The 100 Day Project: Part One

If you follow me over on social media, you’ve probably noticed that I’ve been participating in the 100 Day Project this year! (If you don’t, social icons are on this page to the right or near the bottom under “connect”.) This year is the 6th year that this project has taken place, but the first year that I decided to stop watching from the sidelines and jump into the fun.

The project started up on April 2nd. Every year thousands of people worldwide commit to 100 days of exploring their creativity. For the project you choose your focus, do something towards it each day for 100 days, and post about it on instagram using the hashtag #the100dayproject. You can learn more on the official website: the100dayproject.org.

For my project, I’ve challenged myself to at least 30 minutes in the studio/creating each day. Which is harder than it might sound. I find that challenges like these help to keep me focused when there’s so many other directions that life pulls me. Here are some of the projects that I’ve created during the first 25 days.

Haybales, 6×6 acrylic on canvas panel.

This painting is currently part of the 6x6x2019 international show being held at RoCo (Rochester Contemporary Arts Center) in Rochester, New York. There will be an online global preview on May 17th and then the event official opens to visitors and collectors on June 1 with an opening party. I’m excited to be part of the event and have my art on display in a new city!

You can go here for more info on the exhibit.

This sketch I’ve been working on little by little over the last couple months. It’s created using a reference photo that I took just downstream from Cascade Mill Falls on the Keuka Outlet trail. You can read more about Cascade Mill Falls, learn some fun local history, and see the painting of this waterfall from my 50 New York Waterfalls project here.

Last year I bought myself an orchid plant for Valentine’s Day and I’ve been a little obsessed with it ever since. Although it hasn’t bloomed yet this year, I decided to create some more paintings of my beloved Blanca. I think this peach one is my favorite that I’ve created so far. I love the the progression of light peach to deeper pinks and how soft it feels.

Each week on facebook and instagram I share a weekly drawing prompt for any creatives out there that want some inspiration to create. The week that I drew this ink sketch the prompt was “old farm equipment”. I was able to find a beautiful photo of an old tractor to work from.

Here’s another orchid in teal and green. I like the drama and contrast on this one. It feels a lot cooler compared to the soft warmth of the peach painting. So far I’ve painted Blanca with lavender, blue, peach, and teal. I’m not sure yet if I’ll try any new colors, but it’s been a lot of fun playing with the different ways that each background reflects against the white petals.

When I was driving around the other day I stumbled upon this old pickup truck and was inspired to snap a picture to work from later. Here is a quick ink sketch of it.

On day 21, I began the prep work for this year’s Kaleidoscope event (previously Summer Mosaic) at 171 Cedar Arts Center! The work started with laying out the raw wood tiles and putting two coats of Golden GAC 100 to seal the wood and prevent discoloration that can happen over time from the oils coming out of the wood.

I’m excited to be a part of this event for the third year (for both of us)! This year has some different twists from the previous two years including different sized tiles, a smaller number of paintings, and an opening gala event at the Corning Museum of Glass in Corning, New York! Tickets for the event on June 15th are already on sale and you can find out more information and purchase yours here.

I’m already so pleased on how the 100 Day Project is turning out and we’re only a quarter of the way in. I’ve already seen an increase in the amount of art that I’m producing and I’m getting into a good habit of creating daily.

If you’d like to see some of these works in person or are looking for pieces to add to your collection, I’ll be part of the Community Art Market coming up on May 4th 10am-3pm at Community Arts of Elmira. I’d love for you to come by and say hi.