P1040252, originally uploaded by leyaevelyn.
A little bit ago, a friend suggested I start teaching in my house. I had been looking around at various places, but couldn’t find anything suitable. I thought I could move some furniture in my living room, put up some tables and it would work. At first it was great, but then it felt cramped. I need my living space as a place to replenish, a place separate from my studio.
So then I started cleaning up my studio so I could teach there. Now that is a big job. Usually once I am in there, I forget about what it looks like and just paint. I just get lost in the process of painting. The only thing important is painting. So cleaning is definitely a big job: it is sorting and putting things away. Lots of things to sort and put away. I even bought a paper shredder and now have three big bags of confetti to put out for recycle day.
Last week, all was clean and the air smelled good. No paint fumes. I was ready and eager. But the weather didn’t cooperate. The road was ice. It was treacherous. No sand to mitigate the situation. Unfortunately, the sand truck needed repairs. So we will try again next week, to have class in my studio. The weather is being more friendly the last few days.
Meanwhile I’ve been preparing canvases to begin some new work. Stretching, priming and putting on the collage elements. Every now and then I take a few jabs at a painting. Sometimes it is a painting that has been hanging around for years, almost but never quite right. Mostly I’m eyeing those blank canvases with great anticipation.