Went to life drawing again last night, and was able to stay for the full 2 1/2 hour session this time. I was amazed at my ability to sit still and work on a single drawing for a whole hour. I still have some work to do, but got some good quick sketches and one longer gouache I was happy with. Again, having an excellent model really helps.

The interview revolves around both my artwork and the role of art-making in my own recovery from postpartum depression. The blog is dedicated to telling womens stories, often through their artwork, and Janyce is a fantastic writer, storyteller, and womens' advocate.

Enjoy.

But, I was just browsing Amazon for "kids cameras" as I'd love to get a child-proof one for the Bug for Christmas. Why, oh why, are they all color coded and gendered? There are pink cameras "for girls" and blue cameras or cameras festooned with Pixar Cars or Pirates of the Carribean "for boys." IT'S A FUCKING CAMERA. If there is ANY gender-neutral pastime on the planet, it ought to be taking pictures. It's bad enough that it's nearly impossible to buy your child a bicycle that doesn't loudly and colorfully announce their gender (and therefore appropriate color scheme and level of decorative adornment) but I'd love to buy one goddamn thing that comes in colors other than blue and pink. I thought we'd moved beyond this. I thought girls could be anything they wanted, not just ballerinas or fairy princesses. I thought that, being a responsible parent and encouraging imaginative, creative, and open-ended play was enough. Well, apparently that has to be gendered too.

I really, really, really hate it. Obviously we all know that boys and girls are different, but do we really have to accentuate it to such an absurd degree at such a young age?

/rant.

But the second in the series has been such a struggle.

I don't want it to be just a pretty flower painting; I wanted something unsettling to show through, but I feel like it's not there. There are a couple of details I really like, just from a formal point of view:

Not sure where I'm going with this. But, I think it's time to just move on to the next one.

I'm saved, vindicated, thrilled, whatever.

Got my third juried show application off this morning, so now I can relax a little. The painting just plain didn't happen this past weekend, due to Unforseen Circumstances Beyond My Control and really really nice weather that made me think "hm. We won't have many more days like this. I should be outdoors."

And, I actually made it to life drawing last night. The model was fantastic. I had double-booked myself, so only stayed until 8pm which means I ended after the 20-minute poses, but it was still a really enjoyable 90 minutes.

(I apologize for the glare from the flash, but I wasn't about to get the tripod out this morning)

...I did have some success with a quickie I worked on in the same stretch. Although it is still pretty rough, there are two things that really pleased me about this little canvas. First, I nailed the color. Second, I was working quickly and using matte medium, and I really feel like I got an oil look/feel to the acrylics. Hooray for getting my mojo back!

Since I've been being more art-y lately, I've been pining for some life drawing. I used to be friends with enough of the sorts of people who were up for anything that I could usually convince one of them to shed their clothes for my entirely artistic needs. These days I figure I have to rely more on the Paid Model situation for such situations. And I finally found open studio model drawing here in town. Well, on the outskirts.

The disappointment is that I got there tonight, for the first time, only to find that the class was canceled due to an ongoing workshop. But I did meet a member of the organization and get a little tour. The place is called the Art Barn, and there's a small organic farm on the premises, but the barn has been converted to artists' studio space. They hold various workshops and classes through the year, many of the traditional watercolor-type persuasion, but there's definitely some professional talent hanging around. There are also chickens wandering about freely, and it's just a beautiful area. Having the smell of oil paint hit my nostrils was like... well, you know that first whiff of coffee in the morning? It was that good.

So, next week, then. Drawing from the model always really helped train my eye and ramp up my drawing ability a bit, and I could use it now. Hopefully I'll have some results to post soon!

And I thought I'd try my hand at ACEOs (Art Cards, Editions and Originals), which are little 2.5 x 3.5" pieces that are all the rage on Etsy, the idea being that you can buy prints or originals by your favorite artists to display and collect, for under $10 in many cases. Making these little things is addictive...

In any case, a little bit of cheer did come my way this loud, loud weekend, in the form of being the featured artist on the Etsy Indiana Street Team blog. link here.

Not much else new. More family in town, which is mostly a good thing, and plans for a girls' weekend all to myself in Bloomington coming up. Look out central and southern Indiana!!!