Studio Day

I had originally planned to spend the morning cleaning, organizing, and creating in my studio then go out to paint in the afternoon. I got so invigorated happily getting my studio back in order that I decided to keep on going and spend the day. I also wanted to make a wet panel carrier and a small oil paint sketching box but didn't quite get to those projects. I will work at them this week.
I was offered a special deal at Vistaprint to have some bumper stickers printed and I couldn't resist ordering a few. They came today and I immediately cut one up to fit on my pochade box so that people passing by can see. I got the idea from another artist and thought it clever. Here is mine:

Bumper Sticker Art

They are bumper sticker size of course and all in one strip but it was too long for my little box so I cut it in two to fit.
As I worked my way through the studio getting things clean, organizing, culling stuff to give to the thrift store and putting stuff in the recycling box, I also did many of the little nagging repairs. I have said this before and I will say it again here, tools are a girl's best friend! Not the silly, cheap, whimpy so-called-tools they sometimes put out for women, but real women's tools. I am talking Black and Decker baby and I don't think they come in pink! I managed to locate the missing charger to this handy item:

Real tools are a girl's best friend!

I must add a note here, I have my own set of tools so I don't have to borrow my mate's. Sometimes he steals my tools although not very often. I did, however, lose my favorite red drill and a saw to him! For little items like box cutters and such, I do deliberately buy dolled up versions so they don't disappear on me:

Pretty little things that don't wander off!

Please don't misunderstand me, I love beauty but, when it comes to tools, I don't love beauty at the cost of function.

Now, don't get me started on outdoor gear for women! I could do a whole post ranting about that issue. I will note here too that the Boggs boots that my blogging friend Theresa recommended have worked out quite well so there is hope.
High tide is around 2:30 pm tomorrow so it will be a perfect time to go paint after lunch. I will continue to finish my work in the studio in the morning.
If all goes well, I should have another wave study to post tomorrow.

Figure Sketching Interlude

Well, no daily paintings to show this week. I had a few unexpected interruptions and decided to use the odd bits of time I had left getting a few things set up, rearranged and ready to go. I have also been tweaking a few things around the studio to make it more efficient. One of those weeks. I will be reporting on some of the rearrangements in a future post.
In the meantime, I wanted to share a figure sketch I did last week. This is a 30 minute pose. The sketch is a bit distorted by the camera angle making her head look different from the actual drawing, but the general sense of the drawing is there. The reason why I wanted to share it is that I really resonated with this model. She has an unusual and subtle beauty that I found artistically intriguing. She has many tattoos, some of which are artfully positioned on her face but they add to her overall beauty rather than detract. I would like to paint this young woman's portrait.

30 minute Figure Sketch, charcoal on newsprint

Speaking of portraits, I will be stepping up to portrait studies this year. That is one of the things I was getting in place last week. So much fun to have all this wonderful art and challenging growth to work on!
Monday is an appointment and errand day for me and then back to work in the studio. I have the next daily painting set up and ready to go.
-Renee