Numbers and cartoons

Dog on Rug oil on canvas 28 x 20 in.

Lately I have been working on over fifteen paintings at once, which was getting a little overwhelming - seven or eight is more normal for me and feels more manageable. So I assigned the paintings numbers 1 - 15. I keep a log where each day I write my hours and what I worked on, and the number system makes it easier to scan back over and cycle through, so for example if I work on two paintings a day for a week, I've put in time on 14 paintings and can start at the beginning again on a piece that's had time to dry enough to not go muddy. It's still as slow going as ever, but I feel like I'm getting somewhere.

Another thing that makes me feel like I know where I'm going is black lines. I've been told to avoid them in paintings, but after years of taking that advice, I'm kind of letting myself throw it out the window. Anyway if someone asks me to describe my art, I've often said it's like a cross between Impressionism and comics! A black outline feels so definite and right. 

Was about to donate a loyal hound to a fundraiser when I noticed they required items created in the last three years. Wow, this one is from 2000. OK, never mind.