Labor Day Paint-a-thon....The Challenge is on!

'In the Mountain's Shadow'          16x20         pastel         ©Karen Margulis
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I can't resist a challenge. I was planning a nice quiet Labor Day weekend...lounging and perhaps reading and heading to the lake for a family get together on Monday. But then I saw Stan Sperlak's post on Facebook. He showed a panoramic photo of his studio with easels filled with paintings in progress that he planned to work on over the weekend. There went my plans to lounge!  I was inspired.

Several of my paintings in progress for my Paint-a-thon

My studio with a painting ready to go on every easel....all 12 of them

I have 12 empty easels and no plans until Monday. Why not set up and paint 10 paintings....my own Labor Day Paint-a-thon. So I pulled out some paper and boards and set them up at 10 of my easels. A couple of them are paintings that were unfinished demos....this would give me an opportunity to work on them.

• Next I pulled out my reference photos and decided on the 10 subjects I would paint. I matched the photos to the paper. I was using a variety of papers and sizes.

• Then I turned up my music ....loud....and went around the room with my soft vine charcoal blocking in the paintings...drawing in the shapes and lines of each painting. (I was listen to Of Monster's and Men which is my current favorite group) I also wrote down my concept for each painting on a sticky note to remind me WHY I wanted to paint the scene.

• Next I worked on my first painting until it was finished. I will do one at a time until I hopefully get to all 10.

The first painting began as an unfinished demo. I was showing how to make interesting grays for the sky but the painting was unfinished and boring. I decided to redo it so I brushed out some of the sky and foreground. Using workable fixative I built up the trees and mountains and lightened the sky. I don't like to throw away paper so if I can redo a painting I am happy!

Painting Notes: 16x20 Uart paper with a variety of pastels. I used my Diane Townsend Terrages for the mountains.