Dedicated all of yesterday to art. Got untracked around 10 and did rough sketches, working loosely. Forced myself to stay on task, did about ten or fifteen gesture drawings. At noon, I shifted gears and created a florescent wash of orange (found the tube of paint which I had bought on a fluke, it was drying out so I cut it open with an exacto knife and dumped the drying lumps on my palate and went to town). Had a great florescent orange group of shooters, but then put in regular orange and yellow behind it and it killed it (12:53). Discouraged.
Put in a florescent orange wash, picking around sky until it was about half in, really underplayed it, then mixed up a complimentary blue-green and mixed it in, wet into wet. Clouds started to float, real potential happening, not sure what to do with it Hit the usual culsdesac(1:13 pm).
Crappy! Crappy! Crappy! Too much florescent orange, went too far as usual. (1:33). Focus wandering, fevered mind is going sideways, thinking of other designs, mutations. torn between following them and buckling down and just finishing the damn thing.
Saved it, or at least part of it. Went back to painting faces, got a real good Okie oldtimer nailed off of one of Bob McCubbin’s images (Jan. TW, number 41 from Top 50 photos, guy next to door, on left).
I’ve got a little rhythm going, but I’m running out of gas. Went for a quick walk, very soggy out. Got back in water (metaphorically), did another portrait. Looks quite good. May have overworked it. Shit!
Quit at five and had a piece of pumpkin pie. Sat on patio and enjoyed the sunset. Going to take a break. Closed my eyes but mind teeming with ideas and methods. Got up, went for a walk with Kathy and Peaches. Came back, got out my Essdee scratchboards and did a shooter (Tommy from the reference photos I shot). Decent image. Quit at seven and watched TCM’s Western Film Fest. It’s Clint Eastwood night, so I saw the end of “Pale Rider,” and “Two Mules for Sister Sarah.” Music was fantastic in Two Mules! They created this donkey bray from musical notes, and it had almost a rap rhythm. Just genius. The film was supposed to be a vehicle for Liz Taylor, but she backed out over money or something, so they got Shirley McLain. Clint was very good. I didn’t remember it being that good when it came out (1970) but I was a snotty college kid who knew everything. It really held up, great story of a prostitute pretending to be a nun Very clever and inspiring.
Got to finish all art tomorrow. I feel confident.
“If Columbus had turned back, no one would have blamed him. Of course, no one would have remembered him either.”
—Some guy I can’t remember (probably because he turned back)