about paintings

Since I've posted a few paintings in progress in the last couple days, there are a few things I want to say about them. Obviously they don't take as much time as drawings. :-)

People tend to either really like them, or really not like them. So if you don't like them, I'm cool with that. Personally I think they're pretty neat-o, and once I get over the initial "OMG I don't know how to paint" that happens EVERY time I start one, I really do enjoy it and it's actually VERY nice to do something other than super fine detailed drawings for a change. I like the funky paintings, and I feel like I can be more adventurous with bold colors that aren't totally true to life. :-) Although these pieces are certainly representative of their subjects, I don't consider them realistic.

The style is something that I started doing a little bit when I painted some pieces for a show in October 2005. And then I didn't paint again til December 2006 (the two dog paintings I did for Christmas) and that's when I really fell into the acrylic-and-ink mixed media thing that I do now. The lines! I love the lines! I love the final stage of inking them! I think a lot of that comes from my work in printmaking, it reminds me of relief prints (linocuts and whatnot). It's fun.

I will post up good pics soon. I varnished them tonight so they are way too goopy to get near the scanner now, but if I have time I'll try scanning them in the morning before I haul a load of art to the photographer. I wasn't going to get everything photographed, but I have tended to treat my paintings like second class citizens and that kinda sucks, so from now on I think I'm going to get pretty much darn near everything photographed so that I have a hard copy of all my work. Why not take my own slides? I used to. I wasn't very good at it. It's pricey getting it done professionally but it's worth it to know it's going to get done perfectly in focus and perfectly lit every time.

And with that, off to bed I go.