Drawing/Day 1.1.16

I can't believe I haven't posted a new painting on this blog since early October. I knew I was busy with other things, like portrait commissions and orders and holidays, but I didn't realize it had been THAT long. 

That explains this inertia I've been feeling.Why I keep getting distracted by the empty bird feeder or cookie making or the laundry or anything else that seems like a worthwhile, productive activity that I can use to justify not being in the studio, so that I can ignore the fear of starting up again.

And the longer I procrastinate, the harder it is to get back in there. (That nasty little voice that tells me I'll never have a new idea gets louder.)

It's not like I haven't been painting at all, I have. There are about ten pieces started and sitting around the studio in various stages. I just haven't been getting back to them.

So to get back in the groove, I'm thinking about doing a drawing a day. Something that, for those of you who know how I work, is not a new thing for me. I figure if I start my day with this simple exercise it will help me summon a new confidence.

There is the lovely ritual of beginning a project like this. (We could consider this another way to procrastinate, but it feels important and enjoyable nonetheless.) I start by cutting a 3.5" square piece of mat as a template. I find the center of the 8.5" X 11" card stock and trace the square.

 I erase the centering lines.

I cut another 1" square from a piece of card stock and use it to trace a section of folded up newspaper.

I cut out a number of layers...

...and see if I have anything interesting to use as an abstract composition.

The one I choose has a figure on it. I don't do figures very often. I turn it sideways so that it looks like a mountain reflected in a dark lake. I draw it that way with colored pencil.. When I'm finished I prefer it turned right side up, to read like the figure again, I scratch into it with an X-acto knife.

It's a start and maybe has helped with getting those creative juices flowing again. We'll see how I feel about what I do tomorrow, and the days after that... a happy new year.