen, sitting at an angle to me...suddenly she seemed like a good subject.

I decided to tackle a "contour line drawing" which is, in essence, just drawing the outside lines of the shapes before you.  There is no need to go into detail any more than is needed for the viewer to get the idea of what is being drawn.  Had I done her face there would have been no shadows so it basically would have been flat and not very face-like at all.  So I stuck to a side view and had fun seeing how close I could come to a likeness by drawing only along the edges of what was in front of me.

I was actually pleased with the simplicity of this piece and remembered that old adage: "less is more." However I could not resist adding some color here and there to make it all a bit more interesting.  This would be a good little piece to hang near any artist who needs to remember that more (work, line, color, detail...) is not necessarily better!

"Less is More"

6" x 6" watercolor and ink on paper

contour line drawing matted to standard size of 12 x 9

special purchase via my etsy.com shop or

contact me: $30.00

you may visit some of the other work being done by participants in the challenge at: www.lesliesaeta.blogspot.com

Day #17 - Colorful...original?

Day # 17 

Everglades Farm

5" x 7" watercolor and ink on paper

Visiting the Everglades was almost like going to a foreign country even though I am a life-long Floridian.  The scenery was extraordinarily different and the tropical fruits were amazing...many I'd never seen or eaten before.  One night we were headed back to "civilization" for dinner when we spotted this scene in the rear view mirror. Of course we pulled over and began snapping photos.  The sun setting behind this very orderly palm farm was beautiful in its linear continuity.  My left hand is now tired of small pieces and wants a bigger challenge...this might have to reappear in a much larger format.  I am already planning some changes and additions.  Day 17 of off-hand, colorful, original art feels like a bit of an accomplishment.  Thanks for sharing.

see work of other participants at www.lesliesaeta.blogspot.com