Missed one, but we're back

Last week, I missed posting here about my Art accomplishments for the week, but I wasn’t very troubled by that. Mostly, I was troubled by the fact that I didn’t have any accomplishments to post in the first place. But since I am (supposedly) a grownup, I’m back and I have minor news to share.

-The Fairy Dragon painting has progressed somewhat. I changed up the eye, and started putting color washes over the black and white. Since I’m using acrylics exclusively for this, the trick is going to be keeping the contrast good and avoiding muddiness. Can’t have a supposedly vibrant magical creature looking like a dried leaf, now can we? (can we?..hmm)

How It Started

How It’s Going

-I streamed the above progress on Twitch, and was able to offer some advice to a fellow Artist on using acrylics. Double win.

-I am applying to exhibit in the Oddities & Curiosities show here in Sydney, despite my experience with not getting in last year having a ridiculous amount of impact on my will to create. If it happens again, I don’t think it will be as bad, but I should probably set up some sort of backup plan, just in case. Maybe “being an adult”? Nah.

That’s it for this week, but next week I have some goals beyond the basics. Let’s hope I get them done. Happy Easter, folks!

Late but here!

Well, I missed my deadline for posting this week’s accomplishments..so not so accomplished? Anyway, I’ve heard people say “better late than never” and since “never” is becoming my default mindset, this is definitely better!

This week in Art stuff:

-I started work on the reclaimed art board project, and managed to lay in 90% or so of the underpainting. Next, I’ll start adding glazes of color on top of the values, hoping to add depth and enhance the textures.

Formerly a bad abstract dream, now a mediocre Fairy Dragon! Progress!

-I streamed all the process for the above on Twitch, despite some significant resistance. I’m not sure if it helped with the motivation or not, but I did manage to get something done.

-I did some minor sketching, not really for a particular project, but more as a warmup/way to keep less rusty.

So, on the surface-not a lot done this week. However, I do feel like I may have a good start on a significant piece, and some sketch ideas for others. I’mma call it a win.

A week of minor victories

This week was a good illustration of how my current mindset is not very conducive to accomplishing much Art. I tend to procrastinate and push Art to the back burner until I find myself pressed and time running out. Maybe some guaranteed scheduled time each day would be a better goal? Probably.

At any rate, this week:

-I prepared an old failed painting to have it’s surface redone, which means I sanded down the offending paint and laid in a base color. I plan to use the reconditioned board to paint something entirely different than the original.

-I tested plain acrylic paints on my 3d print for my fridge magnets, I think it will work just fine, and will also allow for several colorways with reduced effort-a big win, in my opinion.

-I researched and scoured the internet for evidence of local Sydney artists that might be interested in a group show of Dark Art themed stuff for later this year. No real luck, though. It seems that anyone “big enough” to be searchable by their style or locality is also likely too accomplished (as in gallery-featured) to want to or be able to take part in a tiny show like the one I’m planning. This may mean that I have to try to go it alone, which will mean a much larger expense in both money and time. Still haven’t decided what to do.

-I did several sketches and notes for a triptych painting that came to me in a dream. It’s not my usual subject, but I think it could be great. I need to get started on some studies for it before I commit materials, I think.

Back in the saddle

Another week, another scramble to make something decent. I feel like this time it was significantly less rushed in terms of finding time to create-although the resistance to making the effort remains significant. I did manage to wrestle the following accomplishments out of the 7 days prior:

-I accepted an offer to submit artwork for a charity art sale. The show is an annual event, and raises money for disabled Artists. I like that I’m able to help out in some small way, and it’s a fun excuse to experiment with small works on paper.

-I (fingers crossed) perfected the print settings for my upcoming magnet product for shows. Now, I just need to make some, paint them, and get into some shows. Baby steps, always baby steps.

-I managed to get on Twitch for a short time and take another swing at the idea I had for that waterbased-wipeoff technique I’ve been into lately. This time it went much more smoothly. It’s not finished (oils for that?), but it’s definitely a start.

MDF board with transparent gesso and acrylic paint, and a considerable amount of dirty water.

Detail

So all in all, not too terrible a week for getting things done. If I can continue this pace with the same level of effort, I’ll hopefully be prepped for the late-year shows and have some good things to hang up in my (still theoretical) gallery show late in October. I’ll see y’all next week.

Hard lessons learned

Well, this week was something. I managed to accomplish only one art-related task this week, and not even a great one. In my defense, I did injure my dominant hand late in the week, right before my normally scheduled art working period. Not in my defense, I realize that waiting until the weekend to finally do some art stuff is a terrible policy. I guess learning from mistakes is of some value, at least. I plan on changing my procedures from now on, trying to accomplish a little art every day as best I can. At least that way, these blogs can be more interesting and less embarrassing. (they’ll always be a bit embarrassing, don’t worry)

-This week’s sole accomplishment in the furtherance of my art was to prime two boards for painting with clear gesso. And to figure out that putting off doing art is never the right answer.

Another anemic week, it seems...

