# 14......clearing the clutter

This getting in to the studio every day is so much easier this time. I think it is a mindset and the fact that this year I had chosen all the reference material ahead of time. Although i haven't stuck to keeping it simple, I am somehow having more enjoyment in the process.It could be that I am in the mode of 'cleaning out'..........you know, lessening the clutter. Not just the physical but the mental clutter.

I have been fortunate in recent years to travel a great deal and have some wonderful experiences with fellow artists. As I always have my camera and am gathering reference photos, I have accumulated a great deal. Many have stuck in my head for a painting, a series, a competition....you know what I mean! Anyway, I have been paring down my closets, Christmas decorations, just STUFF!

It feels wonderful to start putting some of those finally down on canvas and getting rid of some of the clutter in my mind. I think the fear of failure is my worst enemy. I am trying to get beyond that and if a painting is a failure, that's okay. It just puts me that much closer to the next good one.

Using the same surface for a number of paintings in a row is also teaching me a thing or two. I am growing in my knowledge of what surfaces work best for me and my statement.

Although I need to go back and tweek a thing or two, not a bad effort for today....

               #14   Sunflower Bonnet

             12 x 12" oil on panel NFS

# 10................30 paintings in 30 days 2013

This discipline of getting to the studio might finally be working like I was hoping. It has motivated me and by just 'doing the work', I have excercised my right brain enough that it is now correctly in the mode of'  " how can I best tell the story I have to tell ?  ".

So today, I started one that has been percolating in my mind for quite some time; part of a series. The problem was mostly fear of failure, but also sometimes an idea just needs to set on the shelf until it's time.

So I chose to start with just a wash of oil color to get me started and that really was part of the solution. Not only did it get me beyond that 'white canvas syndrome', it set the mood for the less importrant background. The shapes were very necessary but I needed them to stay quiet so the foreground could speak. I am very happy with the result!

                                                        #10......Straw Visor with Flower
                                                   12 x 12" oil on canvas (mounted to wood panel)
                                                                        NFS

Thanks so much for viewing my art.......comments are always welcome..........Ruth Ann