How I Tend Several Paintings at Once

There is a satisfaction in finishing a single painting that nothing else can replace—but my process today is different. Running a flower shop and painting in the gaps between that work has naturally led me to a way of working where I build one action (one layer) at a time, little by little.

When I focus on just one painting, any interruption from work stops me mid-step. If that step is a simple one, it does not take much time. That is why I keep ten to thirty paintings in progress at once.

“At once” does not mean I am working on several at the same moment. It means several paintings are waiting for their next action. I spend much of my time simply looking at them. When I see what the next step should be on one piece, I add it—then I look again. I repeat that cycle.

Working slowly across many paintings, there comes a moment when I want to add a line. A soft, hazy surface asks for a line that clarifies the image—or puts a boundary on that hazy state. The work below, Blue line (from the Geometric Lines series), began with freehand horizontal lines drawn across the entire surface.

I finished the piece by drawing blue straight lines over those freehand horizontals. For now, ruler-drawn lines appear only in this Geometric Lines series. Precise lines take more time than freehand work, and I generally prefer to draw by hand—so this series is where those lines live. That choice is tied to my life: I paint in the spaces between days spent mostly at the flower shop, and this way of working accepts that reality.

The flower shop has seasons. December brings Christmas and New Year preparations; March is farewell season. Those months leave very little time for painting. Even then, if I have only a short window, one action across several paintings is enough to keep my hand in the work. I used to prepare many pieces before busy seasons so I would not lose the thread entirely. Right now, though, my hand has stopped. I am not sure whether I should keep going as I have been, and I am looking for an answer. I am accepting this pause rather than forcing myself to paint.

Blue line from the Geometric Lines series has its own page on this site, with several photographs so you can see the work in more detail.

Related work:Blue line (Geometric Lines)