It may have been 20 weeks since I last had a class with you but clearly based on that letter you know I’ve not forgotten my Shakespeare! (totally didn’t use an online translator) But it has been a while and I’m sure you’ve missed me dearly which is obviously why you asked me to write a blog post about the things I’ve been up to.

My 20 Week Art Factory

In quarter 2 I was taking biology and had one spare and In quater 3 I was taking Physics and Photography. Having the spare for 10 weeks in Q1 was a great opportunity to do some of the things I love, that I normally feel too busy to do. Recently I’ve been getting back into painting. I’ve completed 5 paintings in 20 weeks and in all of them I’ve tried experimenting with different subjects.

Cool Lime and Ice

I did this painting during the winter when it started getting dark earlier. When that time of year comes around my mood and overall motivation get low. I wanted to paint something that reminded me of summertime and water better reminder than a glass of icy lime water. This was my first time trying to paint the intricate ripples of water and the reflections that the ice makes. Compared to the image I was referencing, I’m very proud of the final product.

 

 

 

Aries Goddess of war

Recently I’ve been practicing painting people. I’ve never been great when it comes to human anatomy but I find that using a reference is a great place to start. When I try to think of a person’s physical characteristics and put them on paper I just don’t understand how everything fits together. When I’m copying an image I have no problem.

This painting was inpired by a few different ideas. I wanted to paint this women in a powerful light. The symbol on her forhead is the symbol of the Aries astrological sign. I am an Aries and though I do not believe astrology can dictate your life, I am fascinated by the characteristic that Aries people are described as having. Aries’ are described as being passionate, motivated, and confident leaders and are represented by the colour red. Another inspriation for this painting was the greek god Ares who is the God war, more specifically the distanstful side of brutal warfare and slaughter. The women in the painting is supposed to represent power. I wanted her to look intimedating and strong like a goddess who’d have you on your knees the moment she appeared.

Notible Mentions

Here are some of the other paintings I did over the past 20 weeks that didnt have much meaning behind them. These were either for fun or just to practice some technique.

The Grind Don’t Stop

Here is a painting I’m currently working on. With quarter 4 (my busiest quarter yet) just around the corner I’m worried I wont have time to finish it but I will try my best! This painting was inspired by my recent and reborn love of greek myth. I wanted to painting Achilles and his lover Patroclus after the battle of troy. This is another paintig featuring human anatomy only this time I havent used a reference image. So far its taken me 4 hours to get this far.

I’ve been loving the quater system. Though it can be sad to say goodbye to a class you’ve been enjoying I do like only having to think about 2 courses at a time. I can’t believe I used to take 8 classes at a time! Having more free time has vastly improved my mental health. In previous years I was either on all the time, working almost every night or I had my school brain completly shut off during time like winter and spring break. This year I’ve felt like there is a perfect balance between those two and its given me time to do things that I love like painting!

In the past 20 weeks I’ve noticed my skills as an artist improve. I’ve learned new skills like painting the human body and understanding depth and refelction and its been a great way to relax. I plan to go to art school after highschool so having this time to adress my artistic side makes me feel more prepared for next year!