Hunkerin' Down

With the summer shows and Autumn Open Studio Tour behind me, and the wood all stacked for winter, its now time to devote all my time to painting. I have a stack of pictures I've taken that I plan to work from, but current pictures are always the most exciting.

The Open Studio Tour was successful but rather slow. If nothing else it forces me to do a major cleaning. It also keeps me thinking about the pros and cons of having my own gallery. That is something I need to research, instead of just dream about. It always seems most attractive after a summer of schlepping all my things around to the numerous summer shows. Next year I am going to limit the shows to the larger venues.

This is the time of year it is time to slow down and hunker down to studio work. It feels good to have all the wood stacked in anticipation of winter. There are still leaves to rake, but most importantly its time to paint. I want to continue to work on shadows and light. Last fall and especially winter I focused on looking for strong shadows. That works well in winter against the white snow. But I now see shadows and light much more clearly, in all seasons. Of course there is the need for a healthy supply of sunlight, which is sometimes hard to do in November. Artificial light is always an option, although that means painting subjects other than landscapes. I recently completed a still life which brought my studies of shadows and light into another realm.

I sometimes look at the still life painting like playing scales on the piano. It was my least favorite thing to practice when I took piano lessons as a child. I am now beginning to appreciate the discipline involved. Not being a well disciplined creature, I do try, another one of those New Year's resolutions which I think about - try and be more disciplined - yea, anyhow! For myself I find going back and forth between different types of subjects improves my focus, even if it pushes mastery further away. If we aren't learning and going in new directions creating art becomes like any other job, not a passion and a joy.

As the year comes to a close, there is also the business end of things. I have my pile of receipts and a new copy of Quicken for Home and Business. Do you think I need another accountant, mine tends to do a lot of snoozing.

What's to Understand?

"I don't understand art". Every once in a while I hear that. Sometimes its when I say I'm an artist or when the spouse of someone, who has clearly been dragged to a show under duress, feels compelled to say something to me as that someone looks at my pictures. I guess I don't quite know what's to understand. You look at a picture and either it appeals to you or you think it's hideous and you have no idea why someone would hang it on their walls. It can be that simple.

Of course there are always those who want to make everything complex. Several things come to mind when I think about this. A number of years ago I spent a lot of time working with teachers on using computers. Like most people approaching something new, they thought they needed to know everything about the computer before they could use it successfully. Most people using the phone don't know how it works but they are perfectly comfortable using one, putting aside for a moment cell phones with more features than a space shuttle. I think the same analogy works for art. You look at it, if you like it, what more do you need to know?

I also am reminded of what my Uncle Jimmy told me when I first started painting when I was in high school. "Art is a very selfish business, if you like it, it's good, you can't listen to what everyone else says." Now, of course there are instructors who can help you refine and improve, but his basic premise has held true. I really learned that after I had painted a barn with a tree and a tire swing in front. It was a snow scene. I had one person tell me they liked the barn but not the tire swing. I had another person tell me they liked the tire swing but not the barn. Yup, that was proof Uncle Jimmy was right. If I listened to both of them I would have had a painting of snow. What a keeper that would be, especially here in New England!

Going to museums as frequently as I can, I enjoy reading about the artists and their paintings. There is always more to learn about Art. That should not effect the enjoyment gained from simply looking at a picture. I have had sales of my work because the landscapes have reminded people of different places. I had a little watercolor of a stream I had painted that a man purchased because it reminded him of where they use to vacation as a child. Was that what I had in mind when I painted it? Of course not, but it evoked an emotion in someone, that made it a successful painting. How much do you think he cared about what paper I used, or what technique I used?

So, once again I ask, what's to understand? The next time you look at a piece of art, you be the judge, forget about the art critic who can name more artists, styles, techniques, etc., than you. Moreover, think about what Uncle Jimmy said - "if you like it, it's good".