Just doodle it.

I have been feeling the need to jump off my chosen track lately both personally and professionally. I thought I'd start with my professional life as that only affects myself should things go awry. So I took a doodling class at the local paper store.

You wouldn't think that an artist would need to take a class about it. This artist would. As a child, I would watch other people do it and envy their freedom to mark up a page with any old idea they had. I couldn't do it because the nag in my head wouldn't stop critiquing every thing I did. I've managed to put that nasty old grump in the back some where, but it still keeps shouting at me from the closet.

I didn't work at art seriously for a long time because I didn't think I had any ideas. I need a way to unblock my thoughts and dreams to let them flow through me and out onto the paper. These doodles aren't the end product I'm looking for but perhaps they are the route.

It's baaack.

It's been a few weeks since I last posted and I'm sure everyone is waiting with baited breath to find out what I've been up to. I decided it was time to lay fallow for a bit. I needed to regenerate and, let's admit it, just fiddle around a bit.

I'm back in all my glory. I did eight relatively large canvases this spring. I have been wanting to begin some bookmaking and doing some imaginative drawing for some time. I think this summer is a good time to ease into this project. I bought a book that focuses more on imaginative drawing rather than life like drawing. My first drawing isn't imaginative at all but 'ease into' is the key phrase. The second photo is of gessoed paper that I plan to use in some imaginative painting experimental thumb nails.

The kind of art that impresses me has more than technical proficiency, it shows some kind of playful spirit. That's the kind of art I want to make. Ironically, in order to work up some confidence I feel the need to work on my capabilities. Whee.