Thread

"Thread", Acrylic on Panel, 5x7"

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Painting the yarn images gave me the idea of doing a yarn-like technique on other subject matter.  I really like how the sky turned out in this one.  Maybe a little too Van Gogh-esque, but still gorgeous.  This style is effective on the small boards and it's fun to do.  I may try some more like this.

Craft 2

"Craft 2", Acrylic on Panel, 5x7"

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I know I'm supposed to write something here, but I can't think of anything today.  :)

Open Cage

"Open Cage", Acrylic on Panel, 7x5"

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For some reason, I've collected many bird cages over the last few years.  They're all over my studio - suspended from the rafters and cluttering up the shelves.  As you may guess by now, I particularly love the shadows they cast.

Tomorrow, I'll get back to painting yarn.

Craft

"Craft", Acrylic on Panel, 5x7"

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Another Monday and another subject - this time yarn.  I'm an avid knitter/crocheter, so my house has accumulated piles of yarn.  I love the colors and patterns.  Plus it is a fun to use strong marks to build up the depth of the yarn.  I may do quite a few of these.

I also like the reference to traditional 'women's' arts.

English 301

"English 301", Acrylic on Panel, 5x7"

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I have many (too many) books left over from my college classes.  They are well-used and appealingly shabby.  I guess I've kept them so that I can appear educated, though I have to admit that until painting this, I hadn't taken them down from the shelves since we moved in (10 years ago...).

Dove

"Dove", Acrylic on Panel, 5x7"

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I was uploading yesterday's daily painting when I heard a loud bang.  I thought a branch had fallen on the roof, but then our dog started barking madly.  I went out back and found this bird on the porch - apparently it had flown into the back door window, breaking its neck.

Aside from it being sad (and a little gross to have to pick up), I was struck by how beautiful it was.  The sun was shining and the bird looked so peaceful, like it was just asleep.  I was surprised that the eyes were closed and that the color around them was such a pretty periwinkle blue.

Childhood 4

"Childhood 4", Acrylic on Panel, 5x7"

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Another book painting - adding Alice in Wonderland into the mix.  The annotated version of Alice is still one of my favorites - so interesting to learn about all of the references.  Though I like the composition of this one, I'm bothered by the text.  If this was one of my illustrations, I'd just fix it up in Photoshop...  Ah, the downside of analog media.

Childhood 3

"Childhood 3", Acrylic on Panel, 5x7"

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So I went back to the books.  Today we have The Wizard of OZ, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (or Philosopher's Stone, as it was in the British version) , and Gulliver's Travels.  Harry Potter wasn't part of my actual childhood, but my youngest brother talked me in to reading it when he was 10 and I was 28.   I loved it as much as he did.   I originally read the British version because I was living up in Canada, B.C. at the time.   I tried to read that version to my son, when he was old enough, but I ended up switching to the American version because it was annoying to have to explain all of the British expressions, e.g. 'pudding' (for dessert) and 'jumper' for sweater.

I'm happy with how this one turned out.  I think the strong patterns on the books make the composition interesting.  More books tomorrow!

Flow

"Flow", Acrylic on Panel, 7x5"

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I decided that I needed to try a small tree painting (now that I have the new brushes).  It's definitely better, but not quite what I want yet.  I'll have to try some more.  But for tomorrow, I think I'll go back to books.

Classics

"Classics", Acrylic on Panel, 5x7"

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This one is ok, but I had a lot more fun painting the rug than the books themselves.  The volumes of The Good Earth and Pride and Prejudice are some of those classic, cloth-covered books - the ones with brittle, yellow pages and a musty smell.  One was a gift and the other, I have to admit, I never got around to returning to my high-school library...

As I continue to do these, I'm learning several things that are going to spur me to visit Half Price Books this weekend.

Paintings of books are more interesting when:

• The books are hard cover - more substantial and easier to put in interesting positions.
• The covers have interesting patterns and/or text treatment.
• They still have dust covers (the more beaten up, the better).

More to come!

Childhood 2

"Childhood 2", Acrylic on Panel, 5x7"

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You wouldn't think it would be so challenging to paint books.  It's the text that's the real challenge - tedious to paint in the letters exactly.  I'll keep going and see if I can get to something I like.  I continue to be distracted by the big painting I have on the go.  I'll have to post it when it's done.

I'm thinking, after the books, that I might go back to the tree subject matter.  I think it will work much better with the smaller brushes.

