Picasso said he became an artist because he wanted to have his own collection of paintings. That sounds apocryphal but if he didn’t say it, he should have.
I’ve been working on these pieces these two days. Working on a painting about being on The Betty Jane and fishing is especially apt on a cold February day when snow covers the ground and the lake is frozen, wouldn’t you agree?
On the easel 2/10/2013
Beneath the painting of John Parker on The Betty Jane is a canvas (linen no less) that went bad. Oh, it hasn’t gone bad yet, but its glue-white lead ground proved porous and can’t prevent the paint from soaking into the canvas, which is death to a painting. So I’ve transformed it into a pastel-charcoal drawing. A couple more sessions should do it.
In the background you can see part of a barren winter landscape painting. I’ll probably take it up again in spring. 🙂
The palette, by the way, is a glass-covered print I bought at the Salvation Army store for a few dollars. While too big to hold in my hand, it just fits my butcher’s tray which means I can cover it between sessions. And, being glass, it’s easy to clean.