'Martha Washingtons'

This little one (only 5x7 and painted with acrylics), i think, is my favourite one that i've done. Just thought i'd share at least SOMEthing! :-)

"No-brainer-feel-good" Art

Ah. So that's what it's called; the kind of painting i do. Something to do with "the proliferation of the so called 'easy do', 'unschooled' and 'no-brainer-feel-good' art".

I love Robert Genn's work and his marvellous Painter's Keys Twice-Weekly Newsletter - you really should subscribe if you haven't already @

- but sometimes labels get thrown around too much for my taste. It can get a bit judgemental when some of the commenting artists express their opinions.

And that's ok. Everyone has a right to their opinion. And labels seem to be very important to a lot of people. Hey, even i get into them myself sometimes (in a hopefully much less judgmental way).

So, in the name of fun and playfulness, I will take that label of "No-brainer-feel-good Art" and embrace it with joy.

This is how i want to paint right now. I want to paint simple daily situations in a simple folk-art fun style, because it is what i want on my OWN walls. Big stress in the real world warrants simple fun paintings in my world!

That's how i see it . . . for now.

'Trying to Relax'

New Paintings!

I think that cats are going to be a recurring theme in every series i do. These are from two series: Quilts and Women; both have cats, curiously. ;-)

This is how i want to paint right now. I want to make happy, colourful folk-art paintings. I want to paint small (they are 6x6 & 5x7). I want to paint fun scenes from everyday life. Maybe they're more suited to greeting cards, but it's what i want on MY walls, so that's what i'm going to paint.

One thing that will probably keep me from ever becoming a 'real' artist... IE: one who actually sells their work... is that i still don't want to part with my paintings! How does one actually get over that? I just don't know! I paint what i love, and i love what i paint, and i want to keep it! :-D Oh well.

Anyway, here they are (along with their numbers for my reference sake):

22-Qui1-LogCabinWithTuxedo

23-Qui2-SawtoothWithSiamese

24-Wom1-TryingToRelax

25-Wom2-UnhappyParticipant

I've been painting!

I have finally done what i've wanted to do for decades. Take some painting classes! I should have gone to art school when i was younger (that is my ONE regret in this life), but i didn't. So now, i'm starting to take some week-long workshops.

The last one i went to was one on Colour Theory. Very important for me, because i love colour so much and want lots of it in my paintings, yet i am so afraid of it! The class helped me a lot, though i have a VERY long road ahead of me. At least i have taken the first few steps! Yay! :D

This workshop was at a great studio on Quadra Island... Firesign Art & Design Studio and B&B. It was incredible to stay there for an entire week, immersed in art with other like-minded artists. What an experience!


Sept/06 Note: *sigh* Unfortunately, because i had nowhere to paint once i got home (in this construction zone.. we're building a house), my choo-choo-kachoo got up and left. I'm back in my slump!

My style...

I seem to lean towards a very definite style. Even when i try to do other things, i end up back to this way (rough & seeing the background through the paint). So it's good. I have a way i want to paint things.

Actually, i enjoy a few styles. One very folk-arty (which is my background), one sort of cartoon-y and graphic and a rather impressionistic style. I can't wait until my new house / new studio is finished (though it will probably be half a year). I want to dedicate so much more time painting and experimenting!

*sigh* I'm painting! :-)

Jan/11 Note: This post was done more than four years ago... I had thought that the house would be finished in "probably 6 months". Well, it's still not finished! We live in in now, but it's still a construction zone! I do NOT want to think about it! Grrrr. *Puts fingers back into ears and says, "lalalalalala"*  ;-)