Creation of a Phoenix ~ Part One

Part One: The beginning
I must confess.  I've been holding out on all of you.  I started this painting back in April and didn't actually finish it till the first week of November.  I didn't realize it had taken me so long to paint this Phoenix, but........... I guess it did. Apparently I am a slow painter! :-)
It is 24"x36" the largest painting I've done in about 2 years.
Of course I am going to tease you a bit before I unveil the finished painting.  It took me 6 months to paint.  I can't share the full monty right off the bat.  That just wouldn't be fair.
This piece took me about 3 weeks of sketching and decision making, such as what size canvas to use before any paint touched the canvas.
Starting with a clean palette and my favorite colors of paint. I picked up my beloved palette knife, crossed my fingers and hope for the best.  Starting with the eye (yes, I always start with the eye) I put down a mark of paint, stopped thinking and let the muse take over. It is usually best for me to stop thinking.  Thinking just gets in the way and reeks all sorts of havoc!
With that, this is where I shall leave you hanging till the next post.  Which hopefully won't take me 6 months to write. LOL

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dRAgon

dRAgon
8"x16" Original Oil on Archival Panel
Click Here for a Closer Look

When I sat in front of this blank canvas

 I honestly had no idea what I was going to paint,
except for two things. I knew I wanted an "eye" and 

these colors.
Which are completely out of my normal palatte,
but I LOVE these colors and have been

wanted to use them in a painting.

Once I got the Eye painted,
I just let my inner muse take over.
I didn't think,
I just doodled.
Not long into the painting
my second muse, aka my husband said to me,
that reminds me of RA.
My response was, what is RA?
I had no clue about this symbol 
but apparently muse #2 did.
I didn't look up the symbol till after I was 
finished painting.

I definitely see where he was coming from.
It also feels like a dragon o me.
Hence the name dRAgon.

I found the description of RA 
in wikipedia to be quite interesting.  

identified primarily with the midday sun. The meaning of the name is uncertain, but it is thought that if not a word for 'sun' it may be a variant of or linked to words meaning 'creative power' 

Those of you who know me and follow my art,

know that I have an innate connection with the sun

and that I feel it gives me creative power. 

So I see it as only natural that my muse 
would have me paint 
a symbol that has a connection to the sun.

Thanks for letting me share my art with you.

Cheers!

Collage from 30 Days of Painting

Original Oils Paintings from 30 days of painting
Click for a Closer Look

The paintings that were created during the January
challenge of 30 Days of Painting.  
Not only do I LOVE painting daily, which is something I already knew but,
it is also essential to my mental health 
and emotional well being.  
Over time I began to become aware that with each passing day that I don't paint my grumpy and moodiness increase.
When I find myself in a testy mood or feeling antsy and restless
I know it's time to get my butt into the studio and paint!  
So the smart thing for me to do IS paint daily.  
My husband appreciates it when I paint daily as well. LOL

Someone asked me the other day if all my paintings are successful?
The answer to that is absolutely NOT.  
I actually worked on 3 other paintings in January that are not pictured.
One is "finished" but I am not happy with it so will be delegated to the
"well that didn't work pile."
One is in the unfinished object pile and may or may not get worked on again. 
And the third one I just finished a few days ago, so I
consider it to be a February painting. 
The point being is that not every painting has to be a perfect one.  
Just being in the studio painting and doing what one
Loves to do is all that matters.  

Let me know what you think?
Thanks for spending a few moments of your time with me and as
always I Love having my Art Shared with other. 

30 days of Painting ~ Day 1

"Untitled"
8"x8" Original Oil painting
To View the Heart of My Art
Click Here 

A fellow artist has put out a challenge to do 

30 paintings in 30 days 

to start off the New Year. 

Originally I was not going to do this challenge as I am 

NOT a paint a painting in a day person.  

However, the point of the challenge is more to get yourself back into the studio

and paint daily.  So I am challenging myself to paint

daily for the next 30 days.  

To get things started off I turned to my friend and favorite subject to paint

The Sun

No matter what mood I am in, or how non-creative I am feeling

I can Always manage to paint the Sun. 

So for Day One, I did manage to do a painting in a day.

Since I wasn't planning on doing the challenge I hadn't 

prepped my website for links and such. 

Please bear with me while I put on the computer geek hat and provide 

you with better links to view these challenge paintings

in larger versions. 

Also,

since I have no title for this painting, if something comes to mind please

either post a comment on Facebook or leave your suggestion in the

Comment Box below. 

Sun "Storm" for the Winter Solstice

Storm
6"x6" on Archival Board
Available unframed or framed
For a Larger View, Click Here

 I've been in a creative Funk!
Partly because the days are short and my energy is low.
Partly because I've been
learning/teaching myself to paint glass and
none are suitable for viewing yet.

When I am in a Really BIG creative Funk I turn to painting the Sun.
I don't know what it is about the Sun?
But it is the one thing that I can sit down and start off the same
way every time and just let them flow out of me.
Each one comes out in it's own unique way and I never have
a clue as to what it is really going to look like
until the muse says to me I am finished.
They don't take me very long to do and they are quite relaxing to paint.
I Love their fiery color and the wonderful texture they get
due to my use of the palette knife.

As we get closer to the winter solstice
and deep in the dark of the longest night.
Sing to the newborn Sun
and may this fiery Sun Storm warm you from within.

Please feel free to hang out in the warmth and fiery energy of this sun 
and then pass it along to someone else
who might be in the need of it's energy as well.