Recently I signed up for an online art class hosted/taught by Lisa Congdon and Mati McDonough. Since I love both of their work, I about fell over when I found out they were co-teaching a class!
What I have learned to date is this, according to Ira Glass, I have great taste! And before I get to making art with great taste, too, I will make lots and lots of poor work. And that is GOOD! because that is how I will learn, hone those mad painting skills, and grow. YAY GROWTH!
I have grumbled, growled, gurgled, frothed, rolled my eyes, given myself headaches and neckaches over the last several days painting, because it does NOT COME EASY TO ME. But I really do not care one little bit because I LOVE PAINTING. I have ever since I was wee and took art classes at a local frame shop.
I love the smell of it...ask my mother. I love how it glistens and squishes out of the tube. I like what can be made with it. And I will win! I will I will I will.
I've made three things this week (I started late). I only like one of them. One is going to be sanded off for next weeks assignment, and one is going in the boys' room.
Above is Lesson 1: Gain inspiration from Gee's Bend quilts. I'd been wanting to make something for the boys and decided this would be a good little project to start now.
Lesson 2: Choose an artist whose style inspires you and pull from that to make your own painting. I chose Lulie Wallace because I find nature inspiring, her florals are gorgeous. I really want to learn how to paint loosely, use bold color, underpaint, draw with paint...so I tried. And it was HARD. This is where the headaches/neckaches and general loathing of the process came, mainly because I was confused as to how she gets her look. I set up a painting area outside where I could stand, walk around the table, sing to my tunes...Haircut 100 station on Pandora...and be frustrated. It was good. I pretty much dislike (read hate) my floral attempt. I DO LIKE my color choices. But not the painting at all. Next, I tried again using a photo I had taken of my morning grapefruit back in January and I didn't hate the result. I may not LOVE the result but it sure is a heckuva lot better than the floral...in my opinion. Not sure why I think that. I 'll have to self-evaluate. ;-p
My outdoor studio with extra shade rigged up using a blanket. Ha! The first part of the week we had such lovely weather. Then summer hit. 95 degrees. Full sun. I needed some more shade!
Lulie Wallace inspired. I picked wildflowers down the street and used them for the subject. I despise those blasted leaves on the left. They're gross. Not sure how I should had painted those to make them better. I do like how the glass vase turned out, along with the stripes and table top. This one will be sanded off for Week 3. I'm okay with that. That's why I like wood to paint on.
I sort of like this one. I like my color choices, thinking of our kitchen. I like how the drawn lines of paint and underpainting show through. I think my brush strokes are loose...more so than the floral. I think if I kept up my practice of this technique, EVENTUALLY I'd get it down. I will keep trying!!!
