End of November Check-in
It’s hard to believe that it’ll be December in a little over a week. I’m slowly getting back into the rhythm of going into the studio regularly, but it’s still been a bit challenging. I’m not sure if it’s the cold weather or the short days, but I’ve been working from home a lot recently.
What I’m working on:
I am pretty much finished with my painting of the Cuttyhunk Island oyster ponds. I think this painting has been a signal to transition my focus of my paintings from minute details to broader landscapes and dynamic skies. It inspired me to look through all of the photos on my phone and collect the ones of skies with interesting clouds, colors, and shapes. I’m planning on painting a collection of smaller framed works that focus on dynamic shapes and colors based on the sky, so hopefully more will come soon on this project!
I’m making progress on my last close-up seashell painting. I need to work on the highlights and shadows, but overall, I think it’s pretty much there!
Since I’ve been working from home a lot, I painted another abstract watercolor painting on one of the two remaining aqua board panels I had ordered for the project. It’s a nice way to think about color and work on something different from the oil paintings I typically do. I was able to finish the painting this week, so I just have to varnish and frame it.
Overall, I’m trying to work on fewer projects at a time. I’ve been reading Slow Productivity by Cal Newport and the first principle is “Do fewer things”. So I’m trying to put that into practice by actively working on fewer projects. I have a lot of ideas and unfinished things I want to work on, but I’m trying to remind myself that I can get to the other projects once I finish the ones that I’ve decided to work on now. Focusing on fewer things has alleviated some mental and logistical burden that I usually feel when I’m trying to accomplish too many things at once.
One more thing that I wanted to share this week is that I can officially share my commissioned painting for Swarthmore College’s 2025 calendar. I was commissioned this painting over the summer, and last week the calendars have been officially mailed out. It’s really exciting to see my artwork in print and to know that so many people will be able to see my work. It was also really neat to see a couple of my alum friends’ artworks featured in the calendar. I’m glad that I had the opportunity to create a painting for my school’s calendar and share a meaningful place to me through art.
