Two More Sunflowers

Two Sunflowers (c)2011 Dora Sislian Themelis
14×20 Watercolor on Lanaquarelle paperr

Motivation comes in strange ways. I need to have my painting implements staring me in the face to be able to feel like working on the art. After reading everything I have, and taken the great workshop last weekend, what is it with the resistance?

I must admit making painting a daily habit is working more than not working. At least I know in the back of my mind I have painting to do. At some point in my day it will happen. There is no such thing as painting all day long. No such thing. You just have to try to go to the studio, or the dining room table, and get to work.

There are a few more sunflower photographs I have at the ready. This is another that I started painting. Here is the progression from sketch to dropping in color. I allowed myself those precious twenty minutes of time and stopped.

Twenty minutes of painting time is the best thing I ever started doing. I get to paint every day, sort of, and stop myself before I make a mess of things. Rather than get bogged down in detail, which was my hallmark, I know I don’t have too much time so I am use brush strokes and color to say what I need to say.

I could have stopped at this session, but I felt that the work needed just one more go to make me feel as if the painting was finished. Each time after the paint dried I felt different about my work. Something about how the paper flattened back down, how the colors looked, gave me confidence I was on the right track.

If I had kept on going past the twenty minutes I might have had to throw it out, as I have done before. I am master of my domain! Yeah, right.