"Playing with Dandelion" (oil on linen; 4" x 5") sold



sold

I am so glad that I started a daily painting project.  Paint everyday--or at least try to--and upload the results on my website.  Some paintings were not so great, so I didn't even bother.  I learned what subjects work better in such a small format (initially I had limited myself to one format: 4 x 5").

When I had 20 paintings ready, my blog within the website went public, that is, Blogger became its host.  The new blog started out just with brief descriptions of the paintings.  Then I began to explore the medium of blog, which is supposed to be a web diary.  More and more entries became discussions and thoughts about my art adventure.  It is time-consuming, to be sure.  I could be painting instead of writing about art.  But writing has a way of clarifying muddled thoughts, and I hope to connect with other artists and art lovers with my words.

There is this wonderful art co-operative called The Art League in the Old Town in Alexandria, VA, which operates a gallery, school, and store.  They have monthly juried shows, which are very competitive.  As a watercolorist, I used to get accepted into these shows on a regular basis.  The best record was eight times in ten shows.  Ever since I switched to the opaque mediums, first acrylic, then oil, my performance plummeted.  I barely scraped by with three or four shows a year (if you make three shows, you become eligible for the non-juried bin gallery section and can sell art).  This year has been pretty grim.  The last time when my painting was juried in was May.  Even my stoic Scandinavian husband was getting worried.

Then, bingo, this month in which the gallery hosts two shows simultaneously--the small works and large works--my painting, "Playing with Dandelion" won the second place, obviously, in the small works show.  How about that!  I am thrilled.  I credit this honor to my daily painting project!