Equine #11

Equine #11 / 12x12 / oil on canvas panel

Trying desperately to break out of my painting slump, I decided to revert to the leaping equine series. I had stopped at #10 and so, today, #11 has appeared. I am hoping that getting back to a familiar subject will shake up my painter's brain a bit and allow me to feel some comfort with brush and canvas again.

Drawings, But, Sadly, No Paintings

"Painting is easy when you don't know how, but very difficult when you do." Edgar Degas

Having recovered from my virus, I am now trying to recover from doldrums at the easel. It's not that I have not been painting - in fact, I paint almost every day. It's just that I am so unhappy with myself right now. These things that are emerging from my brush - the strokes, the lines, the color, even the subject matter - are not mine. I have wiped them all off for fear that someone might think I have painted them - that would be horrible!

And so I will show you my drawings from this morning. At least I know that I drew them!

Constance / Sienna Conte on white sketch paper /17x14

Constance / graphite and white charcoal on tan toned paper / 14x11 

My throat is dry, my nose is red, I have a cold inside my head......

A week of cold, congestion, coughing and sleepless nights. Ugh - something miserable I caught during my trip to Los Angeles and have had a hard time beating.

I did manage to drag myself to this mornings portrait session to draw the lovely, young Ashley.

And the portrait from last weeks short session - Willow.

Now off I go to wrap myself in a warm throw (its rainy and cold here today with new snow on the mountain tops), drink some hot tea and read the Degas biography that I started a while back.