I've had a productive morning!

Today is Monday which means that both babies are in daycare. That then means that I can balance that free time to myself with art and work. This afternoon I have to work, so this morning I tried to get some things finished.

I think I may have finished "Twilight Dreaming". I still have to varnish it but I think I'm just fiddling now. I think my problem is that I purposely did an unrealistic colour scheme (as I loved the colours on the first photo I saw off this) and then I did the tissue underneath for texture, and then I painted more impressionistically than realistically. So up close it isn't as tidy as more realistic stuff I've done but I need to remember that it is the impact from standing back that counts and when I stand back I am fairly happy with it. Thanks so much to Leanne and Mario Brischetto for sharing your photos with me. I really appreciate it and one day I think I will paint the realistic version of this scene as I really love your photos. This one is 750 x 500 x 35mm, oil on canvas with tissue paper texture.

This is the other thing that I have finished this morning. Every year the NZ Art Guild does a collaborative project which ties in with its annual exhibition. This year the theme is "on your mind" and will be one big piece made up of 90 small panels done by 88 individual artists. I am assisting Sophia Elise (Manager of the Guild) with this and my dear husband has been roped into doing all the practical building stuff for putting this together once all pieces are ready. It is so useful being married to a builder who is very practical and also very clever when it comes to things like this!

The rules around the collaborative project is that everyone is given a piece that has a background colour/colours already painted on it. You have to keep some of the background colour so that the big piece works. Here is a picture from a previous one to illustrate what I mean.

'Fusion' - NZ Art Guild Collobarative Piece 2006

So time to remove painting clothes, get into business clothes and go do work stuff!