Drawing

I have been doing a lot of drawing all week, attending the various daytime modeling sessions that are available to me in Bellingham. I realized last night, though that my self-imposed deadline for practicing my skills is almost up. It was in October that I resolved to concentrate on figure drawing in order to have a bank of skills from which to draw.

Now that I'm 'settled' in my new space, it's time to start seriously painting. I don't really feel settled, it's kind of public. Mostly I'm making excuses to myself. To the paints! Tomorrow will be soon enough!

New Gallery.

I have opened a gallery in the Bay Street Village building near the Blue Horse Gallery in Bellingham, Washington. This is my first week open. It's not as if I had a lot of things to do, move a few things in, get licenses and talk to new people but I'm wiped out. It's the talking that did me in I think.

No sales, but then I didn't really expect any. A few people took interest in my paintings, at least. That was encouraging. I think my market is in more urban areas so I'm looking at this venture is a warm up for when I move out into the big world. I did manage to do a little painting yesterday and to attend a couple of model sessions this week and that's keeping me from feeling as if I've completely gone off the rails.

The way it goes.

I spent this afternoon in the shredded painting in the photo. By the time I was done I had turned a neat drawing into an unshaven androgynous weightlifter. So I tore it up. Man, was that satisfying. Now I like it again because parts of it was sheer genius. Okay, so I exaggerate, but i did like the hand and other parts were alright, it just didn't go together. There wasn't enough information on the original drawing.

Perhaps I should transfer the drawing to the painting surface but I still live by the dream that I can paint from my drawings. Some how I got the idea that the greats did their paintings that way.

Catching up.

I'm back. I had a big week last week. I hung my painting in Allied Arts of Whatcom's 2011 Juried Artist Series last week and attended the artist's reception on Friday. Allied Arts has the showing artist give a talk about their art which is good practice. It felt like mine went well enough. People had questions and someone told me that they found it interesting. Whew.

I also have two paintings hanging in Works on Canvas's Size Matters Show. I spent so much time on the business of art that I did no art last week. It's the way it goes.

In March, I'll be moving the Kat Schneider Studio for at least three months to 301 West Holly St. Suite M5, Bellingham, WA. It will be interesting to be downtown and I wonder if it will impact my practice any. At least I'll be closer to the modeling sessions and it'll be easier for me to establish my own.

Lesson Learned.

You may feel that you have seen this before.

The painting was looking a little 'piecey'. It wasn't coalescing (can't believe I spelled that right) until I took a large flat brush and applied a light coat of an off-white color to it. It should be self-evident, but until I did that, I didn't realize that bigger canvases need bigger brushes.

As my son would say, face-palm moment.