Beginning of October Check-In
I can’t believe two weeks have passed since my last check-in. It feels like time has flown and I haven’t done that much. I’ll just get right to what I’ve been working on and maybe I’ll feel differently about how much I’ve done in the last two weeks.
What I’ve been working on:
I've officially finished my series of 12 Ocean Perspectives paintings, which means I’ve finished painting them, signed them, varnished them, framed them, and added them to my website. If you want early access to the paintings tomorrow, make sure you’re signed up for my Collector’s Club mailing list here. Otherwise, the paintings will be available to everyone else this Friday, October 143th at 10am PT. Framed paintings are a new thing and I think that they look really good in the floater frames I picked out for them.
For the California Highway series, I think I’m done painting the large painting of a panoramic view of the coastline and the moody painting of a spot on 17 mile drive that I mentioned in my last update. Those are paintings 8 and 9 of the collection. I do have a 10th painting that I’ve started, but I think I’m going to put that painting on hold. I’m going to use seven of the paintings from the California HIghway One painting to apply to a gallery art call that is due October 22nd. I need to name most of the paintings in this collection, which I’m quite unoriginal at. I also need to start writing the brief artist statement (300 words) for the application.
I’ve started a new painting attempting to capture ripples on a lake surface. I underestimated how difficult this painting would be, so it’s been a little frustrating. I’m hoping to submit this painting to another art call that’s due October 20th, so I have to work diligently to make sure I make the submission deadline. I probably should have started the painting earlier than I did, since I had known about the art call for over a month. But it took me a while to think of a painting that would fit the exhibition’s theme, so it is what it is. Wish me luck as I work through this one!
Outside of the studio, in addition to training to be an art docent volunteer for the Los Gatos school district, I’ve also started volunteering for a local arts and culture leaders network organization called genARTS (the organization that hosted one of the exhibitions I participated in). I’m working to build the organization’s membership program to strengthen the network of emerging arts and culture leaders in Silicon Valley. I’ve been getting along well with the other volunteers and I’m excited to be volunteering with them because it’s also been helping me expand my local artist network.
I realize in the past month-ish, I’ve been putting a lot more on my plate, but I find that it’s been very helpful in keeping me motivated. I’m saying yes to things that align with my values and goals for my art career/business (In my Business of Art course, we spent a week on writing out of core values, personally and professionally and I’m really applying the advice that your core values should be guiding your decisions and what you say yes or no to). I also know that I’m someone who thrives under the stress of competing priorities (still unclear if that’s a good or bad thing, but that’s what it is for now). I think things will start slowing down by the middle of November, after SF open studios. I’m hoping in December, I’ll have time to reflect and do a retrospective on the year and share with you my findings. But until then, there will be a few more lengthy bi-weekly updates like this. As always, I would love to hear your thoughts via comments or emails or your texts to me. Thanks for following along!
