Creativity Update

My, it has been a long time since last autumn when I posted a picture, hasn't it?

So here's an update. I am - mostly - finished. I wanted to leave it to dry for a week to make sure it wasn't still tacky when I did the last part, as the last part goes overtop of half the painting. It's a big red tree on the left in the foreground. But for now, here's the rest of it.

I'm rather pleased with it, I think. I definitely like how bright it is.

Creativity Updates

Well now, it's passed the middle of the month. The good news is that I'm on par with NaNo's suggested word counts. The bad news is that neither novel is as far ahead as I hoped it would be. The good news is that Novel 2 is speeding alone admirably, though, and I don't think I will run out of ideas (though I might run out of plot). Novel 1 has stalled and I suppose it will be December's Problem To Deal With. How joyful that will make the holiday season.

[Good spotting, that was sarcasm. The things we writers do...]

I've been sick, a lot, the last few weeks, and when I haven't been I've been away. But I got back to painting today and it's coming along. I've done the easy bits now, though, so it's the near perspective that's left and that requires much more patience and determination. There are A LOT of red leaves to add in to this thing.

The entire left side is one giant maple in full brilliant autumnal red. Each individual leaf will have to be painted, after I finish filling in the details on the rocks, the leaves in the water, and the rest of the floating twigs and such. Oh, and the trees in the distant left too, though they are mirrors of the ones on the right.

Now that I'm looking at it...that water ended up much redder than intended. Might have to fix that. It's supposed to be muddy brown, but it could just be my iPhone too.

Forms of Creativity

I don't know if I've ever mentioned this, but I paint. I have since I was in my early teens, and for a long while I considered being a material arts major. I took every art course in high school (and then some), and studied rather a lot of different forms, as well as years of art history. And I was pretty good at it. Ultimately, I decided I liked general history more, but that doesn't mean I stopped being an artist, anymore than I stopped being a writer because I became an academic.

Occasionally, when I can, I paint. I've always gravitated towards oils, because I like their flexibility, and the nature of painting with them. I love that it takes so long for them to dry. It makes for amazing layers and textures. And I also like how long it takes to paint with oils. This is not something you knock off in an afternoon, anymore than a 1000 page novel is. I like seeing how a novel will develop, and I like seeing how a painting will too.

Now that I'm back in Canada, I have access to all my paints again, so I've returned to that thing I like best. It's a great source for my creativity.

I started this a few weeks ago (although I haven't been able to work on it for more than a week now).

Tomorrow I'm planning on doing the final layer for the water, and starting the base layer for the shore. Then that will have to dry for several days, until I can build onto it. Hopefully on Sunday. I'm absolutely thrilled with the perspective right now, and the clouds are pretty nice. I'm looking forward to the massive red leafed tree that sits in the foreground on the left. That'll be fun! 

I'll share a few more pics as it develops.