Election season is stressful. So are work, weather,
relationships and decisions. So, this summer I decided to dig up an old past
time of mine – oil painting.
I do not consider myself to be a particularly artistic individual
but I do enjoy making pretty things that I can use around the house. Most of
the time, it is really easy projects like framing a sponge painting or letting
the hot wax drip down a wine bottle.
However, when I was in early high school (I’m thinking 8th
or 9th Grade) my mother went through an oil painting craze and
stocked up on canvas, paints, books and brushes. I had a couple projects at
school that had an option of using a creative outlet rather than writing
reports. It sounded like the perfect excuse not to do research on Greek
mythology or Spanish culture. So, with the help of my enthusiastic mother, I
painted a picture of sirens/mermaids beckoning the ship of Odysseus for my
English class and of a Matador for my Spanish Class. Awesome, right?! I got to
paint, have a different project than the rest of the class (#teacherspet), AND I
didn’t have to write silly reports on our ancient computer that would then be
printed on our even more ancient printer. Or, as was often the case, staying
late at school so that I could type it and print it on the library equipment
which, despite being overused, was much more reliable than the machines at home
base.
I digress.
So this summer, Alex and I moved into a lovely house. It is
the first real and semi-permanent place I’ve lived in since I left home to come
to JMU seven years ago. I suppose that I could psychoanalyze further but I’m
just going to say that I felt the need to decorate my walls… I won’t go into
the fact that I was feeling a little “restless soul syndrome,” as happens from
time to time. Perhaps we shall delve into that later.
Again, I apologize for my digressions.
I was becoming frustrated looking for decorating ideas… even
in my favorite thrift store it was hard to find a piece of art that was both “me”
and a reasonable price. I started my search online and found that it was still
difficult to find something meaningful: everything was in bulk and it is so
hard to judge sizes and colors when looking at a computer screen. Finally, I
ran across a wonderful website: www.fineartamerica.com.
On there I discovered a painting that I thought captured something I wanted in
our house. It was loving, whimsical and delicate. I suppose all of those words
translate to feminine… oh well. Anyway, it too exceeded my small budget. So I clicked
on another link and tried to put that oil painting behind me.
But I couldn’t. For about two weeks, I thought about how I
would paint it if I had the equipment. I drew it out in my old drawing book
that I had carted with me through numerous moves. I hadn’t drawn anything in
years and I’m not really sure what had kept me from throwing it out long
before. Finally, one weekend I made myself a deal: Alex was going away for a
couple of days and my goals were to clean the house and unpack the final boxes
that remained. I decided that if I accomplished those two not-so-small tasks, I
would reward myself by splurging on a set of student paints, some cheap paint
brushes and canvas.
I didn’t realize at the time that Michaels was the expensive
place to go for art supplies… but while there I decided that I would just deal
with spending so much on supplies that I had really thought I would only use
once. Walking up to the counter, I already could feel the buyer’s remorse
forming in my stomach and spreading across my gut. However, when I got to the
counter and the nice cashier asked me if I would like a 20% discount that remorse
quickly turned to excitement – it was meant to be!
That very night I painted what my version of the painting I
had seen online. I thought I did very well considering that I hadn’t picked up
a paintbrush in about 10 years, give or take some. The painting was dark and I
over blended the colors but I still really liked it.
Now, almost two months later, I’m using our guest bedroom as
a drying room and have converted the dining area into a studio. Thanks to
YouTube, I’ve watched countless hours worth of tutorials online and have
learned even more than I knew before. I still struggle with over blending but now
I know how to fix my problem and what I’m doing wrong. I see improvements in
myself and I analyze my paintings – if I think of a way to improve it, I paint
it again.
Yesterday was the first day that I came home from work and I
didn’t feel the need to paint. I felt its draw and I was still tempted… but I
did not feel the emotional need to. Other days, I think about painting all
through the day and wonder what I should paint and how I should change an old
painting or I look for pictures online to try to inspire a certain setting.
I don’t paint everyday… life and chores do get in the way.
But if I had it my way, I probably would. It is a release that I just can’t
describe. It can be stressful when making a big decision for a landscape but
usually it is just calming putting the paint on the canvas and knowing that the
direction of my brush strokes is the only thing determining what it will turn
into.
And on the plus side – it is helping to decorate my house!
My first painting! More to come soon, I'm sure...
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