Here we are, just over half way through the challenge. While I’m still struggling to some degree, I think I’m finally getting the hang of painting flowers. I have to keep reminding myself to slow down and not rush through it, but overall I think I’ve improved. This week feels slightly less horrible than the…
Category: Fishished
2020 Strada 31-Day Challenge – Week 2
After spending most of last year working with water media, it is genuinely weird to be back to working with oils. I just can’t get over just how oily it is. I’ve never been bothered by the oiliness of an oil painting before, but for whatever reason I’m really aware of it. Transitioning back into…
2020 Strada 31-Day Challenge – Week 1
The Strada 31 day challenge is a challenge hosted by… you guessed it: Strada Easel. The rules are simple: Complete one painting from life every day. If competing for the prize of one of 5 easels, post your completed painting each day to your facebook page with the hashtag #stradaeasel and the day. Official rules…
2019 Year in Review
This year was a mixed bag. It was very positive in terms of my art and getting back into the workforce and very difficult due to some unexpected losses. Overall, I’m grateful this year has finally come to a close. I’m ready for a fresh start in 2020. After nearly a decade of being a…
The Last Gouache Paintings of 2019
Painting has been a wonderful escape this week. It has given me something to focus on other than overwhelming feelings of anxiety and sadness. The losses suffered this year are not something that can be easily overcome. This events of this year have certainly left a lasting mark. Painting still brings me joy however so…
Getting Back to Gouache
At the beginning of this week I wasn’t sure if I would have anything to post. Since completing my last painting I didn’t know what to do with myself. On one hand, I want to get back into oil painting. On the other, I wanted to just continue on with gouache painting. As sometimes happens…
Revisiting an Old Painting Part 2
Here it is. Is it better or worse? I’m not entirely sure. In many ways I think it is improved. In other ways it’s possibly worse. I’m really proud of myself for taking a risk with this painting though. I’m a novice at palette knife painting. Without really knowing what I was doing I went…
Inktober 2019 – Complete
I know you’re all just about sick of hearing about Inktober already. Here is my final post about it this year, just to wrap things up. I promise. At 29 complete paintings, I didn’t quite finish the challenge. I am really satisfied with the work I put in this year though. Compared to last year,…
Inktober 2019 – Week 5
Here is the final week of Inktober. I had every intension of finishing Inktober this year and I even came close. Tragedy struck my family, however, and a silly little drawing challenge seemed so inconsequential. I am really proud of the progress I’ve made this October. Once I started to use sepia ink, I feel…
Inktober 2019 – Week 4
This challenge is flying by. Only 7 more paintings left and I can take a little break. I’m actually looking forward to going back to my gouache animal paintings. I’ve been looking around at what other people are posting on Instagram and I can’t help but notice how many different ways people interpret the challenge….
Inktober 2019 – Week 3
Here we are, just over half way through Inktober. I’m happy to announce that it still seems to be going well. I know month long daily challenges are usually difficult, but I’ve spent most of this year daily painting so this is just me doing my daily routine. The biggest challenge has been working from…
Inktober 2019 – Week 2
This Inktober is really going great so far. The paintings are really flying by each day and they’re something I really look forward to. This is the first year I’ve used masking fluid to preserve my whites. I knew about it, but I didn’t know just how amazing it is. I’ve been using the crap…