"Grace & Grit"

The title is taken from one of my favorite phrases: "Grace, Grit and Gratitude".

When I'm in a pre-show painting binge, it is often the last group of paintings that really gel.

...the ones that come after I think I can't paint any more, after I have "enough" work and tell the muse to lay off the whip. After I cut myself a little slack and try to take a break.

The paintings of the last few days were like that...all drawn from someplace beyond what I thought I was capable of energy-wise and all pushed in a bit of a new direction technique-wise. "Grace" took that one step further.
I was about to take the night off when a gentle phone conversation with a friend shifted my focus. After the call, I stopped painting and relaxed.

Almost immediately something called me back to the easel. It is rare that I paint late in the evening. I am a morning painter: clearer head, better light. Not with this one, though.

Last night I worked at that easel, compelled to paint, into the wee hours of the morning. Even then, I had to force myself to quit and try to sleep. Early this morning, I finished her.

I love it when everything comes together and a piece just seems to flow right out of you.

One of the questions most artists hate is "How long did it take you to paint that?" The best answer I ever heard was "35 years". Every painting is a culmination of all that led up to it...it is earned through practice, determination, long hours, encounters, experiences, conversations, insatiable curiosity, an open mind and a deep appreciation of your world and everything in it. In other words...

Grace. Grit. Gratitude.