Take a Break

I gave Kelly a rest. Pencil drawings are not dashed off.They're slow and deliberate and thoughtful and tedious and hazardous to your health. Too much time spent drawing with your nose and your neck aches and rigamortise sets in from being hunched over. As much as I wanted to carry it through and get on with the other two portraits, I put it aside and went back to the paint studio where I did what I hoped to be the last correction on Mice. I jumped into Mice way too quickly and wasn't careful enough with the initial layout. The painting of pastries turned out to be just as drawing intensive as Kelly. What isn't demanding is Spring Woods. a bunch of trees doesn't call for precision. The challenge of this one is to keep it light and airy. This means tying my heavy hand behind my back. Seeing it here, I think I may be very close to signing off.

Working on multiple projects simultaneously is healthy. I'm going to add that to my other rule, Don't over think. Distract yourself with rock and roll or whatever tunes move you-- or something on the telly, or whatever will take your mind off what you're doing, let the intuitive juices flow and keep your emotions in check. Moving on to a different piece entirely is a bit more distracting than dancing to " A Hunk A Hunk of Burning Love." It's a different genre that requires a different approach. When you've got a number of things going for you and the creative process is different, if one is driving you mad, move over to the next. shake up your perspective. But a word of warning: Be careful not to over do. You do not want to spread yourself too thin. My space is limited to three projects. I raised three boys. I can handle three artworks.

Good painting.