In order to keep myself focused and always learning, I've been choosing a theme for how I approach my art at the start of every year. To contrast my 2021 theme of selling lots of work, I decided that for 2022, I’d focus on creative experimentation. Trying lots of different techniques turned out to be a lot of fun and definitely helped me learn lots of new skills. Below are some of the different experiments I tried in 2022:
Studying the Masters
I started the year by copying the works of well-known artists. This exercise was a great way for me to get out of my heard and try different painting techniques. It got me thinking I could be much more adventurous in my colors and compositions.
Digital Drawing
In February, I bought an iPad and Apple Pencil so I could try digital drawing. Even though I have a lot of drawing and painting skills, there’s nothing like trying a new medium to make me realize how far back square-one can be when working with new tools. One of the great things about drawing with the iPad is how convenient it is to bring outside for a quick and easy drawing session. This is especially true for cold winter days when I can’t be outside forever. I’ve had so much fun with the iPad, that I’m going to keep making digital drawings into the new year.
Plein Air Painting (Painting Outdoors)
Plein air painting is tough. It’s not easy to start and finish a decent sized painting in one day, it’s hard to be exposed to the elements for eight hour stretches and it’s a lot of work to drag all my painting equipment to a painting location and back again. But I’ve found the intensity of painting outdoors is a lot of fun and totally worth it. The connection I make with the subject matter is much greater when I’m there in-person and I think that’s reflected in the paintings I make. Plein air painting turned out to be the most rewarding experiment for me this year with my week-long plein air residency at my local garden being the highlight.
Creating My Store
My extended recovery from COVID this fall took away the energy I needed to paint for a few months. But I did have enough energy to use my computer, so I started an online store that offers my artwork on t-shirts and shoes. I’ve been happy with the results and look forward to expanding my store in the new year with lots of fun new items.
Trying New Styles
I’ve been trying a variety of drawing styles as well as different brush and palette knife techniques in my paintings this year. The idea is that my new paintings would look different but still recognizable as being mine. This is something I’d like to keep exploring in the new year as there a lot of different painting techniques I’d still like to try.
The Year Ahead
For 2023, I’ve decided that I’m going to base my art around six series of works, each with it’s own theme. I’ll announce each series as I start it and allow people to follow my progress in real-time. Once I’m done with a series, I’ll share the finished works before moving on to the next theme. My first series will focus on our National Parks.
Photo I took of El Capitan in Yosemite, 2018
Wishing you all the best as you plan out your new year!