 Sadly, I've been away from painting the last couple months. I took a full-time job and frankly, just lost my mojo for painting, although I never lost my love for it. I got back to it this weekend and painted this little 8 x 10 that I call "Exuberance." I was trying to capture the feeling I have on those first few warm days of spring. It fills me with promise and at no other time during the year do I feel that same feeling of joyous energy.
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 I badly want to finish this 30 paintings in 30 days challenge, but with a new full time job, a part-time freelance job, and trying to have a little bit of a life, I'm struggling. Painting is very important to me, but is there value in slamming out a painting just to hit that goal? I used up most of my after work energy yesterday taking a 2 mile walk, so I did this painting last night in "just gettin' done" mode. There are a couple of things I like about it, but there is room for great improvement. 5 x 7.
 Paint My Photo has been a wonderful resource when my photo library just doesn't have what I'm looking for. It is unlikely I will get to Wales, but through someone else's eyes I was able to get this peak at the coast. There is a lot to be said about painting what you know, but sometimes it's fun to just experiment with the unknown. 5 x 7
 One of my goals for this 30 paintings in 30 days challenge was to stretch myself and paint things that I wasn't sure I could do. This painting came from watching my friends cat the other night. He was wanting to go outside and asking in his own way for me to open the door. I don't have a lot of experience painting animals, but I think I captured him pretty well in this small 5 x 7 painting.
 Here is another interpretation of the rolling hills of Upstate NY. I've been reading a book about impressionistic painting and I'm trying to incorporate some of what I'm learning. 5 x 7.
 I thought I'd try my hand at another bird this morning, so I chose a Paint My Photo reference of a female bluebird. I tried to keep my strokes loose and not overworked so it would infuse a bit more life into the bird. Still not up to what I picture in my mind, but I think it's better than yesterday's goldfinch. 5 x 7
 I loved yesterday's painting so I wanted to try my hand at another bird painting. This one was from a reference at Paint My Photo but was inspired by the many birds that visit the tree right outside my window. If I could just get them to stay still and pose for me… I am going to continue with birds for the next couple of paintings because I can see that I need to somehow inject some "life" into this one. Not sure how to do that, but I know I will enjoy the process.
7 x 5  The Sylvan Heights Bird Park in North Carolina is home to 1500 exotic birds from around the world. It's in Scotland Neck and on the drive up there is when I first learned that North Carolina grew cotton. The cotton fields are quite striking, fields of white stretching off into the distance!
The bird park is really beautiful and one of the highlights for me was a cage full of parakeets where you could go in with some food and they would come flocking all over your arms. I never would have been brave enough as a kid to do that, and I was hesitant even now, but it was a lot of fun. I have lots of photo references from this visit so I'm sure there will be more exotic bird paintings in my future. 5 x 7  For today's painting I went to the fair. The last time I went it was on a Saturday night and it was so crowded it was hard to make your way through the crowd! This is my first try at portraying a night scene and it's my first crowd scene. Do you get the feeling there is a big crowd of people? I hope so. I was trying to say a lot but with little detail. After all, it's only 5 x 7.
 Half way through the 30 day challenge! This summer I traveled through the coastal area of Louisiana. The bayou is not an area I'm familiar with and would love to go back and do more exploring. But I imagine the best way to experience the landscape is by boat. My painting came out "warmer" than the day I was there. It was a drizzly, gray day but my paints wanted something a little different. 5 x 7.
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AuthorI'm an fine art artist in Raleigh, North Carolina. I need a paintbrush in my hand to feel complete and I invite you to follow me on my art journey. Everyday brings new ideas and projects... there simply is not enough time... On December 1, 2012, I joined the community of artists who paint a painting each and every day. I haven't been able to keep up with the daily painting, but I'm trying hard to keep my paintbrushes busy. Archives
June 2015
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