Day 300 Christmas in the Woods

Christmas morning this year gifted us with 2 moose sightings, a young male and a cow strolling through our yard. We also had a group of elk bedded down next to the house the morning before, I missed that one but everyone else saw them.

I never have to wish for a white Christmas - there is guaranteed snow when the altitude is 8,500 feet in Grand County. Some years there is more snow than others, so far this year has been pretty mild. I took a photo of the house after dragging the trashcans down the driveway. The driveway felt like it was a mile long but actually it's only about 100 yards. Long enough when the wheels won't roll on the snow - and it's dark - and it's -3 below 0 outside.
I survived.
Then I went in the house and painted it.

Christmas in the Woods
5x7 pastel

Day 299 Road

This could possibly be the least creative title I've come up with all year. This really pretty row of aspen are just up the road from me and I've painted them several times. I love watching them change, they are stunning in the fall and the trunks are shockingly bright in the winter when the sun hits them.

One thing you should try to do in a painting is have a clear concept or intention - is this about the trees or the road? Often, I just get lost painting and skip those steps that help an ok painting become a really good painting. Kind of "lazy painting" to be truthful. But I think that painting for fun is important too. There are times when you have to paint for a reason (for a show or a commissioned work) and work much harder to have a successful finished piece. This week - I'm painting for fun.

Road
8x10 pastel

Day 298 In Between

This morning I got up before the sunrise, but just after that pitch black night sky started to fade. Kind of in between night and day. The night sky is very dark right now - no city lights and the moon almost hidden. Right before the sun came up, the sky was this amazing blueish, deep purple gray color with a sliver of moon glowing. It was like a fleck of glitter stuck in the sky.

I haven't been painting or posting as much as I want and I miss it. Mostly because it makes me slow down and appreciate things. See things differently. This art journey has really turned into a gratitude journal I realized. Christmas is over, but we still have the New Year celebration and the kids in town, cooking, running around and just juggling life. Life hasn't gotten back to normal quite yet.
I feel sort of "in between". I had this great goal of painting every day for 2016 and I've posted 300 paintings (give me a couple more days). I've probably painted 400 but you won't see them all because really, some are just experiments gone very, very bad. So - I've reached my goal. What to do next year? How to continue this journey? How to analysis what went well and what should I change for 2017? Well, I'm for sure going to keep painting. And being grateful. The rest I'll let you know on January 1 ... after I go out to paint.

In Between
5x7 pastel

Day 294-297 Lollipops

This was a fun little set of 4 canvas to paint. I think these are flowers but then the owls woke me up again today at 5 am. Hooting.
Now I can't get that commercial for tootsie pops out of my head, an owl asking how many licks does it take to get to the center of a tootsie pop?
This is what happens when you wake up so early, creativity swirling around in my brain with no where to go. Flowers. Lollipops. Swirling creativity. It is whatever you happen to see.

Lollipops
mixed media wrapped canvas 20x20 total size (10x10 each)

Day 293 Swept Away

I'm still thinking about those brutal dust storms from the 30's. It gets pretty windy around here - especially in the spring. At least I don't have to worry about getting buried in a foot of dirt. I'm trying hard to keep painting a priority in this busy month of December. It's easy to get swept up in all the activities, shopping, eating too many cookies, parties, decorating, eating more cookies, and preparations for having kids home again. So here's to NOT getting carried away in my own personal wind storm and keeping life manageable.

Swept Away
18x36 mixed media 1.5" wrapped canvas

Day 292 Montana

I'm revisiting my photos and plein air studies from my Montana trip this summer. I liked the small painting that I did of these flowers so it only makes sense that I paint flowers on a day when it's finally snowing and really, really cold. Welcome winter, it took you long enough.

Montana
16x20 pastel

Day 291 Nineteen

Here is how to paint plein air in 19 degree weather ...
- Blast the heater on high on the way there
- Load your palette with paint at home before you go
- Great other painters that show up enthusiastically
- Be happy you aren't standing in snow, 19 is nothing
- Paint fast
Really it wasn't bad at all, the sun was shining and there was no wind. If it was 40 and wind blowing I probably would have froze to death. Any temperature is bearable without wind. This is the stone house at Bear Creek Greenbelt in Lakewood.

Nineteen
oil 9x12

Day 290 Happiness, Painter, Love

I've been looking at this canvas for over a year. It's 4 feet by 4 feet. I want to get it painted and on my wall. It's intimidating. This is the first layer - I don't want the words to be so prominent, just peeking through. So there will be more layers.
I wanted to put in words what I feel when I paint, and I'm in the process of getting acupuncture from a traditionally trained Chinese doctor. Therefore - Happiness, Love, Painter.
I don't speak Chinese - so good old google helped me out. Then again, someone could be playing a trick and they are swear words. Who knows? I rely on google way too much.

Happiness, Painter, Love
48x48 Mixed Media

Day 289 Barbed Wire

This weekend I watched a documentary on the Dust Bowl ... while decorating for Christmas.

I know, but there are only so many shows on Netflix and my main criteria is something to listen to while doing other stuff. I figured I'd learn something.

I learned that we destroyed our grasslands and unintentionally caused a horrible ecological disaster. Depressing. So I decided to google fun facts about barbed wire, because I really enjoyed doing this large painting with an old west feel.

- there is "kansapedia" - wikipedia type facts all about Kansas

- there were 800 barbed wire patents and perhaps 2,000 different types

- and there really are no fun facts about barbed wire

So, here is my daily painting. It's pretty large and has lots of details that you can't see in this photo. Giddy up ya'll.

Barbed Wire

36x36 Mixed Media
sold

Day 288 Santa Hats

Today I had my MIM class at Windcrest. It's always a heartfelt hour or two, sometimes bittersweet or a little sad, but always inspiring. Today was a little different.
When I walked into our room the paints were all set up, Christmas music playing softly in the background and santa hats were carefully placed on each chair. There are always special touches from the staff but this one seemed extra special. I had a few minutes to sit and look around and wait for my peeps to come in. I could feel the love and caring in that room.

A typical art class - we ended up with a few beautiful paintings, a couple neat stories ... lots of encouragement, assurance and laughs. For me, an appreciation for all that I have.

So, all month when I start to feel irritated at the traffic, the Christmas rush, the I'm-too-busy and I-never have-enough-time stress (and especially the driver-in-a-hurry that almost ran me off the road just 1 hour later) I'm going to think of those fun Santa hats that made me smile all day.
This layer painting I now image has hidden messages of goodwill and cheer - red santa hats. If you don't see it, that's OK, because I do.

Santa Hats
20x20 acrylic

Day 287 Evolve 1c

After taking a break from painting last week it felt really good to put away the cooking paraphernalia and get out the painting supplies. There is something oddly soothing about the creaking of the wood floors at the Art Students League. Every single thing is covered in paint spatters and after I dropped my palette knife for the 3rd time, I realized I didn't have to cringe worrying about carpet. I almost flung my brush down for fun.

This is the 3rd layer on this painting and it will get several more layers. I am starting to have a plan even though I'm not supposed to for another couple layers. The lesson is to paint intuitively, harder than it looks. Really.

Evolve 1c
24x30 mixed media