Sunday, March 28, 2021

The decision to stop

At the cottage (detail)

Acrylic on canvas 

24 x 24 inches 

Barbara Muir ©️ 2021

I’ve been wrestling with a painting that started as a memory from a picture of the cottage that I went to as a child. With the progress of 2020, it became harder and harder to finish the painting. For one thing we were, and are under the constant threat of a pandemic. So at first the escape to a former time seemed sweet.

But over time the past seemed so disconnected from the present that I found it increasingly difficult to continue. So I put the painting away, and worked on other things. Last week I got it out again, introduced more elements into it, worked on it a bit every day, and last night got released.

  Released? Yes! I am not going to finish the painting. Tomorrow I will paint it out, and start again. But I will show you the part I do like which is the clouds and the horizon. And so it goes. Sometimes the long debate, the restless nights, and endless attempts to finish something, end in the recognition that this isn’t going to work. If that happens to you, do yourself a favor, and let it go.

You aren’t the first, and you won’t be the last. And something wonderful will come from giving yourself a break. 

Have an giving yourself a break day.




2 comments:

Evelyn Oldroyd - painter said...

This is beautiful and I am looking forward to the next installment ❣️❣️❣️

Barbara Muir said...

Hi Evelyn,

Thank you so much! I may cut the canvas down, and make a smaller painting, but it seems like it’s time
to move on!

Love your work!

XOXOXOXOXO Barbara

Portrait Artist

My photo
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
I paint and draw on commission and for shows. To commission a portrait, or purchase one of my paintings please contact me at: barbara.muir@sympatico.ca
A major highlight in my career? Drawing Oprah Winfrey live via Skype for her show "Where in the Skype are you? Galleries: Studio Vogue Gallery, Toronto, Canada. The Amsterdam Whitney Gallery, New York City. Gallery at the Porch Door, Kingston, Canada. Your positive comments on this blog mean the world to me. I'd love to hear from you!