Working in a Series

When I purchase stretched canvas, I always order in bulk because of the quantity discounts. Keeping canvases on hand in a variety of sizes serves my impulses since there is almost always a canvas handy to accommodate my inspirations. But, the side effect is that boxes of blank canvases take up a lot of storage space and they serve no purpose sitting in the closet with nothing on them. So, instead of beginning with an idea and then finding a canvas that matches my intuition, I decided to start with the canvas and find inspiration to fill it. I began by counting blank canvases and inventorying the sizes. To my surprise, I had a dozen unused canvases in sizes 18x24, 20x24, and 24x30. So, the first in a series I call Distractions was created. The abstract design in this post was developed on an 18x24 inch stretched canvas with acrylic paints and mediums. It will not be available for purchase until the series is finished. I plan to create five or six more paintings in this series that consists of warm colors, geometric shapes, and texture. When the series is complete, I will post information about availability. Until then, you can still purchase original small format paintings from my Etsy Shop or reproductions of my other work from my print shop.

Paint Addiction

The past six weeks I have been travelled from the Pacific Coast in Washington State to Central Oregon and back again. It was a lovely trip, but I missed my daily stints in the studio. My oils were with me, but I longed for the freedom of expression that acrylic paint provides for me. One afternoon, when I couldn't stand it any longer, I found my way to an art store and bought a tube of black paint, a couple of large brushes, and some mixed media paper.  I spent the afternoon playing. I used the new brushes, some found objects, and my imagination. When the entire pad of paper was almost gone, I felt better.  This painting is one of my favorite of the group. I like the boldness of the black and white and the freedom of large brush strokes. Reproductions of this work and some of my other black and white experiments are available in the painted abstract gallery of my website. I hope you will visit.