Bright Books

"Bright Books", Acrylic on Panel, 5x7"

Ok, he's the first one that has really tested my resolve to put up all daily images.  I like what's going on with the colors at the top (the strong purple line) cutting across the two brights, but the book rendering isn't working that way I'd like.  I think I'll punt on putting this for sale on Daily Painter.

I still think the theme works though, so I'll be doing more.  Stay tuned!

Childhood

"Childhood", Acrylic on Panel, 5x7"

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Here is the first of my book images.  I think I'm going to do a lot of these.  This one is a bit tame (too close to reality) but I think the subject matter could be great.  I started with some of my personal favorites from when I was a child: Watership Down, Little Women and The Jungle Book.  The small brushes are making a big difference.

Rose 2

"Rose 2", Acrylic on Panel, 7x5"

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Happy Monday.  Ok, the smaller brushes make a big difference - at least in how I like the whole painting small thing.  I love the depth of the petals in this one.  Can you tell that my daughter talked me in to buying roses at the grocery store?  Not the sort of thing that we usually have sitting around the house - especially not roses!  Ah well - good valentines subject matter.

Next up will be books.  I like the idea of painting them since they're rapidly becoming artifacts, like 8-track tapes or spittoons.  I like the subject matter and am hoping that I'll figure out something interesting to do with the compositions.

Owls

"Purple Owl", Acrylic on Panel, 7x5"

"Orange Owl", Acrylic on Panel, 7x5"

My sister commented that I didn't seem like I was having much fun with the daily paintings, and I have to admit that she was right.  I haven't been able to find a style/content that gets me excited about the format.

So to 'loosen up' a bit, I decided to do some images just from my head (not reference images).  I like owls and make them all the time in glass, but I haven't painted them.  So here are a couple of cuties.

I suspect the appeal of the owls has more to do with their head/eye proportions than any innate positive qualities, but oh well.  They are cute.

Can you tell that I've done quite a few children's books?  ;)

Rose

"Rose", Acrylic on Panel, 7x5"

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Here's one for Valentine's Day.  I ended up doing a half dozen small ones today - trying out some new techniques.  I may post some of them this weekend.  :)

Curb

"Curb", Acrylic on Panel, 5x7"

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I love seeing what kinds of things people put out on large trash collection day.  I also love the interesting shadows they cast.  I like how this one turned out - a much looser style, but I think it works.

On a different topic, I've been listening to Steven Pinker's "Better Angels of Our Nature" while I paint and I highly recommend it.  It's about how violence has decreased dramatically in the modern age.

Bike Shadow

"Bike Shadow", Acrylic on Panel, 5x7"

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Here's one of my bicycle painting in miniature.  I don't particularly like the bikes themselves, but I love the shadows.  They lend the image such a strong graphic quality.

I'm still hating this small size - the brush work feels so clumsy.  In the larger paintings, I do a lot of paint manipulation when the paint is wet (lifting out or scratching in patterns).  Those techniques just don't work with this size - I can't get the detail I want and it's too easy for the colors to get muddy.  I either need to get smaller/better brushes or figure out a new approach.

Apples

"Apples", Acrylic on Panel, 5x7"

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I decided to play around with some different paint techniques today (plus, a simpler subject).  I like the effect of the layered marks - looks almost like colored pencil.

I'm getting so caught up with these little paintings that I've delayed starting my next big piece.  I ended up doing 3 little ones today - this is the only one I like.

Drive

"Drive", Acrylic on Panel, 5x7"

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Today's painting revisits the subject of one of my earlier series - the ubiquitous homeless in the Austin landscape.  I especially like the juxtaposition with the birds in mirror - since birds on phone wires are the "safe" subject matter of so many artists.

Also, I like the inclusion of the mirror, since it brings the viewer of the original image (me in this case) into the concept.

I'm thinking about working a bit larger for subsequent daily paintings - I'm feeling too constrained by the size.

So much depends

"So much depends", Acrylic on Panel, 5x7"

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This image got me thinking about William Carlos Williams and a poem I loved back in college.

so much depends

upon

a red wheel

barrow

glazed with rain

water

beside the white

chickens.

 I think it might be time to dust off my poetry books!

Bonsai

"Bonsai", Acrylic on Panel, 5x7"

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I decided to try miniaturizing my trees today.  I like it & think I'll do a few more along this line.