I painted on vacation, and I loved it!

June 27, 2019

I surprised myself last week while on vacation. I brought home two new paintings on canvas. In and of itself that’s not so odd, I’ve come home from vacation with new art before. But I’ve never come home with any that I painted while there! And they are two large canvases, to boot!

My family just spent a week on Jekyll Island, one of our favorite vacation spots. We had a relaxing, fun time together, which was exactly what we wanted. Lately we go every year. Our daughter goes to the Georgia Sea Turtle Center camp. We spend lots of hours biking on their fantastic trails. And we take lots of time for some swimming and quality R&R.

Only this time my R&R was very different from the way I usually spend my relaxation time. This time I PAINTED instead of simply reading books, knitting, taking walks or playing games. And, man, did I ever LOVE it!

Initially I took my paints because I wanted to make some color cards—individual color swatches painted with all the mixed colors I recently bought. My plan is to use them as a reference for choosing color palettes for new pieces. Turns out, I found it super helpful to have them while painting! (More on this later.)

After setting up my art space in our condo and pulling out the paints, I realized that I had lots of time to actually paint. Not just sketch, play and make color cards. And I realized that I had actually set up a temporary studio, not just an art corner! So I took over the dining table, and I started painting on the small paper I bought. My daughter even joined in, which was fun, too.

It didn’t take long before I wanted larger paper. After a quick Google search, we took a trip off the island to the nearest art supply store. Two art runs later, and I came home with about 8 new paintings—including two on large canvases!

I had so much fun this week painting. All the rest was fun, too, but the painting part was sooo energizing! It felt like a luxury to have so much time to paint. Without all the pressures of home, to-do lists and work, I felt free to let the paint flow. Turns out vacation is the perfect time to paint!

I’m super happy with my new work, too. I see my new style emerging, and I had a blast letting loose and just painting!

I’ll be sure to bring my supplies next time and maybe even some large blank canvases, too.