Snow Bound - Day 23 of the 30 Paintings in 30 Days Challenge

"Snow Bound" - 18" x 24" acrylic on paper - $295 includes free shipping

The River, She Rises - Day 22 of the 30 Paintings in 30 Days Challenge

"The River, She Rises" - 18" x 24" acrylic on paper - $295 includes free shipping

As you know I'm trying to keep ahead on my paintings for this challenge, and I'm writing this particular post on the evening of January 18th.  Living in California gives us enviable weather compared to many other parts of the nation, so I feel like a big whiner whenever I talk about our storms or heat or drought.  But tonight in Sacramento we're having a hellacious storm with high winds and heavy rains that are downing trees and fences in my neighborhood, and our Sacramento and American Rivers are swelling to capacity.  It's nerve wracking and I'm trying to keep busy so I don't go into panic mode.

This painting was done several days ago and is called "The River, She Rises" - very appropriate for the current storm.  Also I love the clouds and colors in this piece - I didn't intend on making it into a landscape but here it is in all its glory :-)  Here's hoping tomorrow brings less turbulence and fluffy clouds with a hint of sunshine.  But for now, I'm going to grab a glass of Merlot; light my candles and hunker down with my dog as we wait out this storm.

Flooding Waters - Day 18 of the 30 Paintings in 30 Days Challenge

"Flooding Waters" - 24" x 18" acrylic on paper - $295 includes free shipping

Land Slide - Day 17 of the 30 Paintings in 30 Days Challenge

"Land Slide" - 24" x 18" acrylic on paper - $295 includes free shipping

Misty Night - Day 15 of the 30 Paintings in 30 Days Challenge

"Misty Night" - 18" x 24" acrylic on paper - $295 includes free shipping

The challenge is halfway over and overall I'm delighted with this new series!  As you know I've been working furiously to keep ahead so I'm not overwhelmed with trying to paint every single day.  This means some days I'll do several paintings and other days I'll concentrate on marketing and cleaning my house which has become a hot mess thanks to paint, supplies and half-finished paintings taking up space on my tables and counter tops.  

I've been diligent on uploading my new pieces to my various online galleries including:  Artfinder; Saatchi Art and my newly updated ETSY store.  Eventually I'll add them to my Fine Art America site where you can order prints and other printed items including pillows; shower curtains; etc. but that may not happen until after the challenge is over.

I've found the constant uploading to various sites has increased my stats considerably, and in my heart I know it's what needs to be done on a consistent basis in order to keep the algorithm robots happy. But the reality is it takes a lot of time and a lot of work, and I'm starting to hate sitting in front of my computer for hours on end.  

I'd love to find a student intern this year to help with the marketing and will look into this at the nearby high school and university to see if they have a work experience program.  In the meantime I'll keep doing everything myself and am looking forward to getting the next 15 paintings cranked out so I can clean my dining room and start seeing my counters again!

Steady Drip - Day 10 of the 30 Paintings in 30 Days Challenge

So here's another minimalist painting I created using the Daniel Smith masking fluid that I like so much. The background on this piece had many layers of various earthtones, and with the fluid "dots" and a coat of my special white medium paint that I mixed up, it allowed the darks to still show up and made the dots stand out while blanketing the piece is a peaceful, zen white look.

Many years ago I used to paint with watercolors and gouache, and I always used masking fluid in my designs because I loved that element of surprise that you get when you finally remove the dried fluid from the piece.  These last few paintings have brought back that excitement and I hope you're enjoying these new designs for the 2nd week of the challenge.  Not sure what week 3 will bring, but they are guaranteed to be abstracts on paper in neutral colors!

"Steady Drip" - 18" x 24" acrylic on paper - $295 includes free shipping

Denim Skies - Day 8 of the 30 Paintings in 30 Days Challenge

I wanted to do something a little different today so opted to mix up a fabulous denim blue color to add a "shibori-like" appearance to my painting.  I masked off the small "x's" and singular "o" with a liquid masking solution from Daniel Smith, then painted over the dried designs with the paint and a gel medium.  After the paint dried I removed the masking solution with a rubber cement eraser which exposed the original surface. I wanted some visual texture to show through the designs and am happy with the results.  I'm looking forward to doing more of these mark making pieces for the challenge in rich earthy tones!

Here's "Denim Skies" - my 8th offering for the 30 Paintings in 30 Days challenge and my "The Wisdom of Winter" series.

"Denim Skies" - 18" x 24" acrylic on paper - $295 incl. free shipping

Fall From Grace - Day 7 of the 30 Paintings in 30 Days Challenge

"Fall From Grace" - 18" x 24" acrylic on paper - $295 includes free shipping

Starting Over Again - Day 6 of the 30 Paintings in 30 Days Challenge

"Starting Over Again" - 24" x 18" acrylic on paper - $295 incl. free shipping

Beneath the Surface - Day 5 of the 30 Paintings in 30 Days Challenge

"Beneath the Surface" - 24" x 18" acrylic on paper - $295 incl. free shipping

Seeking Solace - Day 3 of the 30 Paintings in 30 Days Challenge

"Seeking Solace" - 18" x 24" acrylic on #140 paper - $295 includes free shipping

Challenge Complete - Here's the 30/30 Collage for January, 2016

January, 2016 - Collage of the 30 Paintings in 30 Days Challenge

I am ecstatic to have completed my sixth (6th) "30 Paintings in 30 Days" challenge time and am happy to report two of these paintings have sold to good homes.  In the past challenges, I always worked "small" - usually 4" x 6" up to 12" x 12" but this challenge was comprised of larger canvases that were in need of a makeover.  The series was called "Reflections" and were all done on canvases/panels that had previous paintings of mine on them (some done from the late 1980's!!)

