Erika Allison's Artastic Blog

I have several paintings in the works right now.  I have two that I started awhile back, but haven’t put the finishing touches on yet.  The problem seems to be that I don’t know just where I want to go with them yet.  I study them every time I go into the studio.  I rotate them so I can view them from all possible angles.  One of these times a solution will become clear to me… and I’ll proceed.

I also have two paintings that I started last Saturday at our First Annual Outdoor Paint-In.  I really like the starts I got on both.  I’m kind of amazed about that.  It’s a bit of a pain to haul all the supplies needed for oil painting to an outdoor location.  If I were a plein air painter I’d have a french easel and no complaints.  But, I’m a studio painter.  I like all the comforts of my studio.  And, I don’t really need to view subject matter since I’m an abstract painter.  Enough of that.  The camaraderie is worth the effort.  It’s interesting to see other artists at work.  And, it was fun seeing people trying to figure out what was going on!  At any rate,  I got two good starts.  And, this morning I worked on one of the paintings.  I still like it.  I’m not quite sure where I’m going with it.  But, that seems to be how I work.  For now, it’s time to leave it alone for awhile.

After first session of painting

After session 2 in the studio – on the easel

The second painting from last week is still waiting for me.  I could’ve gone right from where I left off on painting number one and started working on the second one.  But, sometimes it’s better to just concentrate on one until it’s finished.  There’s no rule of thumb on that.  It’s my call.  I think by not working on both today there’s a better chance of keeping them very individual.  Sometimes I get in a groove and what I do on one painting gets carried over to the next.  I don’t want to be an assembly line.  I want each painting to have it’s chance of shining on its own.

Painting 2, on the easel

So – this challenge is for another day.  There are plenty of possibilities, as always…