This week, the Art was hard to find time for. In addition to my usual childish foot-dragging, I had some genuinely Grownup things I had to attend to that kept me away from my projects. At any rate, I did manage to accomplish some scraps:

-I printed a test of my proposed market fridge magnet, despite some issues with my printer. I haven’t been into the 3D printing world very long, and aligning things by hand to print without supports is a little tricky sometimes. I plan to paint these with acrylics in several color variants. The motto is Latin for “Remember to live”

Printer jammed, leading to some roughness. The production model will be better.

-I started a new painting with the watery wipe off technique I was so excited about last week. It did NOT go well :) I learned that the heart of the process is the surface of the board when you do the initial wiping, so when I painted a flat layer of paint and then tried the wipe-I got much less “watercolor” and more “smear”. I think it’s salvageable, and more importantly I learned a lesson about procedure.

-I streamed the above experimental disaster (barely) on Twitch, clocking only an hour and a half or so before I was out of time and my weekend was over. More effort for next time should mean more results, here’s hoping.

Another week's scrambling!

This week was somehow both completely normal and highly irregular. Normal in that I found myself struggling with time and willpower to make anything, and irregular in that I managed to accomplish a couple of significant things despite massive resistance. Here’s the skinny:

-I finalized a design for a 3d print project I want to make, paint and sell at shows, and I managed to do it without any AI shortcuts. This was significant in that there were easier and faster ways to do this, but: 1. I didn’t like the lack of customization and overall quality of the final result, and 2. Screw AI forever. As the old folks say, “It took some doin’”; but I did manage to make it work. I’ll share an image or three once I get a prototype printed up and painted.

-I stumbled across a technique for transparent, washy texture with acrylics on board that I enjoy and will make use of for the near future. It’s nothing groundbreaking, just a stain -wash-and-wipe off kind of thing that I use on craft projects a lot for weathering. The difference on board is that instead of defining existing texture, I can create it. I think it’s pretty neato. Here’s a WIP from the Twitch stream showing what I mean:

I have so many ideas for a title for this…

-I managed to drag my brain away from regular life enough to do some light sketching and stream Art this week. Not as much as I’d like, obviously-but I think it’s important to keep mentioning the small wins too.

Let’s see what we can make happen next week!

The struggle continues...

Welcome back to the documentation of my lamentation. It’s not really that bad, I just like the sound of that rhyme. Still not getting as much done in Art this week as I would have liked, but I have a feeling that’s a journey, not a destination. Anyway, this weeks’ highlights:

-I made significant progress on revamping an old painting (sketch), and started a new one that I’d say is maybe 70% done.

-I managed to stream the above painting on Twitch, which is supposed to be a weekly standard, but has been difficult of late due to bad luck and/or procrastination. I’m not expecting a cookie for doing what I’m supposed to be doing, but it still feels like an accomplishment.

-Finalized (is it really, though?) the design for one of my new fridge magnets to sell at shows. I even got to the 3D print stage with a prototype (that is maybe 250% too big), I’ll post photos when I have the paint test done. I’m still not sure if it makes more sense to print each item for sale, or do a mold and cast duplicates in resin. We’ll have to do some math, I guess.

That’s about it, but I must say that the effort that went into such meager achievements is off-putting. It would be great if something could work out the first time for a change. I think a small victory would be very much welcome. Maybe soon.

Thanks for reading,

Nathan

Minor Art week gains

Welcome back to my blog, where I force myself to be minutely productive during the week with Art stuff, and I tell you about it.

This week was a bit scant on actual production, I didn’t get any real painting done due to a minor injury to my wrist late in the week. If perhaps I didn’t procrastinate so badly, there would have been some progress beforehand, but since I generally am the King Of Delay, we’re left with what we have. Oh well, lessons learned for next week, I suppose. This week:

-I added a “NO AI” badge and page to Ye Olde Website, in the footer. I want people to know my stance on generative AI in art and my pledge that I don’t and won’t use it.

-I came up with what might be a viable concept for a mid-range priced item for upcoming shows, using my spiffy new 3D printer. More to come on that front when there’s something to show.

-I did some basic concepting/sketching around an idea for a new painting:

A Reaper with a crowbill hood.

A mysterious Acolyte of a long-forgotten fire god.

A fun experiment with mood.

Those were all done during the week in Procreate, so maybe I wasn’t quite as procrastinate-y as I thought? I’m not giving up my crown, though.

Hopefully next week I’ll get in gear a bit more and start flailing in a particular direction. Until then, thanks for reading.

-Nathan

New year, new ideas..

Let me be likely the absolutely last person to wish you a happy New Year, as I have been delayed in posting until now. (Is it still “delay” when your laziness prevents you from doing something?)

At any rate, I wanted to announce the start of a new process I’m going to try to maintain in 2026, assuming the world doesn’t end, in which case…all bets are off! I want to start sharing my Art Week flailing with you here, for accountability and inspirational purposes. So, each week there should be a little blurb about what I’ve worked on the previous week-even if it’s embarrassing. Especially if it’s embarrassing.

So, for this week, what have I accomplished/attempted/procrastinated on? I’ve updated the website navigation layout for marketing purposes and for clarity. I’ve created a dedicated Commissions page to promote that service. And I’ve worked on three new paintings, progress on Instagram here.

Is that enough? Too much? I have no idea. This whole “completing tasks you want to get done” thing is foreign to me at the moment. I guess we’ll see?

As always, thanks for checking out my work and for being you.