25 October 2007

self (100 posts in 100 days)

Arches CP 300 gsm, 14" x 10".

a painter acquaintance sold me some arches watercolor blocks -- "the paper they made before the paper they made that smells funny." this is my first painting on it.

first impression is that the paper is softer and a little more absorbent, less hard surface sizing, like painting on cotton canvas. holds up to lifting very well. it came with a little red slip of paper with a quality control number and a refund assurance.

as it happens, this is my 100th consecutive painting a day post.

i went on a three week vacation and painted little, then had a cold and various chores to distract me on my return. i was 54 days behind my painting a day schedule. as of today i am only 32 days behind, and closing fast.

why am i backfilling the missed days with work? i treat this blog as a commitment to produce at a certain overall tempo, in the same way people make a commitment to exercise three times a week. if they miss one day, they make it up on another.

some people seem to use blogs as a kind of occasional diary. somehow those devolve into narratives of procrastination. i see this blog as a painting discipline, and rain or shine, each day counts as an attempt on the path.

my neck muscles hurt for two days after doing this pose. i drew it freehand from a mirror.

3 comments:

William K. Moore said...

I like this Bruce.. nice runbacks in the background and of course the expression on the face is impact(ful). I paint on block paper once in a while. I think the overall quality is diminished compared to individual sheets. But I've gotten some good results.. mostly 140 lb CP.

Nick said...

I'm not surprised Bill takes to this one...and even less surprised you were in pain for 2 days, lucky you didn't pop an artery. Hate blocks, like the pic!

Adam Cope said...

keep on smiling bruce ;)

will you manage to get the blog up to date by christmas?

like your thoroughness as per usual. paint on!