Day 30 and Final! Annecy River and Taylor

Oil on Paper - Approximately 9x12
NFS

I'm so glad this is the final day of the challenge. I'm also so happy that I did 30 paintings in 30 days, wow, what a challenge (for me anyway). I did like the fact that I painted a lot more than I would in a normal month. The thought of having to post a painting for each day was so nerve racking that I didn't want to get too much behind or it would have been impossible to catch up. I even painted when I was sick...that tells you something! What I found most challenging was to have a final "as good as it gets" painting every day. I would normally take a couple of days to think about anything I wanted to change in a painting before I would call it final. To get through that, I decided to take the pressure off after a couple of weeks and started painting on paper. That meant two things: first, I wasn't going to sell it so I was free to experiment, not take it so seriously and have fun; second, I wasn't wasting a canvas so who cares if it's not a masterpiece? The next day would be better!

This painting is from a picture my sister took in Annecy, France a couple of year ago. I've been meaning to paint it for ever! I also tweaked the painting of Taylor a little bit, see below.

Day 29 - Taylor I

Oil on Paper - 8x8
NFS

I worked on this today but still want to work on it some more tomorrow. It's a study of my daughter from last year. One more day in this challenge! What a month, very productive and I feel so good about all the practice I've gotten!

Day 28 - St. Remy

Oil on Paper - Approximately 18x20
NFS

I worked on this scene before. I want to make a really big painting of it so I did a study this morning on paper. I like working on paper as it lets me be more carefree since I'm not using a canvas and expecting to put it up for sale but at the same time it ends up being a little bigger than what I wanted to paint this morning!

This is from St. Remy in Provence, France from a couple year ago. Beautiful estate turned hotel that we stayed at. The path to the hotel lined with trees was just gorgeous! I understand why so many painters went to Provence, the colors are amazing.

Day 27 - Barjols

Oil on 12x24 Paper
NFS

I finished the Barjols painting today. Only 3 more days and the challenge will be over!!

Day 26 - Barjols Part 1

Oil on Paper - Approximately 8x8
NFS

This is only part of a 12x24 painting I've been working on all day. There's still a lot to be done and I didn't want to rush through it so I decided to post a part as my daily painting. This is the upper left hand corner and it's pretty done but I may touch it up before the painting is final. Hope everyone had a great weekend!

Both my kids had the stomach bug yesterday and I hope my husband and I don't get it...crossing my fingers! Thank goodness, they're both better today....this winter has been brutal for sicknesses...I hope all of you are staying healthy!

Day 25 - By Vermeer

Oil on Paper - 12x12
NFS

I was inspired the other day by Azra Iqbal to copy the work of a master to get practice. I decided yesterday to do this one by Vermeer and worked on it all day. It's definitely not as good as the original but I enjoyed just working on the strokes and seeing what he originally did.

Day 24 - Barn

Oil on Paper - 9x12
NFS

This is the view from the back of my house. I know I've painted this barn in the past and I'm constantly looking at the row of trees in the background...it looks so different depending on the weather, time of year, or time of day.

Day 23 - Barjols II

Oil on Paper about 9x12
NFS

I haven't decided what size the final painting will be. I think I'll go with a big one such as a 16x20. It's interesting painting on paper for these studies, the paper soaks the oil paint up and it almost feels dry very quickly.

Day 23!  It's been hard at times to keep up with Leslie Saeta's 30 paintings in 30 day challenge but I have learned something very important:  even if you don't feel like painting right then, still go to the studio and start painting!  It's amazing how quickly you start enjoying the process!  I probably won't keep up the weekend painting as much but I think 5 paintings a week will be a good number after the challenge.  How about you guys?

Day 22 - Barjols I

Oil on Paper
NFS

This is the first study for a painting I want to do of Barjols, a small town in Provence, France.

Day 21 - Cup

Oil on paper
NFS

I hadn't been able to paint for a few days so I caught up today doing some studies for a painting I want to do soon. Worked on 3 paintings on paper today.

Day 20 - Hand Sketch

Day 19 - Hand III

Oil on 6x6 wrap canvas
NFS

Day 18 - Hand II

Oil on 8x8 Wrap Canvas
Click here to purchase this painting

Worked on a couple more hands these last few days.  They seem to be getting harder to do but at the same time a little looser which I like.  Not sure if I'm done with those yet, I'll see how I feel tomorrow!

Day 17 - Hand and Paintbrush

Oil on 6x6 Wrap Canvas
Click here to purchase this painting

I painted my hand again but I learned my lesson from the day before and I took a snapshot of it with my phone so that when my hand got tired or I needed to back up and inspect my painting, I could then go back to the snapshot and finish it that way.

Day 16 - Hand

Oil on 6x6 wrap canvas
Click here to purchase this painting

I never thought how hard it would be to hold my hand out and paint it.  It seemed easy enough when I started yesterday but after half an hour of having my hand extended to the side and not able to move it, it got very tiring!  I've been wanting to do some studies of flesh so I started with a hand and may do a few more...

