Sunday, January 15, 2012

scattered


(11x15)
(11x15)
Two works in (barely discernible) progress: the boats are from a photo by Ruth Archer at Paint My Photo; the tropical foliage from a photo I started painting in New Mexico in October.
I'm feeling too mentally scattered to really commit to anything right now. It happens sometimes: I've been reading too many watercolor books, looking at too many watercolor DVDs; there's so much I want to attempt that I can't settle on anything.
It's even affected my baking: I made an apple upside-down cake this morning--what an elaborate recipe: three bowls, a saute pan, the standing mixer were all called for!--which came out dreadful: the sugar didn't carmelize, the cake didn't rise ... All that effort for something that looks like the apple desert in a frozen dinner.
Baking, like watercoloring, requires a certain quality of attention. For now, back to knitting, which, since I can, at this stage, only do the simplest garter-stitch projects, is wonderfully automatic.



9 comments:

renate said...

Hallo Laura. Your not the only one. I've just thrown away a painting. A horrible one. I feel depressed. Cannot do anything right. Don't want to do anything. I would like a cop of coffee but the coffeemaker needs a big cleaning so no coffee. I can't see all the blogs I'm following because Blogger has chanched something. And so on. It's going on for a few days now. I don't know what the reason is. I'm going early to bed and get a lot of sleep. I wish you the best and happy knitting!

Unknown said...

apple upsidedown cake? Yum! I've been eating apples like crazy lately, for some reason. I love the boats painting, you've made it such a serene calming, zen-like scene. Very nice!

RH Carpenter said...

I think both paintings are wonderful starts, but sorry about your cake! This is why I never bake (or haven't for years). Sorry you're feeling too scattered right now - remember to go back to the workshops you took and what you wanted to learn from them; and your trip to O'Keeffe country and what you wanted to learn there. You have time to learn it all but you have to take little slices at a time (kind of like cake) :) I, too, am unable to view some blogs or comment on some blogs - not sure what blogger is doing but I hope it stops soon.

Moish said...

The boats are beautiful.
Sometimes we need to let go and just take it five minutes at a time. I don't think Sargent figured it all out in one day either.
(Now if I could just listen to my own advice...)

Nancy L. Vance said...

Hi Laura - I'm feeling the same way. You'd think with it being winter, that I'd feel like playing in the warmth of my studio... but my muse took a vacation, so all I feel like doing is sitting in the recliner catching up on my DVR recordings... I'm sure we'll both get back in the swing of things soon..

Judy said...

Both paintings look promising to me! Well, it seems everybody's muse took a vacation, mine too! I hope those muses have a great time. :)

Barbara Muir said...

Beautiful work Laura. Please keep going. Put down the knitting and pick up the paints. I am always scattered. I have to put on the radio, or a Netflix movie, or TED talk to make me stay with it. So don't worry. Lately I've been too busy to settle down. You are wonderful -- a great painter.

XO Barbara

JANE MINTER said...

are you still knitting laura :)...time out is valuable too ...you've got some incredible colours and blends in the bottom panting ... boats looks like a great start .

Unknown said...

I totally undestand you!