Creating a Body of Work ...Lowcountry Marsh Paintings

'The End to a Perfect Day'        8x10      pastel      ©Karen Margulis
sold

 I just had a visitor to my studio. She saw a painting she liked in my Etsy store and lived nearby and wanted to see it in person.  I love having visitors com by to see where I paint. My visitor was interested in my marsh paintings so I decided to take some of my available marsh scenes and put them out on display.
I had quite a few marsh paintings!  When I put them together it was clear that I had created a whole body of work around the Lowcountry marshes! I decided to put them together in a photo collage so I could see them all together.

A collage of my Lowcountry Marsh pastels

I like to paint many different subjects but if I had to choose my favorite subject I would have to say it is a tie between marshes and wildflower landscapes.  It is when I paint these two things that I am happiest. I find I am more often in 'the zone' and that I paint more fluently when I am working with these subjects.
I often read how important it is for an artist to create a body of work.  I don't think I really knew how to do that. It seemed like something as a mystery. Were there rules or a procedure to follow to create this body of work?  I wasn't sure so I just chose to paint what made me happiest.  Sure I played with other subjects but I naturally gravitated most towards the marshes and wildflowers and I painted these things a lot!

'Winter's End'        8x10    pastel    $75 Etsy Shop

I think I found the secret to creating a body of work.  Paint what you love and paint it often.  You will not only improve but your style will emerge.  Painting what you love will show in your work. And you will enjoy it. That makes it even easier to paint more often!  Before you know it you will have a box of paintings of your favorite subject. And when you take them out and put them all together you will have the start of a body of work!

The paintings shown in today's post are all available in my Etsy shop.