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Gretchen Markle

BLOG about PAINTING

(posted on 24 Aug 2016)

Dreary day today. The driz started early and gradually evolved into a pretty steady downpour. Definitely not a day for doing field sketches. That was OK, because I had a failure from yesterday that needed to be tried again.

Aside: I woke very early (3-ish) and couldn't get back to sleep because of monkey brain. Now, if I were back home, I'd probably crawl out of bed, lie down in front of the woodstove (remember, it's winter down here) and do a round of relaxation yoga. That usually works at sending me back off to dreamland. But there's no way I can do that here in this house. I'd freeze. So, instead I lie there and let my mind race.

Now, you'd think that with all the upheaval in our plans lately (Cornwall on; Cornwall off; France on; France off; new Cornwall on?; France back on agenda?; etc.), that I'd be lying there fretting about where we'll be in a few months. But NO! Not this time. This time, I was lying there thiking about painting! This is HUGE. The whole point of this daily practice of sketching has been to get me back into 'art' head. And it's working!!!

So, anyway, this afternon I tackled the scene yet again... and again. And, third time lucky, I guess, I can live with the last one. It's 'pretty', rather than the dramatic rendering that I'm looking for (my ongoing curse), but at least it's acceptable.

The Bach at Pakiri*

TODAY'S TIDBIT:

*That wasn't a typo. A vacation home here in NZ is not called a 'camp' or a 'cottage' or a 'cabin'. It's called a 'bach' (rhymes with 'latch').