Recently I've been working away on some projects that are challenging me in lots of different ways.
Firstly after Christmas, I set up my easel, camera and studio lights to do a Live facebook painting session, as a seasonal 'special' for past students. This was not public but was exclusive to the private facebook group that is just for my student Alumni. It was partly a gift to them, but also a valuable learning curve for me. It enabled me to sort out the tech set-up and get used to being 'on camera' which I have to confess I've been procrastinating over ...for years! Of course once I 'bit the bullet' it was fine, and now I wonder what the heck I was waiting for!
Isn't it funny how stepping out of your comfort zone seems so difficult, right up until you actually just 'do the thing'? Then the cloud of fear evaporates and you're mystified at how it held you back for so long.
Anyway, a couple of weeks later I took another big step and did a Live paint-along challenge for Mastrius (an online mentorship community for artists). This time I had just an hour to create a half decent painting LIVE to a global audience of nearly 70 other artists ...No Pressuuure!
In the end it was really great fun, so if you'd like to watch the recording here it is!...
Watch my Painting Challenge video
Nearly half the people who joined the challenge live then submitted their own versions of my painting, this was so interesting when we did another live session a week later to showcase all the work.
They were all so different! Isn't that the beauty of art? Every artist is truly unique, even when working from the exact same reference material.
Here's a photo of my painting on the easel when the challenge was up. Of course I will work on it some more and refine it because an hour is definitely not long enough for me to make a finished painting. However, it was amazing to me how much I actually got done when 'motivated' by a tight time constraint!
If you enjoyed the video and would like to learn more from me, check out my Workshops and Classes for 2023.
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