More Daily Paintings

It has definitely proved to be a challenge to finish a painting every day.  But it does push me to be in the studio more frequently, even when I don't have loads of time.  Here are a few of the latest, which are up on my Daily Paintworks Gallery.

These are all 6"x6", acrylic on panel, some with collage:

Daily Painting #10

Daily Painting #11

Daily Painting #12

Daily Painting #13

These small paintings give me an opportunity to focus my visual ideas. It is a way of paring down a visual statement, trying to get it clear and simple. I would like to use this format to make studies for larger works. Not sure how that will work, or IF it will work.  I don't generally use sketches or studies to create larger work. But the practice of finishing a piece in one or two sittings is similar to my Five Minute Paintings, in that it makes me focus and make aesthetic decisions more readily.

Daily Painting

I had the pleasure of Carol Marine's attendance at my workshop in Bend, Oregon, the other week at Art in the Mountains.  Carol is the person behind the Daily Paintworks web site and the author of "Daily Painting".  Though she is primarily a representational painter, and works in oils, I found we had much in common as artists.

In addition to inspiring daily painting, with loads of examples, Carol has a great section on composition. Though her process is different from mine, her essential message is exactly the same: trust your instincts; if a piece feels/looks "right", don't question it.  If it does not feel right, that is the time to refer to some basic rules and guidelines.  Don't start with the rules; start with your gut feeling, your visual intuition.

In her book Carol advocates completing one small painting per day, or as frequently as possible.  I am inspired to give it a try! My usual approach is to start a whole bunch of paintings, and work on them all over the course of whatever-time-I-have-available between workshops.  I never, NEVER, put pressure on myself to finish anything, but allow paintings to come to maturity in their own time. And they do, if I am paying attention.  I've started working on 6"x6" panels, and have completed several in the last several days.  Of course I've made many beginnings, but the practice is to finish one per day, and this makes a greats counterpoint to my usual practice.

Daily Painting #1, 6"x6"

Daily Painting #4, 6"x6"

See these and other on my Daily Paintworks Gallery.

Small Works at True North Gallery

I have a few pieces in a Small Works Show at True North Gallery in South Hamilton, MA.  The Small Works phenomenon seems to be very popular around the holidays.  I guess it suggests that you could buy a small work of original art as a gift, or treat yourself in this time of giving.

Check it out if you are in the area.  It is an opportunity to see a LOT of diverse art, all on a relatively small scale.  Enjoy!

New Gallery

Thanks to all of you who commented on and e-mailed me about my Working in Series post. Glad it was helpful to some of you, and I love your ideas! Yesterday I added a new GALLERY to my web site dedicated to small works. There are only a few so far that have not been posted on the blog, but I'll add to it periodically. Thanks for visiting!!