We're over the hump of this 30 day challenge!  It's been great so far, tough but so glad I've stuck with it.  Definitely forces me to get down to my studio and paint something and not wait for extreme inspiration to hit me.

Day 15 - Amaryllis Still-Life IV

Oil on 8x10 wrap canvas
Click here to purchase this painting

I wasn't going to do another flower today but I went in my studio and another flower had bloomed and it was just so pretty I had to paint it again.

I did go on to do another painting afterwards so I'm good for tomorrow! This has definitely been a challenge to do a painting a day and I'm so glad I stuck with it. Half way done!

Day 14 - Amaryllis Still-Life III

Oil on 8x8 wrap canvas
Click here to purchase this painting

 I've enjoyed painting this flower the past few days. I think I may move on to something new tomorrow but I do like forcing myself to stick with one subject a few days in a row...makes you look at it in different ways and try new things to make each painting its own.

Day 13 - Amaryllis Still-Life II

Oil on 8x8 wrap canvas
Click here to purchase this painting

I painted a smaller one of the flower today. It's funny, this is a much smaller painting but I struggled with it more...maybe because it was a close-up.

Hope everyone is having a great Monday!

Day 12 - Flower Still-Life

Oil on 16x20 Wrap Canvas
Donated

We were given this beautiful flower as a New Year's Eve present. The flowers just opened the past couple of days and they're so beautiful! I spent all day on this painting and I may do a few more small studies of it.

Day 11 - Lemons!

Oil on 6x6 wrap canvas
SOLD

I'm finally feeling almost back to normal. It was a pretty bad cold...haven't had a fever in years! I got to the studio late today so it was dark outside and I had the hardest time seeing the colors on my palette! It's really hard to adjust your eyes to painting at night and I'm just wondering what some of you do when you paint at night?

Hope everyone is having a great weekend and thank you for all of you taking time to comment, I really love hearing what you have to say and knowing that we're all painting and in this together!

Day 10 - Three Lemons

Oil on 8x10 wrap canvas
Click here to purchase this painting

I really tried making the lemons today a little looser and I think it worked.  It doesn't come naturally to me, I almost have to go back once the painting is almost done and loosen it up!

Day 9 - Lemon with Bowl

Oil on 8x8 wrap canvas
Click here to purchase this painting

Doing a painting a day is certainly a challenge...I've liked the fact that I force myself to paint and once I'm in the process I enjoy it but it's definitely taking a lot of time!
I find that it's easier to keep the subject simple and explore different ways to look at that subject.

Day 8 of 30 Day Challenge - Lemon 2

Oil on 6x6 wrap canvas
SOLD

Day 7 of 30 Day Challenge - Lemon 1

Oil on 6x6 wrap canvas
SOLD

I was able to get up a paint a little bit today but still not feeling up to 100%...this cold really got me down! Kept it simple today...lemons!

Day 6 of 30 Day Challenge - Reflections

Oil on 10x8 Wrap Canvas
Click here to purchase this painting

Finished my painting for the day and now I'm going to lie down and make this cold go away....I meant to paint a couple paintings to get ahead but just don't feel up to it. Maybe tomorrow!

Day 5 of 30 Day Challenge - Beaufort

Acrylic on 12x16 Wrap Canvas
SOLD

I didn't have time to paint yesterday...Sunday is a busy day with the family, so I'm posting a commission that I finished just a few days ago.

Day 4 of 30 Day Challenge - It's a Red Pepper!

Oil on 6x6 wrap canvas
Click here to purchase this painting

I was trying to do something simple today but still had to wipe my first try. Then I decided to do a red pepper and my 9 year old son came over and asked me if I was doing a tomato...I told him it's a red pepper! Hence the title...

Day 3 of 30 Day Challenge - Path of Lavender

Oil on 8x8 Wrap Canvas
Click here to purchase this painting

Well here's to day 3!  I've been wanting to paint this scene for a long time now.  I had taken the picture a couple years ago in Provence and just never got around to it.  This was in St. Remy, we saw the lavender bushes and had to go and take pictures.  I think it probably lead to someone's house...nice!

Day 2 of 30 Day Challenge - A scene from Germany

Oil on 8x8 wrap canvas
Click here to purchase this painting

Here's my 2nd painting of the 30 paintings in 30 days challenge! This is a picture I took in Germany a few weeks ago. A nice view of vineyards from up high.

Day 1 of 30 Day Challenge

Oil on 8x8 Wrap Canvas

Today is the first day of Leslie Saeta's 30 day challenge:  paint 30 paintings in 30 days and have fun!  I wasn't sure what to paint this morning so I decided to paint what was outside my studio window...lots of snow and overcast sky (although now the sun is out).