Funny how it happens

Needed a break from flowers today, so I decided to try this little landscape. I always see scenes which I photograph and think what marvelous paintings they would make. Then I get back to the studio, and labor to the point of paralysis, on how to make a painting that will have the ability to move people the way the original scene inspired me. No picture is perfect.......no scene is perfect. These defects will show in the painting more so than in the actual scene. This is what causes me to struggle with landscapes. My confidence in my ability to "bend" reality into a good solid painting. I can say I'm pleasantly surprised how this little landscape sort of popped up out of nowhere.
I look at how my ability to paint has improved over the years, and how far I've come. Step by frustrating step. I guess my paintings are like this blog.............You always wish you knew if anyone was out there listening, it would make communicating so much more fun.

Another view point

Sometimes I feel like I'm painting the same thing over and over. Sometimes I feel I should really have "something to say" above and beyond "color". This happens when sales are slow and my inventory starts to pile up, and I think, "Why should I paint more flowers when I have a whole stack of them filling my studio already?"
When this happens, I like to look at the work of some of the Expressionist painters I really admire, for both the courage to try new subjects, and just plain inspiration. I really have trouble painting a painting that I don't think people will "get" or one I don't think someone would buy. I constantly worry about wasting paint or canvases on work I want to do, instead .....I paint something that will sell. I remember seeing a film on Picasso, and he had stacks and stacks of blank canvases in his studio. He would start a work and if it didn't pan out, he would just set it aside, pick up a new canvas and start again. How wonderful would that be. I just about cry when I have to order $100.00 worth of paint, and I very seldom do a large piece of work because of the expense of the canvas, and the possibility that the piece will sit in my studio for the rest of my/its life.
This painting I have here is called "Viewpointe". Its only on a 14 x 18 board. How wonderful, and what magnitude, and majesty it might have attained on a 48 x 60 canvas. Where's my blue paint?

Blue Moods

Sometimes when I'm in my studio here in Hawaii the isolation comes creeping in. I start going round and round about how to get my art off this Island and into mainstream. How do you get into "attention" out here? That's when I feel (like painting) blue. My best works are "blue" because I can really feel the color.
I'm starting to find a comfortable area in between abstraction and expressionism, that allows me the ability to use freedom of color and imagination. I'm hoping to find a way to translate this into some landscapes that look "unique".

What I am not

I have discovered that I really don't care to paint outside(so much for plein air). Here in Hawaii, it is always windy and the vog covers the sun by noon for the rest of the day. No shadows, no highlights, just monotone. So I tried a floral........and another, and another. Some 80 or so florals later, I actually feel I have something a little new and different to offer, instead of the multitude of tourist Hawaiianna that perpetuates Hawaii art. We shall see. j

The "Other" Hawaii

As I lamented in past blogs about painting a part of Hawaii that didn't include the ocean or the beach, so I have finally painted! This is an 11"x14" panel of an ancient Hawaiian burial ground that is about a mile or so walk down the Ala Loa Trail from our beach. It always looks kind of spooky when the dark afternoon clouds roll down the side of mountain, and thats what I was trying to portray. I worked 3 different times on the piece to finally finish it, and when it was done, I named it "The Path of our Ancestors". You know, I think I might like painting some more of these alternative Hawaii subjects.........Aloha :)

Up the Coast

Saw this vista while driving north along the coast and it caught my eye. I alway hesitate to try such broad landscapes on small panels (9" x 12") but I found it really attractive. I also find that if I stop and think too much, that I can think of a multitude of reasons not to try and or do something new. My block in and my initial color work did not achieve the "sparkle" and attactiveness of the original scene, and I was disappointed, but could still see the potential in the piece. I find that 95% of the time I am disappointed with my first pass on a piece. If I stick with it, normally it will turn the corner.....and this one did! I have to always remember to persevere, and you will be rewarded.

Meanwhile, Back at the Beach

Its hard to leave your comfort zone. I keep thinking I'm going to try some new subject matter other than oceans and beaches, and I do see some inspiration landscapes, but I just love the blue water. This is an acrylic 8"x12" of a break in the brush that leads to a beautiful sand beach. I like providing the viewer with a path to follow.........kind of a reason to interact with the painting. I like the abstraction too. :) Someday maybe tomorrow, I'll paint some mountains. And maybe I'll trade in my acrylics for oils too. Someday.....