The Kitchen Table Series

Last January, I started trying to produce one painting a month.  After a year of not painting, one painting a month seemed like a noble goal.  Logically, I recognize that to become a better painter, I should be painting just about every day.  There are a few other things that I think I should do, but that is a separate post.

As 2012 comes to a close, and I look back over the art I produced, I can see some themes emerged without any planning on my part.  (I mentioned things I should do to improve as a painter?  Planning would be nice.)  Most of my work I did sitting at my kitchen table, alla prima, very quickly.  I'm calling these paintings the "Kitchen Table Series."  Typically, they are small still lifes.  Here's a recent example, called "Pear, Orange, & Vase."  There are several common themes among these paintings.

--I'm always sitting in the same position at my table, so the light is always coming from my left.

--I do the paintings alla prima.

--I use whatever I have on hand.

--They are typically very fast.  One to two hours.

This is a theme I plan to carry over into 2013, to build into a series. 

Painting En Plein Air

The last few weeks have been absolutely beautiful, and my plan was to go outside and paint.  I wanted to visit Winton Woods, and capture the fall colors reflected in the lake.  But, I found I couldn't park close enough to see the lake without hauling my gear.  And, boy, did I have a lot of junk to haul.  Here is what I was carrying yesterday:

--palatte (large)
--brushes (about 10)
--paper
--water
--paper towels
--paint
--a drawing box
--pliers
--reference photos
--boards
--medium spray bottle
--watercolor crayons

Plus, as a bonus, I had a camp chair, a table, my ipod, a camera, car keys, and phone.  My goal for next week will be to stream line my bag!

I found a nice little picnic area, and did a small painting (11.5 x 7.3 inches) alla prima in about 45 minutes.  Sentinels.