I managed to squeeze in two new paintings during my vacation between Christmas and New Year. Plus I tinkered with making some little "progress videos" I see lots of other artists doing. A lot of folks actually set up a tripod and lights and really make a production of it. I'm afraid my process is so staggered and laborious that it really wouldn't be so fun to watch and warrant all the extra effort. But combining still shots during different phases of evolution is pretty easy to do. I used an app called "Clips," which I think may come with the iPhone. It's super easy to use. (Music is "Good Thoughts" by the Sim Redmond Band -- I'm listening to them incessantly these days!)
I've been intrigued with the plump, beautiful shapes of our chickens all fluffed up in the winter, and the chaotic puzzle of their footprints in the snow. This was just a fun painting for me that pretty much just painted itself. Fun with simple shapes and colors and patterns. I want to paint more of these!
I'm always thinking about the overlooked and misunderstood among my neighbors. The vultures certainly don't get any love, do they? A dreadful, yet vital job they have. I thought about this guy... who has doubtless seen awful ways to die and suffer, and is fated to stick his face deep into the decomposition of it all... yet, that doesn't make him awful... he's the janitor who cleans up the messy remains of mortality. There's something tender that came out in his expression. I keep thinking about layering on a bit more skin and taking down the red in his face a bit, and maybe deepening shadows on his face to emphasize the backlight, sort of Rembrandtesque... but I don't want to mess him up, either, as I'm becoming quite fond of him, just as he is.