Trials and Errors: 8 weeks of drawings so far! I’m evaluating the quality of the pieces over the past two months. I think many will be additionally layered or painted over. The project has been tough and for the most part has been pretty experimental. I’m ok with the unresolved nature of the drawings so far. My comments here exclude week 2 where I used acrylic paint which I’m more comfortable with. I also had a specific subject for week 2. I question going forward with the project for too much longer within these current parameters as it’s a big time investment in my studio. I’m feeling the pull to get back to my other projects.
My goals for the project are less concerned with the outcome and more concerned with experimenting in the process. I don’t think I have done enough pieces yet to completely stop. I’m also attempting to learn watercolor, which is a new media for me. I have to keep in mind that learning takes awhile. While I’ve been painting for 27 years I have not worked much with watercolor media. I typically paint in acrylic so that’s my favorite for a number of reasons. I learned oil paint in college but swiftly returned to acrylic after a few classes. My last daily drawing project combined inks, watercolor, gouache, and colored pencils. The 2011 drawing project is still really ingrained so it might take a bit for me to release my expectations. I don’t want to repeat what I did for that entire year in 2020. I want the new project to focus on watercolor, which has a very sensitive touch and is difficult to control. I often layer paint in flat opaque shapes so the watercolor transparency is a challenge for me.
The scale and quantity of seven pieces at 10” x 8” is difficult to start and finish all within a week. It has taken over my studio practice and I don’t want it to be the only thing I do for the next few months. The last time I did the project the sizes were smaller at 6”x6” to 5”x7”. The smaller scale is easier for me to do for this type of quick daily practice. Although many of them were not as quick as I would have liked. I’m also more comfortable working within the media combination of watercolor and gouache. I’m resisting the urge to get out my acrylics or the gouache as I’m not in the mode to do something comfortable right now. It does not make sense to me in this quarantine time.
Week 3
April 15 - 21, 2020
Week 4
April 22 - 28, 2020
For the month of May I decided to do 4 pieces instead of 7 each week. The number was more enjoyable and I also had sometime to develop some of my other pieces that I feel more ready to work on. In the future I might move 2 pieces a week instead of 4. I’m currently feeling scatterbrained with so many things in process in my studio. I need to focus on one or two things. I don’t think I can do this project and my other work at the same time so that is an issue for me.
Sharing some images, although I consider these warm ups or preparatory works and not necessarily finished pieces. Experimenting is an important part of being an artist as it can lead to new directions. I thought it might be nice to share some of these images since normally I would not. I think they represent my willingness to try new things even if I might make mistakes and fall down. Being an artist is a constant push and pull between doubt and belief. I’m excited about beginning the next week of experiments and look forward to sharing on instagram stories and on my blog. Stay tuned!
Week 5
April 29 - May 5, 2020
Week 6
May 6 - May 12, 2020
Week 7
May 13 - 19, 2020
Week 8
May 20 - 26
