.

6″ x 8″ oil on canvas
I know my blog lacks focus. One day I’m doing pen and ink landscapes the next oil portraits and now I’m back to still life. I’m easily influenced and want to paint whatever I’m turned on by at the time. This is one of the advantages of having a “hobby blog” as opposed to a “professional blog”. But it may make for a less interesting blog to follow and it may also limit my growth as a painter.
(I don’t consider myself a hobbiest but since I’m not putting any energy into selling, I suppose that’s what I would be considered.)
Anyway, lately I’ve discovered a couple of painters I like and they’ve gotten me thinking of still lives again.
I mentioned Kathryn Law‘s self portrait project but she also has a lot of really freshly painted still lives on her blog. Another painter I’ve been admiring lately is Jason Waskey, I especially like his inclusion of patterns which I’ve tried without much success so far. I always admire Carol Marine’s still lives as well and have followed her blog for a long time.
I’m impressed by the commitment these painters show (Carol has now produced more than 400 paintings on her blog!) and their methodical way of exploring their subjects. In other words, their focus. It’s interesting to watch from day to day to see the evolution of what they’re interested in and what angle they choose to tackle it from each time.