Nothing can replace practice and sweat.  I'm realizing that more and more lately.  It's not easy and there's no shortcuts.  Always working from life and trying my best.

  I had my watercolor class tonight and I brought in some of my paintings for my students to see.  One of my students really liked the watercolor that's pictured below.  I told him that I set up a christmas cactus in some sunlight because the cactus had just bloomed and I only got to work on it for about 10 - 15 minutes before the sunlight disappeared.  I started the painting boldly and by squinting and it actually came out really well.
  I like to work free from "techniques", but I have tested the value of squinting at the beginning of the painting process and I find it extremely valuable in my own practice.  Squinting enables a certain boldness and freshness that acts as a great base for further detail.
​  I'll be painting a bunch more and sharing more thoughts soon.

  I'm being myself in my life and my art from here on out.  The main thing I want is to focus on working entirely from life.  No more special techniques or whatever.  Just doing what feels right.  Have a great weekend everyone!

  So I figured for Halloween, I'd talk about something that I fear!  Well, it's not a fear, but it's something that I have to work on.  It's all about NOT being timid when it comes to getting darker and more accurate values painted in a bold fashion.  For whatever reason, I have trouble jumping to accurate darks, but the darks are vital to the beauty of a painting.  I just painted a small oil study to work on this issue.  Being rough and strong in the values and with the paint is a crucial step that I'm taking from now on in my work.
  Also check out that really cool dinosaur costume that was outside our house!  Happy Halloween everyone, go out and have some FUN!