The Right Attitude for Painting

'Marsh of Dreams'         7.5 x 9.5       pastel      ©Karen Margulis
purchase on Etsy $75 

 I have always believed that being fearless is the way to approach painting. Whether you are a beginner or a seasoned pro it helps to be brave and confident when painting. Even if you don't feel like you have the skills to match the visions in your head about your paintings.  Being fearless helps you take more risks and try techniques without worrying about 'messing up'.

You've heard it before "It's only paper or canvas". And that is so true. If you don't let go and take chances you won't see the growth you want.  Sometimes you might have to just pretend to be fearless. It may be an attitude adjustment but it will empower you.  Something Elizabeth Mowry said in her workshop might help....

She said we should paint with a "WHAT IF" attitude.

This means approaching a painting by always remembering to ask yourself  "What if"  and not to be afraid to try these ideas.  It gives us so much freedom to have permission to make changes to our references, to our compositions and to our color palettes.  It make painting fun and puts US in charge of our paintings.  So give it a try and ask yourself What if....and be fearless to try your ideas!

My idea for this painting was to work on my own prepared surface. I asked myself what if I did a very loose acrylic underpainting and put a thin layer of pastel on top. I had fun with my idea and will be trying more.  I love the 'what ifs' !


On another note I had a reader ask how they could find a blog post on a certain topic. I don't have my posts indexed but the best way to find something is to search within this blog. There is a search box on the side bar. Just type in what you'd like to find and hopefully you will get some results!