022810 - Day 49 of 365 - Time

Ahhh... back in the studio and back into the paint.

It's good to be back. However, I must admit, it was actually a bit intimidating coming back into painting after just a week or so doing other things.

I started to experiment with painting on another surface -- Bristol board (smooth surface textured). The surface is smooth but it still holds on to the paint waaaaaaaay more than what I'm used to. Like life,.. it's not always what we expect,.. so I decided not to resist it but to change my approach a bit-- and found it to work out just fine. Kinda like they say in sailing-- you just gotta 'Adjust for wind'.

No matter-- it's good to be back from a wonderful vacation and back into the studio and into the paint.

See you tomorrow-

dave

022710 - Day 48 of 365 - (Vacation) line art doodle

A quick fun pen & ink doodle... And then a sunset bicycle ride around the world famous Harbour Town Golf Links-- ending at the Harbour Town lighthouse,.. just in time to catch a great sunset. Yeah, vacation is a GOOD thing-- for oh so, so many reasons.

Be sure to make time for the things and people in your life that really do matter.

Enjoy-

dave

022610 - Day 47 of 365 - (Vacation) charcoal

022510 - Day 46 of 365 - (Vacation) charcoal

022410 - Day 45 of 365 - (Vacation) charcoal

022310 - Day 44 of 365 - (Vacation) charcoal

022210 - Day 43 of 365 - (Vacation) charcoal

022110 - Day 42 of 365 - (Vacation) charcoal

I love how simple and easy working with charcoal and a kneaded eraser can be-- and... it's EZ to travel with.

022010 - Day 41 of 365 - (Vacation) doodles

I spent all day traveling from the west coast to the east coast.. but that's no reason to *Not* do something creative (even though I didn't get it posted the same day : \ ). It doesn't always have to be big, fancy, or even finished... again, 'It's all about showing up!'

This is just some fun little doodles,.. and messing around getting a feel for the handful of pencils and (one of) the papers I brought along on my trip. It's a good way to simply relax, have fun, and just mess around using the *right-side* of my brain.

021910 - Day 40 of 365 - Speachless

I did my video late night painting with just enough time to grab some sleep, get up, get packed and head off on vacation... I did forget to take a photo of the finished piece... but did bring the video along,.. ; )

Here it is edited into a quick little video.

Enjoy,

dave

021810 - Day 39 of 365 - Impulse Revisited

Wow - there are times you'll get something totally unexpected,.. and that was definitely today.

I was somewhat disappointed that yesterday's painting (day 38 'Impulse') came out so dark-- especially considering I had started with bright vibrant colors,.. which I had expected I could 'reveal' from beneath the dark blue I put on top. Well, as you can see by the image-- that didn't happen. So, I knew it was time I return to my mantra, "You gotta keep tryin' different things-- otherwise you'll only get what you always got" {which applies in life even more so than art/creativity/painting,.. but I won't dwell on that right now}. Following my instinct turned out to be the right way to go-- I jumped back in and started working right on top of 'Impulse' tonight. I had NO IDEA what to expect-- but was quickly and pleasantly surprised. The paint was almost dry from yesterday-- but not entirely.. and when I started wiping the piece down with solvent,.. almost immediately these fantastic textures began to reveal themselves! At the risk of sounding corny, it truly brought on a feeling of joy (again, the def. unexpectedly finding something you've been seeking).

I doubt you'll be able to tell from the overall photo, so I included a few detail photos today too. Even with the details I don't imagine you'll really be able to appreciate this piece without seeing it in person. Hopefully one day you will.

Have another great day-

dave

021710 - Day 38 of 365 - 'Impulse'

021610 - Day 37 of 365 - 'Pressure'

021510 - Day 36 of 365 - 'Emerge'

021410 - Day 35 of 365 - 'Mercy'

021310 - Day 34 of 365 - 'Forever'

021210 - Day 33 of 365 - 'Exodus'

021110 - Day 32 of 365 - 'Days Confused'

OK - I've had a zillion distractions over the last few days and it seems that I've gotten my days confused,... which I'm fine with.. as it's much better than being Dazed and Confused no? It seems I got a little 'Off' on just what day it was.. what I called 30 was actually 31, etc. etc. But besides a few conflicting titles in the videos (adjacent to the paintings) it's no big deal, and certainly nothing to stress over, I'll see to it that the correct days/dates will be represented in these blog titles-- See, easy fix!

With relatives in town and a girlfriend suffering from terrible pulled back muscle, I have allowed myself some forgiveness as to making my posted every day,.. But, I haven't allowed my painting habit to drop off at all!

I'll quickly fill in the days images, soon upload new videos of the painting sessions, and start soon share some great book references and links toward more ways to be aware of and develop your own unique creative abilities.

