Beginning of March Check-in
I’m back from my trip home to Pennsylvania, and I feel refreshed. I think I hit a bit of a lull at the end of last month, recovering from a cold and feeling done with the dreary winter weather. Since my return to the Bay, the weather’s been warmer and the days are distinctly longer, so spring feels right around the corner and it’s reinvigorating. I also had the chance to meet with my former art professor when I visited Swarthmore; we had a really encouraging conversation, and he shared some artists, like Catherine Murphy and Winslow Homer, who I should look at to help me with my paintings. So I checked out a bunch of library books that will help me move forward with developing my painting technique and skills, and I feel re-inspired by my paintings.
What I’ve been working on:
I finished my part of the large collaborative piece for the summer group show just in time before my trip to Pennsylvania. I didn’t love pushing through my cold to get the work done, but sometimes things just need to get done. Moving forward, I hope to feel more positive about the work that I’m doing for this group show, because overall, I’m very excited that I was invited to be a part of a group show at a museum. I think sometimes, in the moment, the work can feel burdensome when I lose sight of enjoying the process and instead only focus on the outcomes.
I need to get back to painting Morning Swim. I want to submit this painting to a juried show that has an upcoming deadline. After spending almost two weeks of time away from the painting, I feel more confident about my ability to fix the value problem in the painting, and finishing it on time doesn’t seem as daunting as it did before my trip.
This past weekend, I installed a four piece commissioned work of orchids in their forever home. I started this commission back in 2023, and there was a lot of back and forth and waiting time as the client was undergoing home renovations at the same time. We finally were able to schedule a time we were both free for the install, and they absolutely love how the pieces came out. They had this specific corner for the pieces in mind when they initially commissioned the painting, and it was a great feeling to see their vision come to life! Seeing the look of joy on the client’s face reminded me why commissioned pieces are so rewarding.
I’m starting to practice still life and figure drawing. I feel like I need to go back to the basics and develop those skills a little more, because I think it’ll make me more confident in my compositions and painting. I’m going to dedicate more studio time to practicing and developing skills, so I’m limiting my painting focus to one or two paintings at a time.
Outings
Part of my visit to Pennslyvania including supporting my friend and fellow Swarthmore alum, Meredith Leich, on her show Arborlight at Swarthmore. I met Meredith during the Cuttyhunk Island residency, where she is co-director. I learned a lot about producing a show of a temporary art installation. Meredith works with light projections of line drawings she films in stop-motion, and Arborlight focuses on the lives of trees. We also talked shop about our arts practices and how we can continue to improve and grow as artists, which is part of the motivation behind me wanting to spend more time focusing and practicing drawing. I’ve shied away from figure and portrait drawing, mostly because it’s a skill I haven’t ever worked on or practiced, but I think it’s time for new thinking and growth for me. I didn’t like feeling so stuck at the end of last month, so trying out something new feels exciting.
Upon returning to the Bay Area, I spent two full days at elementary schools supporting the Art Docents of Los Gatos, a non-profit org I volunteer at, with their Guest Artist visits. A local mixed media artist, Rayos Magos, gave presentations at the schools, talking to elementary schools about what it means to be an artist and introducing them to a variety of different types of art. After hearing him repeat his presentation 15 times, it really stuck with me the importance of trying out different styles of art and mediums to help you grow as an artist. It falls in line with my takeaways from my visit back to Pennsylvania, so it feels really ingrained in my thinking right now.
Those are all my updates for this week. I feel like I made a couple of breakthroughs. I didn’t realize how demotivated I felt before my trip back home, so I’m glad that I was able to take a week to step away from my regular day to day to reflect. Plus it helps that it’s warmer, sunnier, and the days are longer, so I feel quite a bit more positive. I hope you are doing well and staying healthy. Thanks for following along!
