What I've been up to

For the past two weeks I have been painting a lot in my studio. During the summer most of my time painting was out in the field but with the changing of the weather and a new appreciation of still life that has changed. Since taking an oil class with Pam Newell (http://pnewellart.com/) I've been fascinated with setting up still lives and painting them in pastel and oil. Soon I should be motivated enough to pick back up watercolor as well. The painting above is called 'lean on me honey'. It's a lot of fun to set these still lives up and give them a story. I was struggling to get a configuration that I liked so I went into the kitchen and started making some tea so I could procrastinate longer. The idea hit me and I brought everything back into the studio with me. Its refreshing getting to see the actual object I'm painting in the same way you get to step into the landscape when painting in plein air. It is something that a photograph can't describe. Anyway I've been working on these and from little field sketches from the dunes.