More soon-

dave

021010 - Day 31 of 365

Yeah- Here's to the first 30 days!

Tonight I went back into the piece I had started back on day 23-- You'll probably remember it more from the sketch recipe I did for roasted eggplant ; )

Well- the surface I had prepared (acrylics on linen) behaved much differently than anything I have experienced so far. Somehow it had a texture with a super grip on just about everything that I even brought close... my urge was to resist,.. but I quickly recognized the frustration I would cause myself if I did-- then I wised up and allowed it to lead me to discover in a new and different way.

A central figure appeared and in the end the piece wound up having more details and more of a narrative feeling to it than any other piece so far.

The photos I took of the full piece weren't quite doing it justice so I decided to just post one tonight which captures a bit more of the detail of the image. I find this one quite interesting.. and hope you do too.

Goodnight-

dave

Today's words;

Charcoal at the beginning, 'Never alone'

Scratched into the paint, 'Why can't we be friends"

020910 - Day 30 of 365

Back into the studio and back to the paint.

It's funny it's one of the only times I started painting then took a break,.. I went as far as scratching out 'day 29' then the title onto the surface (with compressed charcoal),.. and then got distracted and took a break. Which struck me as kind of ironic when I awoke a few hours later from bed, drifted back into the studio, put on my head phones and read the words I had written,.. 'Too late to stop'.

I love the things that are always right there in front of us to provide content, conflict, and even paradox. If we're willing to continue to show up all we then have to do is be willing to pay attention, the rest will be there waiting for us.

As for process- I started to mess around a bit with masking off the surface as I moved through the painting. It allowed me some cool, interesting, and new transparency effects.

Well, I liked wrestling some of the language in my head into words and sentences these last few days,... but I must say it's good for me to be back into the paint. I hope you agree.

See you tomorrow-

dave

Today's phrase:

'Too late to stop'

Here's how this one came together...

(Select this link to watch this one, and more, in a larger sizes by visiting YouTube and searching for dmisconish)

020810 - Day 29 of 365

Another exercise in writing,.. it's certainly and interesting shift in my thinking/process.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

4AM woke me- it's tribute is due.

Delivery is mandatory, obligation is not true tender, only auhtenticity will do. Oh,.. and transparency too.

Do not fret, acceptance promised returns unimagined,.. the place long ready- patiently waiting only on you.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

020710 - Day 28 of 365

As an attempt to expand beyond creative exercises that are familiar to me... I somehow got motivated to write. Writing is typically outside what I consider to be one of my strengths-- but I decided to give it a shot. Of course nothing came to me until the middle of the night. I couldn't sleep,.. and just lie there wondering,.. thinking, those random things that come to you on the

edge of slumber (these just about life, health, the time we have here on this planet, life as we {think} we knkow it). Like many creative ideas, thoughts and things-- they're really not tied to a schedule : )

I'm not sure if this is considered to be a poem or not, but this is what I came up with.

020610 - Day 27 of 365

One of the basic (yet big) aspects of creativity is spontaneity,.. and I figured I'd need it in order to sneak in something for today's entry. This is because it's the one weekend a year that I get together with my west coast buddies-- guys I've know since I first moved to California (As frightening as it may be,.. I think it's actually been 20 years now).

Anyway,.. with that said I knew my priority would be catching up with old friends and I'd have to do something quick and spontaneous. As the day rolled by I kept my awareness open-- then noticed my opportunity-- and took advantage of it,.. the chalkboard in my friend's kitchen. For me it's no masterpiece,.. however it is a 'piece' born out of limited resources, constraint, and spontaneity, which are absolutely driving forces of creativity.

See you tomorrow-

dave

020510 - Day 26 of 365

So-- to take a break from painting I thought I'd do something fun and light. I grabbed my tripod and lashed my iPhone on with a few rubber bands. It was a cobbled together gizmo that would make Rube Goldberg proud! ; )

From there it was up to the roof-- to see what kind of night shot I could get with my iPhone (3Gs) of the Golden Gate Bridge in the distance. Well,.. not too much of a shot straight out (although I was pretty amazed how well it did with so little light).

But not to be foiled,.. I had my girlfriend mess around real quick with the little light on her keychain.. then I futzed with the images I got with a few little iPhone apps I have,.. ("Yeah,.. there's an app for that" - Camera Bag and PS Mobile) and came up with this shot.

Overall it's certainly not stellar photography (I'll leave that a friend of mine who can actually really shoot - http://365.claudenix.com/) but it's not bad for a phone! If you look close you can see the bridge in the background beyond the rooftops.

Goodnight and have a great weekend!

dave

020410 - Day 25 of 365

For some reason my connect is slow tonight... and since I've done my work-- there's no need for me to have patience.

