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Michelle
A Blast from the Past!
I was searching for something on my computer and stumbled across some old paintings I’d done way back in 2014 and before. It was a lovely reminder of how things change, where you’ve come from, and how much I love, and have always loved, painting the sky.
I’m always telling my students to keep hold of their work. Date it, or at the very least take a photo, as the photo will have a time stamp. It’s honestly such a lovely thing to revisit old paintings. There’s lots I love about these ones. There’s things I’ve learned along the way too, so I can spot what isn’t working for sure, but it’s also reminded me how much I love painting scenes like these.
Most of these are oils, some acrylics, but all are large paintings of at least 30 inches and above.
Just for fun, some pics of my very messy studio!
What also strikes me is how much my style has changed. That’s the thing about painting, nothing really stays still. You evolve, your style changes, you grow, you have periods of artist’s block. It’s a journey this art business, but it’s a lovely one.
So the point of this post really is to keep your work, or if it’s sold (which these have) keep the photos on file as a way to look back and see your development.
Let me know in the comments, do you look back on your work and see your progress? It’s sometimes hard to see when it’s gradual, but with big jumps in time you can really see what’s changed.
I’m off to paint some skies lol!
Happy painting,
Michelle ✨
8 thoughts on “A Blast from the Past!”
Hi Michelle
Your ‘blast from the past’ paintings are very, very inspirational…thanks for sharing them.
I have a little tale to share with you !
I joined a local art group a year ago. We’ve had a very recent exhibition, and one of my exhibs was my ‘Blue Heron’.
On the day I was stewarding, a couple came in. She pointed to my heron and said to hubbie, “darling, how lovely is that, don’t you love it?” His response…”No, not my thing at all”.
When we went to collect our stuff at end of exhib, one of the stewards during the week, told me that a chap had come in, had a good look round and declared my heron the ‘star of the show!! It was such a lesson in how subjective art is hey?
Happily to say, the negative response didn’t deter me one bit, a greater part due to your valuable
Artistic wisdom over the last year or more.
Am I allowed to send you a pic of said heron Michelle for your critique ? ?
Ps. The Language of Art Course has been invaluable to my progress Michelle x
Hi Rosie, Thanks for sharing. Art is very subjective and just because it ‘wasn’t his thing’ it doesn’t mean it wasn’t good, we all have different tastes but great to hear someone else deemed it star of the show.
I’m so pleased you enjoyed The Secret Language of Art. I’m not sure if you continued with the Brush Flow community but that’s what we do each month, I critique work you’ve created both work from the community and your original work. I look forward to seeing it. Michelle
Wow Michelle what incredible work, it’s so alive and vibrant. This is only my 2nd year painting and I could see how much I’ve grown thanks to your support and tuition quite recently when I was looking for one of the seascapes I’ve painted to give to my brother. My path is still in it’s infancy but I’m loving every moment of it all thanks to you and our wonderful group.
Thank you Rita. I can see how much you’ve grown, your paintings have developed tremendously, that’s so lovely that you gift your work. You should be proud of what you’ve done and it’s so wonderful having you in the community : )
Hi Michelle,
Thanks for sharing your beautiful paintings—they were such lovely blasts from the past!
I often look back at my own paintings, and I’ve never actually thrown any of them away. I’ve even used the backs of some of my watercolour paintings that I knew definitely wouldn’t sell. With acrylics, I’ve gessoed over older paintings and created new ones on top. I ended up loving several of those new paintings, and a few were even taken home by friends.
I’ve only been painting for the past eight years, since retiring from my full-time job. Since then, I’ve been painting every day and have never looked back. I truly believe in practising what I’ve learned from experienced artists and continuing to grow with every painting.
Thanks again for sharing your story.
Thank you for sharing, it’s amazing you paint everyday. It’s a wonderful thing to do. Thank you again for your kind words.
Wow lass, thank you for sharing your paintings. Would you mind if I try to copy them? They would be for my own use and not to sell. I would of course send you pics of my efforts
Please keep up t’grand work lass
Regards
Steve musk
For personal use not at all. Have fun painting : )