Part of my own personal challenge was creating something that corresponded with the title from the original painting.  This wasn't always easy, I assure you!  But at the end of the day, I was happy with the new work and didn't regret letting go of the old paintings one single bit.

The next step will be finishing these paintings so I can begin the marketing process.  I didn't focus on sales this time - mainly because there simply wasn't time.  Painting larger also means painting longer, and this challenge had me putting in some long studio hours. 

I'm excited to take these new works and upload them to my website in addition to marketing them to my group of designers and consultants.  Many of them will also hit an on-line shop or two, and a couple of them will remain in my personal collection until I'm ready to let them go.

Thank you again for following along - there were a lot of things going on during this challenge, but I managed to finish and for that, I'm proud of my accomplishment.  I'm also thrilled to report I wasn't alone this time - we managed to get a group of 15+ artists from the Sacramento area involved in the challenge, which means one heck of a lot of new art was made in our Capital city this month!

The next challenge begins in September, 2016 - I can't wait to do it all over again!

Day 29 of the 30 Paintings in 30 Days Challenge - "Dream"

"Dream" - 48" x 36" acrylic on 1.5" canvas

The largest canvas that I've redone to date - here's "Dream" - 4' x 3' and layer upon layer of color and finished with metallic gold raindrops/fairy dust/use your imagination :-)  The gold dots are shown at the top but are interspersed throughout the painting with random patterns.

Only one more painting to finish and it's already about 75% completed.  Can't wait to post it and be able to say I finished my sixth (6th!) 30 Paintings in 30 Days!!

Day 28 of the 30 Paintings in 30 Days Challenge - "Did You Realize?"

"Did You Realize?" - 48" x 24" acrylic on 1.5" canvas

Someone told me today my art looked like "New Age" art.  She said it was ethereal and peaceful, and looked like a dream.

I'll take that!  There's also something very fulfilling about sticking my little paws in the paint when I'm almost finished and letting my fingers dance over the canvas.....

I'm almost caught up (just two more to go and I've completed my sixth 30/30 challenge!) and am already salivating at my next project - four 36" x 36" canvases along with four 36" x 18" canvases for a show I'm doing at ArtHouse Gallery in Sacramento this coming June.  I'm excited about this show because I'm doing it with my talented artist friend Michelle Andres, and I'm writing poetry/haiku for the show too!!  Somehow I'm going to be incorporating the poetry/words into the paintings - not quite sure how that's happening but I'll figure it out.

Until then, I need to concentrate on finishing two more paintings; completing each and every one of them (signing; finishing the sides; wiring; adding them to my inventory list; photographing; and varnishing).  The finish work can sometimes take as long as making the painting itself!  It's the least sexy part of an artist's job, in my opinion......but a necessary one.

Day 27 of the 30 Paintings in 30 Days Challenge - "Zoom"

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

Still playing catchup for this challenge - here's Day 27's offering....only 3 more to go!  This pneumonia is kind of kicking my butt.  I feel better; go out for a couple of hours; then spend 8 hours paying the price with dizziness; hacking; and general feeling like pooh. 

Seems like with all this "free time" on my hands I should be able to just knock out a few more paintings, right?  But the reality is when I go to paint my head starts to throb and I get queasy or dizzy then have to lay down again.  I'm committed to finishing the 30/30 though - even if the next 3 are small pieces I have to do while laying down.  We'll see how it goes - stay tuned!

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 5 of the 30 Paintings in 30 Days Challenge - "Wherever the Wind Takes Me"

"Wherever the Wind Takes Me" - 7" x 5" acrylic & graphite on MDF panel

Many folks do not understand abstract art and think it's just the result of some crazy artist gone wild with some brushes and paint.  And some artists may very well work like that, but I find the abstract genre to be like an intricate puzzle, waiting to be solved. 

This challenge, I'm working on doing more abstracts and am painting over/reworking old paintings.  It's been ages since I've painted abstracts and I've really missed the "problem-solving" that needs to happen in order to make a successful work.

For example: I have to pay attention to shapes; colors; form and line in addition to keeping a balanced ratio of lights to darks; warm colors to cools; brights to neutrals and more.  And let's not forget composition!  Some pieces are easy to figure out while others are like those 5,000 piece jigsaw puzzles that take FOREVER to finish.   

I got a head start on this challenge by prepping 15 canvases before it started.  Right now I'm working on seven pieces but they aren't coming together quite like I'm wanting them to.  Analyzing each piece takes a long time, and I'm getting a bit stressed thinking I won't get all 30 paintings done by the end of January. 

Failure is not my strong point, so I do plan on finishing the challenge and completing 30 new abstract paintings.  Will they all be successful pieces?  Undoubtedly no.  I'm striving for 80% though and we'll see if I can finish this challenge with a passing grade.