Weekly Art Practice: Learning, Challenges, and Moving Forward

This week, I felt productive and managed to fit in several studies and exercises despite my busy schedule. I worked on the Week 4 landscape study from Bhavani Krishnan’s Study with the Masters course. These studies continue to challenge me more than I expected, and I constantly have to remind myself that they are studies—not perfect copies. This shift in mindset helps me stay focused on learning and exploration rather than getting caught up in trying to create a flawless piece.

I also tackled an exercise from Arthur Gain’s Alla Prima Challenge course from last fall. The course may be over, but I still have quite a few exercises left to complete. Since his next course starts in March (which I’m really looking forward to), I’m trying to catch up. This exercise involved painting from a black-and-white reference using a limited palette, which really pushed me outside my comfort zone. It was a great challenge, forcing me to think differently about skin tones and work with colors I’m not as familiar with.

In addition to the studies, I worked on basic value gradations and spheres to improve my paint handling and train my eye. These small exercises may not be exciting, but they are crucial for building a solid foundation and refining my technique.

In contrast to all these studies and exercises, I only managed to spend a little time on the portrait of my daughter this week. I’ve started repainting her face and plan to work feature by feature. For a moment, I wondered if I should abandon the painting and start over. But I realized that I’d rather finish this piece to the best of my ability and move on to the next project. I have so many ideas I’m excited to work on, and I’m eager to keep building on what I’m learning each week.