Day 26 of the 30 Paintings in 30 Days Challenge - "Splash"

"Splash" - 40" x 30" acrylic on 1.5" canvas

"Splash" is a multi-colored cityscape with numerous layers of color in the sky and water portion.  As usual, the photo doesn't do it justice!

Day 20 of the 30 Paintings in 30 Days challenge - "El Pueblo"

"El Pueblo" - 24" x 18" acrylic on 1.5" canvas

I love the way this piece turned out....the colors are very subtle Southwest colors (hence the moniker "El Pueblo") and there's an inkling of a homestead/house in the upper right corner.  I didn't want to commit to a decipherable form so left it very abstract, then added some metallic gold for good measure.  And because for some reason I can't seem to get enough of the shimmer right now, I threw in some powdered silver gouache to make it really glow!  The gray areas are really the silver spots, but when I tried to get the photo, the glare was blinding.

One of the biggest problems I'm having with this challenge is with the old names of the pieces.  Because these are all "do-overs," most of the canvases were already named.  So trying to make a new piece work with the name sometimes doesn't work - like at all.

The old painting for this canvas was called "Decisions" and was a geometric work with numbers and letters sprayed on (yes, I went through that phase....).  However, when I was painting this piece, the name "El Pueblo" came to me and my rule is once a name comes to me, I know it's time to stop painting. 

I don't want to white out or gesso over the previous name, so will somehow blend the names (ie Decisions - El Pueblo).  Maybe it will attract a buyer who can't decide which house to buy?  Or someone inthe  real estate industry?  I'd be happy if it just attracted a buyer, period!!

Only 10 more days to go - and today I pulled some large canvases out of the shed in my backyard.  Watch out, folks - things are going to get freaky now :-)

Day 19 of the 30 Paintings in 30 Days Challenge - "City Dreams"

"City Dreams" - 20" x 16" acrylic on 1.5" canvas

This painting was done entirely with a palette knife, something I haven't done in years.  I like the texture and blended colors you can get with acrylics and a palette knife, and may try to do a similar style piece or two before the challenge is over. 

Another cityscape using complementary colors - again a very limited palette.  I wanted to do something that looked Mid-Century, but didn't want to do turquoise with orange, so I opted for a creamy soft Light Ultramarine Blue by Golden instead.  The building shapes look contemporary to me though - and that worked for me.  I had to really hold myself back from trying to add more colors or change the "sky" - and I'm glad I did now.  I like the end result and would have lost it entirely had I gone rogue with my earlier desires!

I'm behind again in finishing the paintings (ie signing; wiring; varnishing; finishing the sides), and need to get a jump on that this week.  I know - in my spare time :-)  But seriously - I need to get those paintings finished so I can show them to another art consultant and her client.  Nothing like a little pressure to get this artist busy!

Day 18 of the 30 Paintings in 30 Days Challenge - "Building Dreams"

"Building Dreams" - 36" x 24" acrylic and graphite on 1.5" canvas

With a strong background in the real estate industry, I have a love for buildings; houses; and dwellings in general.  They house our spirits day and night, and I've always been able to "feel" their soul.  When I was developing commercial real estate, each building or project that I worked on felt like a child to me, and I would always get excited when the new tenant or owner moved in.  True, I had built the structure but the people who moved in were what ultimately made the building come alive.

Inside these structures, the occupants build their dreams.  Doesn't matter if it's a home or a building - it's where the creativity begins and life actions take place.  It's almost spiritual, hence the desire I had to add the liquid metallic gold at the lower left part of the painting. 

Another fun makeover piece - and it can be hung either horizontally (as shown) or vertically with the black circles on the bottom. 

Day 15 of the 30 Paintings in 30 Days Challenge - "Midnight Celebration"

"Midnight Celebration" - 30" x 24" acrylic on 1.5" canvas

Another abstract cityscape that's kind of a hot mess but I forced myself to walk away before I overworked it.  There is a lot about this piece that I like and I knew if I didn't stop, I'd end up ruining it.  So - I'm going to set this one aside for the time being and leave it in plain sight for a few days so I can decide what, if anything, I want to do next.

I'm enjoying this challenge and am thrilled with the progress I've made in paring down my vast inventory of canvases that needed some love.  It's hard to believe we're already halfway through the challenge and halfway through the first month of the new year.  I'm excited about completing the rest of this series, and then developing a marketing plan to promote both the challenge itself and the individual pieces.   I know I should have been uploading them into my on-line shops each day, but I just haven't had the time or the energy to do it. Painting large is actually great exercise, and after a few hours of painting each day, I'm wiped out!

Day 12 of the 30 Paintings in 30 Days Challenge - "Harbor Lights"

"Harbor Lights" - 48" x 24" acrylic on 1.5" thick canvas

Now this painting is bright.....bold and vibrant and more than likely a work-in-progress vs. a completed offering.  I really liked the movement I got with the fireworks and various "structures" that were done in a blended minty-blue color - but the indigo blue and light cad red with the cad yellow are screaming "rookie primary colors" to me and need to be toned down.

That said - I had fun making this piece.  It was large (48" x 24") so I painted the background inside on my wall (I use a big piece of stretched canvas on my wall as a backdrop and hang the piece I'm working  on with a nail).  When the background dried, I took the piece outside and placed it on top of a large plastic tarp.  Next I grabbed my bottles of Lukas acrylic paints and started squirting them across the canvas.  Then I took a credit card and started slicing in my design. 

The end result is a city that looks like it's on fire or in the midst of a celebration or perhaps both?  I'm thinking of blocking in some more colors with the buildings and toning down the blue and red. 

Definitely a far cry from the neutrals I've worked with this past year, right?  And a bit shocking for my own eyes, but truth be told, I kind of like it!

Day 11 of the 30 Paintings in 30 Days Challenge - "Snowdrift"

"Snowdrift" - 30" x 30" acrylic & cardboard on 1.5" canvas

I'm happy with the way this painting finally came together.  I covered everything from the previous painting with the exception of the small horizontal white lines at the bottom right side of the piece.  For some reason I have been wanting to paint some abstract cityscapes and at the last minute decided to add the little white "snowflakes" with some finger taps across the canvas using some gesso.  Not too many dots - just enough to give it a feeling of snow drifting over a city.....