Finished up the mural mid-September-and learned a lot! I have a much better understanding now that I did one from things I did right and did wrong-and I’m psyched to do more. It’s in Fulton by the River on the Salvation Army building across the street from Fulton Savings Bank. People have been incredibly friendly and helpful and encouraging. It was a great experience. I used exterior acrylic latex and it measured 50 feet by 15 feet-the biggest painting I have made yet.

Hunter Arms Factory on the Oswego River

Have been pecking away a bit at the classroom getting ready. Paints are ordered for the mural and the lift is waiting for me at the wall. Have been working on designing characters for a book and a cartoon and that has been very fun. Characters will be simplified and look like dolls being moved around by a kid playing. Button eyes and goofy mitten hands. Designing a practice guitar and a nice one. Have never built guitars before and wanted to jump into it. I love it so far. One is a crazy 2 x 4. I have to make a few cuts to the head and behind the bridge (which is a busted pencil). Then I’m going to try to wind a pickup using ordinary wire (which is too thick) and magnets. Ordered canvas and will be stretching a frame soon.

Here’s “The First Flash” 48 by 48 inches acrylic on canvas and it feels done. If I go into it with oils I will but I don’t know yet.

Blocked in 3 new paintings yesterday-one of a boat on ox creek will be finished probably today. Two others – one of a bunch of colorful bottles and another of a waterfall on the oswego river are still roughly blocked in. I pecked away at another painting of an imaginary landscape, and I took the “First Flash” painting of the big boat and gave it a few washes of watered down dark brown and I really like the results. I then reworked the waves and so I have to let that dry and give the waves more stain washes before that one is done. After this acrylic work I will go into each and hit them with oils. At first I was nervous about putting up art before it’s finished, but I’m trying to treat this site a bit like a sketchbook or journal.

First is a digital photo of my color sketch, second is a quick photoshop of how the color sketch looks on the wall, and the ox creek painting in the previous post gives you an idea of my painting style.

30 x 40 inches acrylic on canvas

…well, I have to live with it a few days and see what’s what. It’s of the photo I took yesterday morning. Painting’s called “Route 14 Looking East Over Ox Creek” 30 x 40 inches acrylic on canvas-had a great time painting it.

Got up at 5 this morning and went out to Ox Creek with Bert, Jerome, Dain. Got reference photos for paintings. Haven’t been there in years, all the weeds I remember choking up the creek were gone and the water level seemed high. I heard lots of frogs, one I thought was a cow or a washing machine. Also found flowers for pigment, including what I hope gives me some orange.

Burnt stick and flowers

I’ve been grinding dirt and rocks to dust and using olive oil or egg white as a binder. I tried grinding dry flower petals but either I didn’t have enough or they weren’t completely dry. Then two weeks ago or so I got an idea from a fifth grader to directly apply flower petals and plants to paper. It’s awesome. I’ve been playing ever since with this idea and I’m especially happy with the roses that are growing on the side of our house-they create a juicy and intense purple.