Finishing Touches

I may have a couple of finishing touches to do on this painting, my most recent. Last night I spent time painting the edges of this piece, so the image wraps around the stretchers. Being that it's on heavy duty stratcher bars, it's appropriate to exhibit it that way, unframed.  I usually won't sign a piece until it's finished. So I did sign and date it yesterday, but still think there is a little left to do. Anyway, it's comlete enough to share it now. Its title is "Sentinel". You can click on the image to see it enlarged.

This evening I watched "The Golden Globes". In the same way that there are no absolute best of show in an art exhibit, the Globes are still subject to opinions. What I enjoy especially, beyond the glamor, is the integrity of the work. Actors, directors, producers...they are all in this trying to create fine quality work. There is, in their case, also the collaborative element to creation. It's like being on a team where the goals and the interaction are a given, and are very important. I never wish for that in creating artwork myself. Some artists these days are interested in collaborating on pieces or concepts. I even see pieces where husband and wife work on a painting together, and both names get recognition, or a husband and wife team, where the husband created a sculpture and the wife embellished its surfaces with imagery. Personally I like being in my painting by myself. There is no compromise position necessary. It's all my concept, my labor, my stress, my conclusion. If I were working on a mural project, I suppose I would need assistants, if it were sizeable. I'll worry about it when it happens. And then you can sign on to work with my team.

When the golden globes ended I spent time sketching from two of my amaryllis plants in bloom. They are further open than when I posted their photo the other day. With a plant in bloom, there is always the pressure of a limited time frame in which to draw the underlying structure, before it wilts. I often paint without the plant in front of me. But the drawing, although altered from reality, is based on actual live flowers on a table in front of me while I plan and draw the composition.  Now I'm partway finished, hopefully finishing laying it out tomorrow.