Hey there!  I’m starting a new series that I wanted to introduce you to this week: Art in Progress.  Since this is a blog about the art of becoming yourself, I wanted to give you a peek inside some of the projects I work on each week in class.

I like to show things in progress so that together, we can see how the piece changes over time.

Also, I think it’s helpful to see the evolution of creating and maybe pick up a trick or two.  I feel like a lot of what I learn in painting can be applied to everyday life too.  I’m hoping to share some of those things with you as we go along.

And I’ve learned so much from the generosity of other artists that do this very thing, sharing their process, that I thought it would be a great way to pay it forward.  So here it goes…

“You Are Loved” is something I started a few weeks ago.  It began with putting down some collage papers on the blank canvas and then adding acrylics around and through it.  I started with a dry brush dipped in the acrylics and went from there–I seem to start things with a strong boost of color and eventually I soften it with some water or medium.  That’s something I love about acrylics–they’re so blendable and forgiving.  If I don’t like what I’ve done, I can wait until it’s dry and paint over it.

The first layer in any piece is just putting something down. That is a helpful idea I learned early on, especially with acrylics.  I try not to think too much about it–I just dive into enjoying the process of creating, and try to keep moving.  Working fast helps me get past that inner critic.

It felt a little dark, so during the second run through, I lightened it up a little.  There’s something that I love about that light purple in the upper right corner.

Here is a look up close at some of the collage elements:

Can you see the outline of a head in the upper right corner?  The ‘scarf’ gave me some inspiration.There’s the slight hint of a face outline in the middle, just something that revealed itself over time (and when I turned the canvas).

I added more acrylic layering and some details.

And painted the girl face.  Sweet and chubby.

I added in some collage and the stamped in the sentiment.

And she’s done for now!  It’s so much fun to experiment and see what shows up.  If you have any thoughts on this piece,  I’d love to hear about it over on my facebook page.