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More Koi of course. This is a composite of two photos. I liked the lily pod but didn’t want to just do that, so why not put a Koi in the water with it. I am starting to get anxious again, though, to do something other than Koi. My OCD has me obligated to do two more. I may have to go really wild with those two.

Koi and Lily Bud by Leslie Kruzicki @ SharedVisionsArt.com

A twist on my theme, I couldn’t resist. It’s hard to believe there are 12 paintings of Koi in my studio right now. I’ve lots of matting to do!

Koi XII Tails by Leslie Kruzicki @ SharedVisionsArt.com

Well I’m happy with this one too, even if this Koi is a bit chubby. Perhaps she’s pregnant. I wanted to work more with the lily pads too. They are kind boring actually when you look at them, though some have texture and if you look really really hard they aren’t all just green. Hmmm, I think I have 3 more Koi to do since I’ve been working in 5s with them. It could be years before a paint another one after this. I really don’t know how some artists do it. Painting the same thing over and over – even if they do sell. I hope for their sakes they let loose once in a while.

Koi XI by Leslie Kruzicki @ SharedVisionsArt.com

This is definitely my favorite Koi picture so far. I’m am truly pleased with how it turned out, though it does still need some tweaks. Maybe I need to work from subpar photos all the time – as evidence here.

Koi X from Picasso’s Garden by Leslie Kruzicki @ SharedVisionsArt.com

This is an abstract based on a photo of very real things. I enjoy playing a painting out like this to see how far do you have to go to get to abstract. And if you go far enough isn’t it non-representationaly to the viewer, regardless of where the artist began.

5×7 watercolor “Born to Chaos” by Leslie Kruzicki @ SharedVisionsArt.com

For some bizarre reason I thought todays Plein Air paint out at Club Continental was going to be a breeze. But instead I ended up with this over stuffed and over worked mess. Ah well. I knew I needed to learn more regarding Plein Air. This day hit me over the head with it.

Lighting the Way by Leslie Kruzicki @ SharedVisionsArt.com

This is not what I thought I’d be painting for today. Couldn’t sleep and the photo of this whispered to me. I did one similar several years ago and gave it to a friend. That one was called “Are You a Good Witch or Bad?”. This one will just be called “Witch Two?”.

“Witch Two?” by Leslie Kruzicki @ SharedVisionsArt.com

Back to Koi and a step backwards it seems. Here I thought I was getting them down pat, but this one was a bear and still isn’t right. Alas, every piece is an experiment and not every one can be a masterpiece. I’ll do one more Koi after this, but I think I’ll take my time with it over a few days. In the mean time I’ve some studies for larger pieces I need to do. There are two paintings that have been in my head for years. They need to get out!

Koi IX by Leslie Kruzicki @ SharedVisionsArt.com

Okay, it’s totally different than what I’ve done in the challenge so far. But I am a mixed media artist as well as a watercolor painter. I am combining two “assignments” again. The Day 16 and our bimonthly SoMMA (Society of Mixed Media Artists) Challenge. These do tend to be light hearted and fun creations. We are given usually one item, be it a sheet of paper, an L shaped matt board corner or a backscratcher to name a few. This months backscratcher was a down to the wire decision. At first I thought I’d do something related to the phrase “You scratch my back and I’ll scratch yours”. I suspect others will come up with that. Since I’m also currently working out some anger/affront/depression issues here’s my “Scratch His Eyes Out”.

SoMMA is a great organizations among many wonderful arts organizations in the Jacksonville/Northeast Florida area. So many creatives around here it’s truly energizing!

“Scratch His Eyes Out” by Leslie Kruzicki @ SharedVisionsArt.com

It’s finished and a day earlier than predicted. I had asked myself why did I decide to paint this when I’ve spent so many years working on getting looser. Well, at least one reason was that I wanted to prove to myself and to others that I could still this kind of work. I’m always marveling at photorealistic painters and their patience and then saying “I just don’t want to do that sort of thing”. Of course, in the back of my head I’m thinking “Yeah, right. You can’t do that sort of thing!”. This isn’t exactly photorealism but as close I will bother getting. And no “I don’t want to do this sort of thing”. It’s challenging, but tedious.   I did still get some joy out of playing with color but not as much as when I paint looser subjects more loosely.

What have I learned so far in the challenge? One – that if you paint some thing over and over and over again, you will get better at painting it. Two – That all my excuses about not having enough time to get into the studio are BS. Three – I paint what I paint and how I paint for a reason; I like it.

Still Life by Leslie Kruzicki @ SharedVisionsArt.com