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.

My Daily Painting Practice

I have managed to finish at least one painting per day since I started the Daily Painting. My goal is to keep it up as almost daily painting. I can't make it a priority on travel days or teaching days, but most week days while I am not away teaching I should be able to finish a small painting. The small format (I am working 6"x6") is very user-friendly.  I am painting directly on gessoed wood panels.

You can see my daily paintings, as well as studies and experimental pieces for sale here.  See the entire gallery of Daily Paintworks here.  Sell your own work on Daily Paintworks!

Here are four of my daily paintings. Of course, I still work in multiples, so there are more of each of these, some finished, as you'll see on my DPW gallery, and some still in the works. I would love to hear your own thoughts on a daily painting practice.  Have you tried it?  Have you been doing it for years? How does it work for you?

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.