I finally came up with some names for the new abstracts. The first one I was unsure of but was reluctant to put rocks on. It was so nice on its own. The same for the second. Its just a matter of naming them. I’m so bad with naming things. Usually I just get a bit of lyric of someones conversation on the bus or tv news of possibly a show if I’ve actually got the tv on. Something out of a book. I just open a book and look at the page. This first one was a bit harder but eventually I came up with “Meditations in Green” because it has a lot of greenish tone to it and also because it seems very, I don’t know, buddha-ish to me? Maybe that’s not what I really mean. But it’s as close as I’m going to be able to get.

Meditations in green
Acrylic on panel
16 x 12



And the second one. I’ve decided it’s finished just the way it is. Maybe abstract is my new direction. Although I have not give up on the rocks or the childlike collages. Just adding to them. I like the abstracted backgrounds. So maybe this is not even adding to it. Just stopping before I’ve finished? So here is the second one…..

Dreaming of me

acrylic on 1.5” cradled hardboard
8 x 8

Last night I stayed home. What I did was what I usually do on holidays. Nothing much. I painted quite a bit. finished two rock paintings, declared another abstract ‘done’ and started a background that I don’t know what I’ll do with it.  I hate having so much work in progress. But at the same time I can never have just one painting going at a time. NEVER. No no. I take that back. I have my times I don’t paint at all. Sometimes that lasts for a month or two. Depending on how burned out I am. Burnout or depression.
Surprisingly enough I am doing well this winter. Perhaps my ‘celebrate nothing, stress about nothing’ strategy is working out well for me. I think, with the exception of the grocery store, I managed to not listen to a single full christmas song this year. Not one that sticks in my mind. I avoided shopping and got in and out at the grocery store as fast as I could. I was not subjected to all the stress everyone else willingly puts themselves through every year. And today, on New Years Day, I feel pretty good about the whole season.

So for new years eve I finished up two paintings and started another. I have one other that the background is finished, and I need to finish with rocks or something, and the one I declared ‘done’ I need to figure out if I am for sure done or not. So I’m going to sit here having a hot chocolate and posting this, putting off all the other stuff I should be doing. Trying to warm back up. I had a smoothie earlier that made me cold. 

So the first one, “mentor”  (I don’t like that name and will be changing it later) I just started and finished pretty quick. less than a day a half. Not bad time. Its 12 x 12 on panel.

This second one, “what you get” ......  This one has been sitting with the background done since around September or so. I just haven’t bothered to finish the rocks off until now. time to clear out all the old work, like I should.

What you get

acrylic on panel
12 x 12