2020 Day 10

“Isolation Exploration #2”: mixed media, 10 x 12”

An old watercolour, some collage scraps, and a piece of Lucille’s yarn, mounted on a canvas with an old painting on it. Waste not whatnot!

2020 Day 8

Art journal, watercolour

I managed to score a nice bunch of tulips for myself today, so I did a quick watercolour sketch in my art journal. I’m a little out of practice at this kind of thing… not like my sister Alison, who has been sketching and painting a lot lately and posting to her own blog, Everyday Sketches. Check out her tulips and other delights.

2020 Day 7

Today I cut a piece out of an old watercolour to make a notecard, and added a wee triangle for a sail. The painting was from my early efforts about 20 years ago, when we were living in Bermuda. This made me wonder whether the pandemic has reached that idyllic place. Of course, it has.

2020 Day 6: Happy Birthday, Lucille

“For Lucille”: mixed media, 12 x 12”

It's Lucille Crighton's birthday today, so I made her a birthday present. Lucille is a supremely talented weaver and, when she has time, gardener. I have been working as her studio assistant for three years. This piece references her weaving and her gardening, and includes some scraps of the fabulous yarns she uses in her exquisite handwoven fabrics.

Visit Lucille’s website to see her current selection of gorgeous garments she designed and wove (and I sewed!).

2020 Day 5: Seeing Red

“Grand Old Party”: magazine collage with acrylics, art journal

I regularly listen to the podcast version of MSNBC’s The Rachel Maddow Show. These days she is seething with righteous anger over the Trump administration’s abject failure in the face of the Covid-19 crisis. After listening this morning, I found myself wanting to express such feelings.

It’s not just Trump, of course. It was less than two months ago that the U.S. Senate could have voted to remove him. Thanks to Republicans, they didn’t, despite Adam Schiff’s impassioned pleas. “How much damage can he really do in the next several months? A lot. A LOT of damage.”

2020 Day 4: Isolation Exploration

Collage on a note card

I liked the collage of tiny scraps that I did on Day 1, so I did another one on a note card.

I also finished the piece from yesterday (changing it a little), and gave it a name: “Isolation Exploration #1”.

As we all go through an adjustment of perspective these days, some artists are wondering whether there is any value in doing art; it seems self-indulgent or luxurious, perhaps. But human beings have always made art; it’s in our nature. In fact, this piece has echoes of prehistoric cave drawings. We’re not about to stop now.

“Isolation Exploration #1”: watercolour collage mounted on wood panel, 9 x 12”

2020 Day 3: Old Dog, New Tricks

Watercolour collage mounted on wood panel, 9 x 12”

This little piece makes use of an old watercolour painting that didn’t really work, now cut up into pieces and put back together in a collage. I didn’t have time to glue everything down yet. How do these stay-at-home-solo days get so busy?

2020 Day 2: Building up resistance

“Floaters,” art journal, watercolour

It’s been a long while since I played with my watercolours. For my Forest and Wildflowers series, I used watercolours and a resistance technique, with many layers of masking fluid and tape. Today I found my cutting mat covered with scraps of masking tape from when I was cutting out leaf shapes for a forest floor piece some months ago. I couldn’t let them go to waste, so I used them as resistance here.

2020 Day 1: Together Apart

“Together Apart,” art journal collage

This extraordinary moment, when we have been told to stay at home as much as possible to try to save lives, seems a good time to start up my daily art project again.

It’s hard to believe the first go-around began four years ago already — a leap year, as is this one. I have often looked back at the fruits of those labours (591 consecutive days) with amazement. The project was challenging, often difficult, and ultimately very rewarding.

We can only hope that we will eventually reap the rewards of the challenges and difficulties we face right now.

#TogetherApart

A new little watercolour...

"Seen from the Highway", watercolour, 8 x 8"

I'm trying to get back to the studio after a bit of a break. There are several works in progress needing attention! This is the first to cross the finish line.

Also: I still have some Christmas/holiday cards for sale if you are interested, featuring the image below. They are 5.5 x 5.5", printed on glossy stock: 5 for $12, 10 for $20, plus $5 shipping (envelopes included). Let me know if you're interested!

Last but not least, I have a holiday show coming up in my home, December 8 to 10. Details to come!

Hello again....

I have let my daily art project slide lately, although I have been very busy doing art-related things!

I haven't decided how to proceed, vis-a-vis my blog, etc. More on this later. But for now, I did do this is my art journal today, during (and after) a concert I went to in Trenton by the Durham County Poets.

Days 587 to 590: Works still in progress

Days 587 to 590: Works still in progress

It has been a long gap between postings this time, but I have been working on my big watercolours every day. The trees one is finally at the peeling stage (time to remove all the masking and see what's left to deal with!). This is actually a fun step, and Teddy enjoys helping with it:

Read More

Days 582 and 583: Work in progress

After puttering around doing art-related stuff like prepping surfaces, etc. yesterday and today, I finally got to some actual painting this evening. I started my biggest-ever watercolour; if it goes as planned it will be a 36 x 36" painting of trees, and if it's show-worthy, I will mount it on a wood panel for hanging without a frame. Nothing ventured, nothing gained, and all that...

By the way, I had good news today: my painting "Venetian Pear III" sold at the Colborne Art Gallery. Hurray!