Bringing the Everyday to Life

Hello Everyone!  Sorry it has been a while since I have written anything.  Today, I would like to share an experience that I found interesting.  Last Fall, I painted a painting of the streets of New York City.  It is on a full sheet of watercolor paper and mixed water media.  I had titled it "Tagged" and was happy with it at the time.   I entered it into 2 big shows, the American Watercolor Society Exhibition and the Art of the State Show in PA.  It was rejected from both shows.  They are both competitive show and so I was OK with it.  But, after showing this to Skip Lawrence, with who I was taking a workshop from, he told me there was too much here!  So, I took it home and studied it, realizing that he was right!  There are 2, possibly 3 paintings in this painting.  

Tagged (Original Version)

Mixed Water Media   20" x 28"

So, I took some scissors and cut the painting in half!  Let me tell you, that was not easy...  I ended up with 2 paintings.  I entered one half, still titled "Tagged" into this years Pennsylvania Watercolor Society International Exhibition (another big show) and the other half, entitled "NYC Streets", I entered into the Utah Watercolor Society Member Show.  Both halves got in and received awards!

Tagged

Mixed Water Media   19" x 12"

NYC Streets

Mixed Water Media  19" x 10"

I still like the original version, but each piece is stronger than the whole.  This goes to show you that sometimes you have evaluate your work harshly and be brave enough to rip it in half... hahaha!

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