Living Room
We were in the middle of organizing all kinds of stuff we had in storage by pulling it all out in our living room and sorting through it.
As I was sitting there in the middle of a mountain of stuff with the light streaming out of the skylight I could picture myself buried in the detritus but lit like a saint.
Plus I liked the ideas of spending a long time painting every single little item in this room, so I took photos and began the painting.
- Work: #1360
- Size: 20" x 30"
- Medium: Oil on Paper
- Sessions: 50
- Start date: 4/10/18
- End date: 1/22/18


Living Room: Finished and Drawing Fundamentals
I’ve finished my Living Room painting and I’m very happy with how it turned out, now it is time to work on the fundamentals.

Living Room: Suitcase
I’m happy to say that I’m close to finishing this painting, just a couple more sessions.

Living Room: Out of Focus
Not only is the photograph out of focus but for this session my mind was out of focus also.

Living Room: Clothing
Clothing is difficult to paint when the photo is blurry.

Living Room: Pink Bag
I struggling to find a good color to substitute for this pink bag that is in the foreground of the photograph.

Living Room: Floor and Glass
I’m enjoying painting the multitude of different textures and today I went from a wood floor to a glass top.

Living Room: Grocery Bag
I had a lot of fun painting a simple grocery bag for this session.

Living Room: A Box of Paper
For this session I worked on a clear box full of paper.

Living Room: Cat Carrier
For this session I paint a cat carrier and I think about the truth of everything.

Living Room: Table Done
I’ve finished the table this session and I’ hope all the lines are straight enough.

Living Room: Dad’s Table
I worked for an hour on a very small section because it’s important that I get this right.

Living Room: Too Much Detail
Many times I wonder if I’m adding too much detail to this painting.

Living Room: Gray
Even though some colors in this painting looking of high chrome they are all actually very close to gray.

Living Room: More Background
I just worked on more background elements this session.

Living Room: Hand Refinement
Today I worked on refining my hand and some foreground elements.

Living Room: Plaid Pants
Painting plaid pants is not the easiest thing to do, it takes a lot of focus.

Living Room: Back on Track
I’m back to it today, trying to get more than an hour of work on this painting.

Living Room: One of Those Days
Today was one of those days where I really didn’t have the motivation to do more than the minimum.

Living Room: Fabric
I’ve spent two long session now just working on the fabric of my shirt.

Living Room: A Small Area
When the day isn’t going well and I’m having a hard time just getting started, I concentrate on a small area to keep focus.

Living Room: Double Time
Tonight I spent 2 hours painting which is a great achievement as it has been a while since I could manage that much time in one day.

Living Room: Lots of Blending
I spent this whole session working on blending the top ceiling area of this painting.

Living Room: A Balance of Detail
In this session I’m trying to balance detail with distraction.

Living Room: On the Phone Painting Boxes
I spent this whole session on the phone with my brother while painting boxes.

Living Room: Doing What I Feel Like
I was thinking about doing a session with my gouache tree painting but, honestly I didn’t feel like it.

Living Room: Texture
I find myself running out of things to write about as this painting is progressing slowly.

Living Room: The Right Music
With the right music I’m able to enter into a deep focus while painting and I almost always have good results.

Living Room: Small Changes
The portrait in this painting is so small that I’m having trouble painting it.

Living Room: Starting the Refinement
Today I’m starting the refinement of this painting.

Living Room: Almost Half Way
I’m almost half way done with this painting, this is still just the block-in.

Living Room: Red Suitcase
I repainted the suitcase. I didn’t like the gray that I made it.

Living Room: Lots of Gray
I’m adjusting the original photo and removing all of the high chroma colors in the foreground.

Living Room: Sticking With it
I was going to start another painting in gouache but I couldn’t find a good subject.

Living Room: Lack of Focus
While painting a ton of complex stuff today I realize my current lack of focus.

Living Room: Color Dilemma
As I slowly complete this painting I have run across a color dilemma.

Living Room: Stripes
Another hour spent on this painting and in this session I have a dilemma on how to paint stripes.

Living Room: Dark Glaze
I started off this session with a dark glaze over the entire background that was dry.

Living Room: Basic Shapes
I’m moving across the painting focusing on basic shapes.

Living Room: Breaking it Up
To bolster my motivation I’m not focusing on all the work it will take to finish this painting, I’m breaking it up into easier chunks.

Living Room: Not Working
I’m honestly not sure if I want to continue with this painting, I think it’s not working.

Living Room: Branching Out
Similar to how Richard Schmid paints I start with detail in a spot and then begin branching out.

Living Room: Portrait Start
This is how I prefer to begin a painting, with as much details as possible with the first strokes.

Living Room: Beginning with Oil
I’ve realized that I don’t like starting with washes or general block-ins.

Living Room: Lost in the Detail
The clutter is intentional, it’s part of our lives, and I’m interested in getting lost within it.

Living Room: Drawing and Value
I’m focusing on drawing and value now with the addition of lighter gesso.

Living Room: More Drawing Refinement
I’m working further on the drawing refinement for this session, trying to get as much laid out before painting.

Living Room: Drawing Refinement
For the next few sessions I will be refining the drawing for this painting.

Living Room: Beginning Drawing
I’m not even using my easel for this one it is so big that I’m just propping it up on my lap to draw.

Living Room: Start
Most of today’s session was taking photos for my painting and getting my paper gessoed.