Tuesday, April 26, 2011

Shifting gears...

It's time to get to work on a group of paintings for my favorite boutique...Prairie Hearth.
Here's how the process usually goes...

1.  Once the kiddos go to bed, sit with a sketch pad, sharp pencil and DVR'ed shows such as The View, Oprah, etc.  Sketch, sketch and sketch anything that comes to mind.
2.  Sift thru the thumbnail sketches, selecting those that 'speak to me'.  Begin matching up the sketches with the canvas, wood piece, etc. that makes the best fit.
3.  If I'm working on canvas, wood boards, etc. I usually just go for it...taking my little sketch as general inspiration and, by hand, penciling in a general layout of the design for painting.  (For my licensed work, I take a much more controlled approach- enlarging the sketch to actual size and transferring it using carbon paper.)
4.  Paint in the morning.  Paint during the kids' nap/rest time.  Paint late at night.  (I'm learning to be more flexible and go with the flow...painting when it's best for our family.)
5.  Stain, photo, inventory, tag and price items.

Tomorrow I will be moving on to step #4.  This is the exciting part!  I can't wait to get into that art room and paint my little heart out.  This is when things start to move fast for me.  Most of the time, I'm working on several paintings at once- all different designs.  I love seeing how they come together and what happens spontaneously in a painting that puts a smile on my face. 
Stay tuned...  
     

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