Progress

About a week ago one of the blogs I follow had a posting about comparing past and recent works to see how far you've progressed as an artist.   He admitted to being "embarrassed" about some of his earlier pieces, and in the responses below a few people even admitted going to far as to destroy past works.  I don't think I could bring myself to do that, and I don't find most of my old pieces embarrassing.  I actually like having reminders of how far I've come and how much I've progressed, especially in the last year or so.

Two years ago when I painted the pastel on the top, I really didn't know where I was going with my art, just a vague idea that maybe I could become a professional artist.  I was experimenting a bit with perspective and knew that I preferred saturated colors, but wasn't sure how to express myself well.  I had not found my "voice" yet, and in fact didn't even realize I needed to find it.

Two years later the above blog posting inspired me to bring out that same bowl and see how things have changed.  I now have a better understanding of lighting and the use of underpainting to make my colors even bolder, and how to create a more interesting composition using perspective.  And I'm no longer as concerned about getting it exactly right - I'm learning to loosen up a bit.  I'm still trying to find my "voice" but I feel like I'm a lot closer to it now.

Square Bowl on a Round Plate pastel 12x16 copyright 2008

Square Bowl with Blue Interior pastel 12x9 copyright 2010