50 Flowers in 100 Hours

"Menagerie"
Original oil - 6x6"

This is the first painting of my new project: "50 Flowers in 100 Hours". Yup, that's 50 flower paintings in 100 hours. (To be clear, that's 100 painting hours, not 100 calendar hours.)

The goal is that they will all be painted from life, and no more than 2 hours a painting. So far I'm 3 paintings in and averaging 3.5 hours each, so failing miserably. Being WAY too finicky, haven't painted from life for a while and it's showing. In addition, it's a stretch for me to tackle flowers, not something I am typically drawn to paint, and definitely an area where I will need to build some skill. My words to live by: "Simplify, simplify, simplify."

In keeping with the theme of past blog projects, each painting will be offered for sale by auction on ebay well below market value for a 7 day period, after which it will be available on my website at full market value.

Anyone care to join me?? :) Double dog dare ya....

Richeson 75: Small Works 2011 Finalist

"Repose"
Original Oil 6x6"

You might remember this painting from a recent post. It's a demo from a Vancouver workshop I taught this October. The exercise was to apply paint as thickly as possible right from the first stroke and it was really fun to paint.

I'm pleased to announce it was just juried as a finalist in the Richeson 75: Small Works Competition, and will be hanging in a show at the Richeson School of Art (Kimberly,WI) from Feb.7th to March 25th, 2011.

More news: I have cooked up my newest painting challenge, and will be jumping in this week. Watch for the first painting of the project next post...

Merging Time

"Dusk"
Oil on linen 24x36"
for purchase info click here

This larger studio piece was inspired by a combination of two paintings from the 100 in 100 project, #97 and #100 (see below). I loved the overall mood of #97, but I wanted the feeling of a little more light in the sky, closer to dusk than nightfall, which I was captivated with when I painted #100.

It was fun to combine both elements, and I also added a more definite mountain range. Interestingly, a couple of folks remarked when seeing this piece at my show that you wouldn't actually be able to see the mountains from that vantage on Sarcee trail, you would need to drive about a kilometer further and be pointed a little more west. Which is exactly what happens each time I drive out of Calgary, and it crystallized for me one of the greatest joys of painting. One moment following another can be combined into one painting to express the full experience of moving through time.

Love that!

#97 - "12:01"
Oil on linen - 6x8"

#100 - "And to All a Goodnight"
Oil on linen - 6x8"

A new year of adventure!

"Mountain Patterns"
Original oil - 6x6"

This is a little 6x6 I did from a photo last year, quick and fun, I loved the rhythmic patterns and simple, abstract shapes.

I have to say it was great to finish painting for a show right at the end of the year. Now it feels perfect to launch into the new year tackling some fresh subject matter and continuing to keep that bar moving higher.

There are 3 tough competitions coming up in the next month and a half that I will be painting for. Here are the links if you want to take a crack at them as well:

• Scottsdale Salon of Fine Art (1st annual) (Deadline Jan.15th)
• Greenhouse Gallery's Salon International (Deadline Jan.21st)
• Oil Painters of America National Show (Deadline Feb.18th)

I'm rooting through my resource material looking for the most exciting, challenging subjects I can find. This is what gets me jazzed to get into the studio, it's so fun to step waaaay out of the comfort zone and watch what happens...