Lunch Break

I'm one of those people who likes rules - especially when it comes to making art. I have found that I am able to work best when there are rules - or rather, boundaries - set up that give me a clear space within which I can create. My boundaries usually show up as assignments, or series. I will choose a topic and stick to it for a set time period. Often times, I pick a number and complete that quantity of work before moving on to another topic.

Given this tendency, and my need to stick to the plan, it is strange to me that I started a lunch on Thursday and lost my will to continue it. This would be lunch #16 of 30 - and it is a lunch I have been wanting to work on for a while, but I just didn't care to finish it. Here's as far as I got before stepping away...

I needed a break from the smallish canvases of the lunch series (12x16") and from the (mostly) healthy images I had been working with. In scrolling through my phone, I found a photo of a gloriously gooey slice of blueberry pie I had baked last summer. That pie was delicious - and it was the first pie I ever baked. In my head I heard the voice of Kathleen Eastwood saying "paint what you love"... I decided this would be my lunch break and grabbed the biggest canvas I had on hand (24x36") to get started. Painting crumb topping and a dark and formless goo is challenging. There is still a ton to handle on this but I'm happy with the direction and progress so far.