Art for art’s sake is one of those things that I gave up to become a mom. I’ve occasionally designed things for websites and lessons or logos or other applications, but designing is not the same as making art. Design usually has a practical reason, and while it is fun, usually someone told you what to make. There are are parameters and a client to satisfy when you design something. Art, to me, is just for fun — none gets to tell me something is right or wrong. I just make something and if it’s trash I can toss it. If it’s fun I can keep it.
I tried painting a new LMA kit called Daisy Delight yesterday. It did not go well. The second attempt wasn’t much better, but I definitely learned some things. I got up this morning and tried again. Attempt three was also pretty bad.
Here’s what the key image looked like. As you can see, I was not hitting it out of the park:
For the fourth attempt, I spent a little more time sketching out my flowers and working on my composition instead of just copying the tutorial. I also decided to step outside the tutorial and wash behind the flowers first, and add in the purple flowers later. I added in more layers of leaves and focused on my shadows more closely. Wow! I love the way it turned out! It’s my work now.
One of the things I really like about LMA is that in every box they include a postcard made of watercolor paper for you to paint on. The post card is addressed to someone who could use a pick me up. This month it’s for the family of a Sherriff’s deputy who died in the line of duty. I am not a great painter by any stretch, but it’s nice to feel like I can bring a little joy to someone else. Here’s the postcard I painted:
I am really enjoying painting. Jared and Sydney are so encouraging, too. Today I put my painting up on Instagram because I was so proud of it. This is good for my soul.
