The Wall of Shame

 I spent the last couple of days moving 250 ish plein air painting from my studio and organizing my art space. Most of these pieces were 2x3 feet pastels on board.  My daughter was such a huge help. She brought them down the 3 flights of stairs where I organized them.

As I reviewed these painting, I threw out about 20 of the worst paintings in the trash.

I also identified some paintings that showed real promise.  Up until this year, I had never worked on a plein air painting more than my initial effort.

As I reorganized the studio I hung every painting that had remained unfinished because of a problem I couldn't solve or a skill I didn't have.

Studio dog. I have four Golden Retrievers that have never been in my studio because it has been so crazy.

Since I have organized and cleaned the dogs are now allowed to come in. They are so cautious and respectful. It is so cute.

Inspiration

On the way to work, I watched the slow everchanging growth in the field by my house.  The artichokes grew and grew but were never harvested.  As they passed their prime and their leaves dried and wilted away, the artichokes becamevisible.

aThe artichokes kept drying out.  Soon there were just the artichokes aatop their very long stems.  Everyday I worked I would check in with a quick glance.  Depending on my schedule, I would look at them as the sun was just rising, setting, or somewhere in between.

Then the blue purple began to show itself.  The color, the size, and the shape of the artichoke flowers were amazing.  I had no idea.  What an interesting and great subject they were.  I had to get closer to observe and photograph them.  I had missed the first opportunity a year before.  I had waited too long.  I almost missed my chance this year.

As I took one photograph after another in rapid succession, I was absorbed completely.  I was completley emersed in the moment.  Everything faded away except the artichokes and my thoughts about them,  I had a half an hour to learn everything I could about them.  I let my subconscious take over.  There was no pondering only the act of capturing this information.  Whether this moment becomes one painting or more does not matter.  The inspiration of the possibilities is a deeply gratifying feeling in and of itself.