It’s good to be lost.

Painting larger is new ground for me, and going there has meant embracing uncertainty and the feeling of being lost. But it’s good to be lost! I am learning that working larger entails detaching from the “observed” landscape where the painting began. Inside the studio the landscape is no longer in front of my eyes. Instead I have drawings to look at, and memories, and photographs. More new ground, working from reference images and memory. And not only that. The light is constant, no issues with wind or rain… new ground working on a painting over several sessions, days, maybe weeks. Where am I? Here is a drawing of a mountain side I have studied, painted and drawn many times already, and it is my jumping off point for a studio painting. Below it is the painting I am working on, about 14×18. (I know what you’re thinking, but remember, “big” is relative, and size isn’t everything.)