
It's Memorial Day weekend. Wow, I can't believe that its already the end of May. In 8 weeks my youngest daughter will be getting married. I am excited for that - we haven't had a wedding in our family for a long time and I am looking forward to seeing all the family together and having some serious fun!
They are having a DJ and I have given them my playlist of songs to dance to, and they said they are putting them all on the DO NOT PLAY list! How mean is that? Actually I listen to music that is popular today too, including pop and rap, we like a lot of the same music. But not all!
I am really writing today to pump myself and get motivated to paint. I have a lot of work waiting for me and so many things to do and things I WANT to do, yet I am procrastinating big time.
My studio needs cleaning. I clean it up, get ready to paint, and then BAM! I mess it up again. Right now it is full of small boxes that came in the mail with painting supplies, the dog's big pillows are taking up the floor space, and it's dusty and needs a good straighten-up. I did just buy the coolest thing on ebay though - a small thumb pochade box for painting. It's tiny but fits on my tripod. It's handmade from a cigar box from Nicaragua. I am never happy with my plein air painting stuff but this is cool. I have a 9"x12' guerilla paint box that holds absolutely everything. BUT, it's big and bulky and heavy to carry. I am anxious to try out this new one because I can pull my car up to any spot, take a chair and my umbrella out of the back and put this little tiny thing in my lap or use it with the tripod. I can also just sit and paint inside my car if I choose, which is nice during the winter season.
I must admit, I am torn right now. I am known for my studio paintings and my linework, which I love. But which also tedious. I could paint three times as many paintings if I left out the lines. And I love plein air painting. And I love making HUGE paintings too. So which is it? I am trying to do everything and I think that's why I feel stuck right now. I am trying to look at what the public would prefer but I am also trying to look at it from my "artist's" point of view. Do I want to just make work that people want and that sells better than anything else? Or do I want to get out of my comfort zone and create work that I love, is easier to do, but may not sell as well? I think it comes down to linework versus unlined work. I've been painting now for 8 years coming up this November, so I may keep it the same for the next two years while I hammer out a new plan. I REALLY want to just travel all over New Mexico and paint, paint, paint. I could be happy never leaving this gorgeous state. I want to paint people. I want to teach. I want a co-op studio with other artists. I want my own gallery/studio. I want to paint humongous paintings that garner national attention. I want to do a series on the women and the town of Willard, NM, which is where my husband's momma grew up. I want to exercise and get lean and fit. And sometimes I just want to curl up with a good book and have no responsibilities. Help!