How to Avoid Artist Tantrums and Shoot Em UP Bang Bang...

I have been painting in oils for more decades than I care to admit to and it has always been a love/hate experience. I am appalled by people that think artists are having fun with their hobby. I am also appalled by people that think artists are always on the verge of suicide. Both extreme views are ridiculous. I do not play with paint and I am not going to kill myself because I never really get exactly what I want out of a painting. I learned long ago that aritsts have to live with a certain amount of failure.

Most of the time it is a great experience and I love putting the effort into it. Sometimes I get to the screaming stage which brings me to the title of this blog. There is one sure way to avoid Artist Tantrums. Give it up. Get rid of the supplies and all the paintings. Since that is not an option, once in a while I resemble a two-year-old that got her pacifier yanked from her mouth. Since I paint by myself most of the time no one has to hear me freak out.

My husband did not go to movies when he was growing up. He watched some television but he mostly liked to read. Our son is a movie buff and my husband is great about taking him to movies he doesn't want to see. I am not invited. Our son likes to make movie night a guys night so I stay home. Can't complain. As my husband says, the movies they see are always Shoot Em Up Bang Bang or Kick an Alien's Butt.

Be sure to check out my Limited Time promotions on Fine Art America. I offer three greatly reduced canvas prints each week!

Pushing the Clay Around and Sheldon and the Corpse...

It is hard for me to believe two things these days. I can't believe I ever thought oil paint didn't cost that much and that our grocery bill was ever less than outrageous. I am not happy if I use the traditional thin to thick glazes of oil paint. The paint isn't that expensive if one uses that method. I push it around like a sculptor does clay on an armature. Sometimes I sink back into the old method and immediately go back to slathering it on and pulling expressive forms out of it. I can't get my unique color style or expression any other way so, yes, oil paint is very expensive. Not as expensive as our groceries but it is up there.

I don't watch a lot of TV for two reasons. I don't have the time and I am a movie buff. It usually takes me days to watch one movie but there are no commercials and the ones I watch seem to have much better acting and dialog then what I see on TV. The only show I like to watch is The Big Bang Theory and so does my husband. More and more the plots seem to be centered around the fact that Sheldon is an obnoxious know-it-all who drives the others crazy. My husband said Sheldon would drive a corpse crazy. No doubt.

Be sure to check out my Limited Time promotions on Fine Art America. I have three specials on canvas prints of popular paintings at about 40% off.