He Is All You Need

It's such an honor when a friends says, "I have something I want you to paint for me." 

Tina has been a dear friend for... my goodness, how does time get away so quickly... 25 years!    

Words that come to mind when I think of her are strength of spirit, perseverance, patience, acceptance, common sense, joy, and loyalty.

*I need to give credit for the words here to Ann Voskamp.

This is a modified version of one of her quotes.

Original Acrylic Painting on 16"x 20" Wrapped Canvas

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Return to Innocence

One of the things I love about painting a commissioned piece is that I'm almost always challenged to do something I wouldn't normally do.
One of the things I hate about painting a commissioned piece is that I'm almost always challenged to do something I wouldn't normally do.

I have this habit of saying, "Sure!  I can do that!" 
Then I begin and wonder, "What was I thinking! How am I going to do that!"

When I was asked to paint something like 'It Is Well...' again only with more teal colors instead of purple and with a few lines instead of a few words... I said, "Sure! I can do that!"
Never mind that I haven't painted with acrylics in a couple of years and that I can't imagine how I'll ever get 31 words neat and straight.

Here are a few of the things that I learned / figured out / discovered while working on this painting.
1. When the painting was "finished" but without words, it looked so cold and harsh.  I deepened the color of the sun from yellow to orange and did an orange wash over almost the whole thing. The transformation to a warm cozy tone was immediate.
2. I took the painting to school, typed the poem on the computer, put the painting on the board, then projected the words from the computer onto the painted canvas.  I used chalk to traced the words onto the painting.  Then  I painted over that. Is that cheating?  Yeah, probably, but it looks pretty good!
3. White doesn't have to be white.  Those letters aren't white... they're light, light orange.

I am thankful when someone trusts me to put their vision onto canvas. 

Original Acrylic Painting - 16"x 20" 
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Sunset on the Cape

I want to give a big thank you to Kim from Kim's Daily Paintings for hosting this painting challenge.  It's fun to see the variety of styles that can come from the same original image.  Click over and have a look!                                             I love flipping through blogs, but I'm very choosy about which ones I follow.  I love blogs that feel "real." When I find one I enjoy, I like to go all the way back to the beginning and read it from beginning to present. That's how I ended up finding Kim's blog and this challenge. I'm glad I did.

I've been thinking about the quote, "Comparison is the thief of joy," by Theodore Roosevelt. When I decided I was finished with this painting, I loved it.  My eyes went to the sun then traveled all around the canvas. I loved the sweep of the clouds, the reflections in the water, the splashes of color... it made me smile... I was proud.

Then... I took photographs, uploaded them onto my computer, and clicked over to submit my piece to the challenge.

That's when it happened... I scrolled through all the others... they were really good.. and... I lost confidence... didn't submit.

But, I know better!  I spend every day encouraging my students to have pride in their work and in its individual voice or style.

So... yes... I do love it.  And... yes... I do love the others too.  And, yes... I will add mine to the rest.

Original Oil Painting - 16"x 16" 

Caribbean Sunset

What words come to mind?

  

...Tranquil... 

     ...Peaceful... 

          ...Calm...

              ...Paradise...

                    ...Serenity...

                         ...Harmony...

If it's the emotion words of feelings that you think of first, then I think I feel successful with this painting.

If it's the objects... water, sun, clouds, leaves, sand... then maybe I better go back and work on it a little more.

I did this piece to submit to the artist challenge at Paint and Draw Together. Go have a look.  It's fun to see the diversity of artist styles. Every piece is exactly alike... and completely different...

Sunset Silhouette

How long does the sunset last?

Actually, I Googled that.  Apparently that depends on where you live.  A sunset lasts between two and twenty minutes. 

I live in a forested area, so we don't get to see sunsets very often.  But, what a treat when you happen to be in the right place at the right time!

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