I'm Still Here

  Still painting. Still putting one foot in front of the other. I've done 302 straight daily watercolor paintings. I'm about thirty days behind that on the acrylic paintings. I'm getting much better at painting. The practice and the discipline have done wonders for my painting chops. I am gonna be glad when the year is over. I look forward to taking a day off. Just to not do art lol. I am proud of the work I've done and the streak I'm on.
  I've also finished another project. I was commissioned to do a series of five dog portraits. It took me a while to get in to the groove and finish the first one, but after that it was a fantastic voyage. I'm looking to land more of these, so if you (or anyone you know) are interested, here's the link to start the process of getting your very own pet portrait: link. Here are the finished pieces:

"Duncan"

"Mocha Joe"

"Daisy"

"Cordy"

"Skye"

    So, that's what I've been up to. Now, I'm off to finish another commission. Life is pretty good.

AKO ANG HARI

     DOUG

Be Careful

   They say you should be careful what you ask for. (no, I don't know who 'they' are). I believe that's correct. I've been an artist for most of my life. I've been putting serious effort into it since 1999. I got to thinking about that. What makes an artist great? I'll tell you. Suffering. Pain. The same things that make a great comedian, in my humble opinion. I sometimes think that the reason I've suffered so much is because I've been asking to be a great artist. Or, does all this suffering make me want to be a great artist? Probably not, but who knows. Now, don't get me wrong. I've had a pretty great life. I have a wonderful wife and a great family. I have awesome friends. I feel like I'm possibly the coolest person I know. But, I have suffered. Some of it was due to being young and stupid (redundant?). Some of it was poor choices. Some was my devil-may-care attitude. Some of it, though, was the universe throwing things at me just to see how much I could take. Well, I've survived , I've reached my goal of being a fantastic artist. I've since set my goals higher, constantly pushing myself. i wouldn't change anything I've been through, because it's made me who I am. But, damn, if you had asked me at the time, there were some things I would have changed. Anyway, I entered some paintings  in a contest to be posted on billboards in Los Angeles. I entered three of them. I like my chances:

AKO ANG HARI
     DOUG

A Little "Behind The Scenes"

   I hear questions from my fans from time to time. Lately I've been getting questions about how I come up with titles for my paintings. Well, some are easier than others. Some paintings tell me their name as soon as I finish them. Some are much more difficult. I have a couple of books I like to thumb through sometimes when I need a title. One is a book of Grateful Dead lyrics. That one is very handy. Another is "The Ultimate Guide To Perfect Word", a book of lists and phrases written for scrapbookers. It has proven to be quite handy as well. Lately I've needed some extra help since I do two paintings a day. Every day. I did stumble upon a trick that has really helped me. Since I post them first on Instagram, I post them through my phone. When I need a name I now type a short description of the painting in my phone. With no spaces in between. Then, I look at the list of word recommendations my phone gives me. Anything that strikes me as fitting becomes the new painting's title. Hopefully that didn't ruin your mental image of my creative process.
   Another thing I wanted to pass on was the process of a watercolor painting I did yesterday:

It's called "Wholesome", (which is what my phone came up with), but I wanted to point out something about the way it was painted. When I laid the face out, I did a rough sketch then used the three line "Those Guys" face to put the eyes, nose, and mouth in. I've done this several times to rough out a face, then I've gone back and cleaned and tightened the drawing. This time I though "what would a Those Guys face look like if it was left simple but made 3D with the watercolor shading?" I should probably explain for those not familiar with Those Guys:

They started out as a sketch book exercise, to see how bare bones I could make the face and still convey emotion. Somehow, they became quite popular. They are fun to draw, so, I'm  all about Those Guys. Anyway, if they were in full color and shaded, "Wholesome" is an idea of what they'd look like. So, that's what I got. Some random thoughts for the folks who like my art.

AKO ANG HARI
     DOUG

Artistic Weirdness

Making A Push

   I've been in my new studio for about a month now. I now have most of my brushes and paint up here, but still lack my easels and canvases. I'm still keeping my consecutive day painting streak alive, but beyond that I'm not doing as much art. So, in a when-life-gives-you-lemons kinda way I've been spending way more time on the business end of my art. In this vein I reanimated my Etsy store. I've posted over fifty paintings on there, so if you've ever wanted one of my paintings, there's no better time than today. Here's a few examples of what's being sold:

So, stop by. Relax, enjoy. Maybe buy a painting or two. Before it's too late.

AKO ANG HARI
     DOUG

                                                        

Six Months Later

   So, I've been doing watecolor paintings and acrylic paintings once a day, as an artistic challenge. It started out with just a watercolor painting every day, but about two months in I thought, " You know, this is pretty rigorous, but maybe I should make it even more demanding.", so I added a daily acrylic painting to my regimen. It was pretty challenging at first (probably how the 'challenge' got its name) but as I've gone on it has gotten easier. I checked my start date for the watercolors against the current date and realized I have been doing them for over six months. The only day I missed was when I had Flu Type A & B, but I had an extra painting in case I ever needed one. In hind sight I wish I would have painted on that day. I was wacked out of my head with fever and I bet it would have been some cool art. Oh, well, come near death due to illness and learn I suppose. So, here's the first watercolor:

   Here's one of my recent ones:

  You can tell I painted both of them, but I can tell (maybe you can) that I'm getting better every day. This challenge (and the acrylic on as well) have been really good for me. Honing my painting chops. Building my discipline. I'm very proud of the progress I've made. I anticipated doing this/these challenges for 365 days. I'm better than half way there. I'll keep you posted. However, if you want more insights than I provide here, feel free to join my email mailing list. It just might change your life.


AKO ANG HARI
     DOUG

Movement

   So, here I sit in my studio in Cape Girardeau, Missouri. It's gonna be really cool. When it's done. When my art supplies finally make it here from Kentucky. It's very frustrating. I have great ideas. I have lots of art supplies, just not here with me. I've got space to spread out. I make do with what I have. It's really the only choice I have right now. When you have no choice, embrace your destiny. I've organized all my notes. Set up my computers. Planned the final design of my studio. And, every night, I paint a watercolor and an acrylic painting. I organize my portfolio. I concentrate on making sales. And I dream. I dream of a day when it all comes together. And then, I smile. 'Cause I know it's all gonna work out. Anyway, here's some art. I know that's why you're here.

  And, as always, here's a place to make a donation to support my art. If you wanna:

AKO ANG HARI
     DOUG