Painting tonight

I decided to paint a self-portrait tonight. DJ is (way) out of town & Pumpkin is fast asleep. We are supposed to have violent storms tonight, so I listened to the thunder and waited for Pumpkin to wake up or a tree to fall on the house. Luckily DJ took the camera with her--otherwise I may have been tempted to photograph and post it here. I look suspicious. I don't know if that is because I doubt my intentions or my competency, or if it because I was thinking about all the other things I should be doing other than painting. I should be doing dishes, I should be folding laundry, I should be sweeping the floor, I should be cleaning the counters, I should be cleaning out the tub, I should be picking up my bedroom, I should be getting my lunch ready for tomorrow, I should be composting those over-ripe strawberries, I should be getting a better job, I should be doing yoga, I should be cleaning the toilets. I should get some sleep.

My dear DJ

acrylic on canvas

More orange. I painted this last night while DJ was watching TV. I listened to Bizet's Carmen on my iPod while I painted so that I wouldn't talk to her instead of painting. Still, painting her is difficult in the same way that it is difficult to draw Pumpkin. Even though DJ can sit still for much longer, I tend to assume I know everything about her face.

Compulsion

Pumpkin has been demanding that I "Draw Pumpkin! Draw Pumpkin!" Here is one of the results. Of course, although this model was very enthusiastic, she wasn't very still. Her wiggling was not my primary difficulty. How do I draw a face I love so well?

Here are some drawings I made in cafes in Paris. Everyone looks at people in cafes, but I felt a bit self-concious publicly drawing. The first one is just un type, but the second is my dear DJ.

Empty Landscape

This is a work in progress. I ran out of cadmium yellow paint and the only red I have is Grumbacher Academy Acrylic cadmium red. It actually contains cadmium which is a carcinogen when inhaled. I have been buying Utrecht Artist Colors paint without cadmium and I may be paranoid, but I feel better about painting with it in the house. I also love the texture of the Utrecht paint and the Grumbacher paint seems rather thin.

Bobo!

Here is little doodle of Bobo using a brush pen.

Twenty minute poses

Here is a series of paintings I did in Eula Ginsburg's class. I had a tough time photographing them. My addiction to gloss medium has made it very difficult to avoid lots of glare. Speaking of addiction, orange is a cruel mistress. I feel like I broke orange's plate glass windows and I have to work to pay it back.

Acrylic on paper

Acrylic on canvas board

Acrylic on paper

Acrylic on paper (detail)

Acrylic on paper