But I must say, it's cool to once again be reminded that usually the hardest part of most things is simply 'Showing up'. I'm glad I did again. I hope you are too.

Thanks for dropping in,

dave

Today's words:

'Sentry Lost'

020310 - Day 24 of 365

After a long day I got home late and just couldn't make myself go into the studio. I just wanted to relax and spend time with my girlfriend... and that I did. It was great to relax with the reminder of the evening away-- the entire hour or so that it was.

As I fell asleep I had no idea how-- but I vowed to find a way to make an honest entry to my project for the day. Well... it turned out to be a (very) late session,.. in the studio. I awoke (~4AM?) and drifted (barely awake) into the studio,.. only to find myself with zero juice in my iPhone-- so no music to paint by... then the choice was obvious-- what better for a late night sleepy session than total silence?

A 7B pencil, a stream of (sleepy) conscious (right and left handed) rambling, and short while later I was snuggled warm in bed, drifting off to sleep,.. and feeling great about day 24's entry. Let me know what you think.

I forgave myself the deadline of posting the photos and blog entry until today.

020210 - Day 23 of 365

Ahhhhh,.. BIG progress (for me!) - I've finally edited a video of my painting process to a level I'm happy to share. I posted it late last night and shared it with some good friends today. I'm flattered that they all found it quite interesting, exciting, and,.. and.. Well-- what can I say but : )

I know, it's kinda cheesy,.. however it is appropriate. I'm quite happy to be digging into this project, pushing on and continuing to learn, and learn,.. then to discover-- I've got LOADS more to LEARN! No matter,... I'm diggin' it and am happy to do so.

Tonight I've decided to work on some more videos, upload them, and figure out how to link or embed them into this blog. Let's see,... I'll just poke around here quick and give it a shot now...

HOLY SMOKES - That was EASY!!! Hot-Damn, does Google ROCK or what!?!? It looks like I've got a few cropping issues but I'm sure I can work that out soon enough. (In the meantime, just click on the video and it'll link you over to YouTube so you can watch the real deal.)

Well,.. it's small potatoes after that but let me wrap this up and hope to get a decent night's sleep tonight.

Just so I don't ignore creating all together tonight I did the base work (in acrylics) for another painting (again on the linen bequeathed to me from Aunt Mary) and am letting it dry -- so I can work over it later and see if it behaves differently. So more to come on that front at a later date.

And, last but not least-- I thought I'd share another 'Sketch Recipe' with you. (I love these things, once I sketch it out, it's EZ to follow-- and I'm much more likely to remember it at a later date when I need it again). This one's for baked eggplant. I diagramed out and followed these directions,.. added a little pasta sauce & cheese.. and had a great meal.

Alright-- off to learn a bit more.

Enjoy-

dave

Today,.. a sketch recipe for;

'Baked Eggplant'

020110 - Day 22 of 365

So today I felt it was time to change my format.. and then I thought, "Well, why not the surface too?" Which quickly led to changing my format, surface, AND materials (paints).

So here's how it went,..

As I was considering changing the format, i recalled having a roll of linen (sp?) drafting material that I've had since I was a kid,.. I'm talkin' like jr. high or even younger. An aunt of mine (Aunt Mary, rest her soul) who was always kind, happy and generous,.. Anyway-- one day she showed up and gave me this roll of linen (which looks like blue thin fabric... yet smooth and shiny). Apparently the powers that be at here work ('PURE Oil Company' - do they still exist?) were discarding it or going to toss it out due to an office move and she commandeered it for her young nephew (me) who, 'liked to draw' and would likely find it a treasure. I tried to mess with it-- but never found it to be useful with the #2 pencils that comprised my humble young artist's studio... but for some reason I never EVER could bring myself to throw it away. Frankly, I have NO IDEA how i still have it all these years later (at least 30+) but somehow I do,.. and I decided it was the surface I'd work on next. From there it was short order, to begin a bit differently by laying down a base of acrylic paint-- then transitioning into my routine of oils.

Shortly into it... I'm pretty sure I discovered that I was working on the wrong/back-side but was already committed so I forged on.

It proved to be handle quite a bit differently than what I'm used to-- and I'm sure it's hard to tell just how different it is (from my lo-res images), but I have to say I got some really interesting and pleasant surprises. VERY cool textures emerged from using the oil over the acrylic. So in tonight's pics I've included a few extra 'detail' shots (yes, I'm using that very term loosely as my photos are still quite lo-level/res) to try and show you some more of what is in the painting when you get up close.

So,.. I hope I said it then all those years ago-- but just in case I didn't, "Thanks Aunt Mary, I really appreciate the art supplies and promise to put them to good use."

Today's word;

'miracle'