Troubled Times, Continued with Advice, Sketches

If you read my "Troubled Times" post,  http://www.jocastilloartblog.blogspot.com/2015/12/troubled-times.html  you saw suggestions from  artist friends, Rose, Bag Blog, Jennifer,  and Lesly all the way from New Zealand in the comments.  I have also had encouragement from my wetcanvas.com friends advising some of the same ideas I noted in that post.

Pastel artist and friend, Enid Wood (www.enidwood.com) gave me some tips, too.  Enid comments to me by e-mail and she was generous in allowing me to share her ideas with you.  She is a good teacher and this illustrates her expertise.

Hi Jo

Thanks for your post. I'm sorry you are feeling uninclined to paint  Maybe what's missing is APS. The APS party is at Char's on Sunday. Rae will be doing a demo at the January meeting. What could be more fun and energizing than that?

Paint something wild for the APS show. Your bluebonnet painting at Art Connections is very strong. Why not a series of three with Bluebonnets as a subject? Maybe with different backgrounds and in different formats? The foreground is really fine still life painting.

Perhaps you haven't as yet found the space or time of day that works for you in your new home. What kind of light do you like? Is it morning light or evening light? Try 10 minute paintings, 30 minute block ins, or 30 minute miniatures at different times and different places. When one of them is fun, stick with it. Make it a habit.

Frame miniatures that you paint in Hobby Lobby frames and sell them at Art Connections or LPAA.  LPAA is looking for work under $100.

Paint your feelings as abstracts, or abstractions of a realistic painting whose completion eludes you.

Choose a color and see how far it takes you. Everything in that painting can be that color. Or minimize that color and everything else in the painting has to make it shine.

We are fortunate that the weather is conducive to painting outside. Maybe it's light you crave. The new Guild gallery is very dark, as is the classroom there.

I've been enjoying Art Spectrum Colourfux Artist Trading Cards. I can do a painting in 30 minutes. I can buy 100 of them in rainbow colors from Blick.

Treat yourself to a small box of Roche pastels. They are seriously fun.

Good luck. Post your progress.

Hugs,

Enid

I am serious in my quest to find what it is I want to do with my art.  These are great ideas from Enid and other friends.  Maybe you will find some ideas here that you can use to be inspired.

Thanks to all my art buddies for encouraging me!!!
 

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I did sketch yesterday and today, finishing a page in the large sketchbook with the Micron 05 pen.  Quickly done as I was actually working on a commission.  (Painting ... really!)  It always takes longer to write and post my blog than to sketch.  

These are for Scavenger Hunt 431 (already!).  http://www.wetcanvas.com/forums/showthread.php?p=20676243&posted=1#post20676243  The Hunts are flying by.  It is getting close to Christmas.

3 items from the laundry - clotheslines, softener and detergent.
3 items from a kitchen drawer - a small funnel, jar opener and a fork with a thermometer for cooking meat.
3 items from another drawer - a box of pens, candy/mints and a pair of glasses

It will be interesting to see what the other sketchers find in their homes.  Come over and check it out and sketch with us.

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I follow a blog by an artist, Linda Shantz, www.lindashantz.com , that paints horses so well.  I love looking at horses.  She lives in Ontario, Canada, near Hamilton.  We visited Hamilton a couple of times visiting our dear friend, Father Jim.

Linda injured her drawing arm a while back and did some sketching with her non dominant hand.  Linda put some of these sketches for sale at a lesser price.  I found them interesting and well done so I ordered a couple.  They came yesterday. They are beautiful.   I will post a photo when I get them framed and hung on the wall.  In the meantime go have a look.