Peace

"In flight"

6x6 oil on panel

My favorite thing to see is what's called a murmuration. 
It's a large flock of birds flying together and abruptly changing direction in unison. Many times the birds will land en masse on the utility wires, light for a few minutes and burst forth into flight again.
I began this painting by putting the shapes of the birds in with burnt umber and then painted the sky against them to create vibrant edges. I wanted to capture the motion of the birds as they flit about the wires.
This is my painting for Girls Just Wanna Paint's November challenge "peace".  

Birds On a Wire

Birds On a Wire

9x12 oil on panel

This was started in the studio yesterday

 using a limited palette of burnt umber, alizarin crimson, ultramarine and white.

I honestly need some feedback on this one because I can't tell if I should go back on it or let it be.

I love when birds swarm around telephone wires and then land en masse!

Transitioning

Detail from mixed media WIP

watercolor, acrylic, ink on sketchbook 

Wow, where has this month gone?

We arrived home from Naples on May 10th and have been busy settling in and sprucing up our yard. 
It's great to be back in New England. The crisp ocean air and cool lilac scented breezes lift my spirits.

The Bird House

Speak of transitioning, I'm not particularly good at it.

I've long been itching to break out of my 'box' and do something very different. I love fiber and found objects and mixed media and pen and ink. So much stimulation, so little time.
I see wonderful art that speaks to me but when I think about doing something similar my inner critic nags at me about 'looking' like someone else, or copying other's ideas. It continues to hold me back and I know I have to wrestle it to the mat and just carry on.
I tell my students to be fearless and not to judge themselves. This is a case where I need to listen to my own advice without being concerned about the outcome of the piece. 

Here's a detail from something I'm working on involving herons and egrets using watercolor, ink pens and iridescent acrylic paint.  I love birds and am bursting to do abstract or mixed media with the bird theme. 
I'm not really sure where this piece is going so I'm trying to listen to the painting and let it tell me.

I'd love to hear how you all push past the blocks that derail your creative muse. Talk to me.

our beach