Monday, June 22, 2009

That Painful Middle Stage, and Finishing a Few


I got a little panicky when we scheduled several trips for the US Route 89 project that Jim and I are working on. Looking at the calendar, it turns out that I'll only have about 3-4 weeks to finish paintings for my solo show coming up on September 2 at the Burton Barr Library Central Gallery in Phoenix.

Ever the organizer, Jim suggested I make a list of the Nooks & Crannies paintings and note what stage they're in. So he helped me make a check list. I have some paintings completed and photographed. Some are close. One is done but isn't photographed. Many are in the middle stages of work. Two are planned, but not started.

What you see above is my first level of attack. I pulled down 2 paintings which were done and photographed, but I hadn't painted the edges or signed them. They are sitting face up on my table as the edges dry. They are done! 2 to check off on the list.



This is the current painting, in that painful middle stage. You can check back to the past 2 blog posts to see how far I've progressed. I meant to keep track of the time, but have already failed to do so. I'm guessing I have about 12 hours into this piece.

Today, I think I'll complete a few more paintings that just need the edges done. It feels so good to get something finished. And checked off on the list. Then I'll launch back into this one again.

I'm at the point where I'm not sure where I'm going with this and just feel like I'm applying paint willy-nilly. It would be worse if I wasn't aware that this is a pattern I go through. I'll spend days adding and subtracting paint, moving things around, wondering what the heck I'm doing. I just have to force myself to keep on and believe that something will come of all this agony and work. (besides sore feet, that is).

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