Praise the lord!
I got over my hump.  Got in the right mind set and actually did some work today.
One painting was a sketch I was working on, that looked really stupid and going no where.  I dabbled on it just to get in the mood and wahlah!!  I was making sh** look like shinola.  At least better than it was.
Then I was able to tackle a tougher painting that was daunting me.  Woot.

Pat of my process is the "50 paintings on paper" approach.  Basically it's the idea to have something set aside that you can just not care of you make it look good or not.  Then you just paint, just do it and see what happens.  These little pieces may be nice in themselves or they may flop horribly, which is there purpose.  If the painting isn't going to survive on this trial piece , it would have went the same way on a bigger canvas.  Now your fore armed with some known issues and now in the mood to tackle the daunting process of painting.  Really helps.  The only thing I really waste on these pieces is alittle paint but not much.  Right now I'm painting on 5" diameter scrap wooden circles I collected from work.  I have dozens.  So I'm well stocked in the materials.  Any time I'm stuck or have a idea and want to know what it would look like in paint, I grab a circle and experiment.

Learning from Someone else

So I broke down and watched a good artists do a few paintings on youtube.  I tried some of his techniques and it improved my work.  Talk about being open to new sources and information.  So glad I gave others input a chance and I'm starting to imagine what opening myself up to what works in the future will lead to.  :)

What Did I learn by searching Robert Matta

Today I did a search on Roberto De Matta on youtube and found some things useful in my artistic journey.

- To trust the process. Meaning Let the journey unfold, don't get hung up or too critical.  Trust the follow through.
-Let the work evolve.  Let the painting have a start, a middle and and end.  The way it looks at the beginning doesn't have to be the way it looks at the end.  Changes can be made.
- Painting can be more than representations of the outer world, but also of the inner world and about the painting itself.  Matta used good color schemes and designs in his paintings that would hang well on walls but where not about common subject matter.
-Think about going larger and letting it happen.
-Adjust as you go, don’t let an idea hang till next time.  Deal with it asap and maybe you can elaborate later.
-allow for some areas of the work to develop slowly.  Don't close the door too soon if your not ok with the area just yet.  Leave it alone and come back later
- I notice an artist that comes in with and color and pushes on some areas then black and white, then another color.

Damn! I'm searching for what I already know!

Do it and let it be.  Love it, then leave it.  Do what you need to do and move on.
All the while this is what I've been needing and yet I've been researching, positioning, idea forming and getting ready while not creating, not getting in the studio, and not moving on to new things.  I have a artwork I started 2 years ago staring me in the face waiting to be finished and it's been so hard to finish it.  I've actually been avoiding the studio and really unhappy with my work.  Things seems stale.  You might be thinking, blah blah blah, another artist trying to get over his creative block by not doing, and just needs to do and be done.

You would be right and it took me reading: http://skinnyartist.com/9-warning-signs-of-an-amateur-artist/  In it it points out if your sitting on a piece that's holding you back, you either need to finish it and release it or just move on.  Rehashing it over and over does not help things.

So I hope this helps me in my journey cause I really need to get things going again.  There are several works that need s few finishing touches and be done.  Need to just do it and let it be.

Labeling in collections

I noticed yesterday that the work I had showing at the Art Crawl in Smyrna was not what I'm doing right now.  The art I had in the crawl I did 3 years ago and I was living a different life,dealing with different things, having different things to say.  One could look at those works and catagorize me as a surrealist.  The work I'm doing now is more about interest in this new area I'm living in.  So I thought maybe when I label artworks, If I have a clear line I've crossed, to mark the works as part of a collection.  I saw a video on collections a few days ago, so maybe it would be a good thing to do.  I think so.

Sifting through the old sketch book

I was in my storage looking at a old sketch book for a drawing I wanted to complete.  After I found it I began sifting through other sketches.  Several sketches would mark areas of time or interest in subjects like when I took 3d Sculpture in College, doing a study of downtown Nashville, etc.  I found some good work but lots of incompletes.  Drawings that had a good direction but because of my doubt, I would stop and leave it.  It's a shame cause some of the drawings would make nice little framed pieces if completed.  It makes me think of the self doubt I heard about the other day while watching a youtube video from a artist.  She talked about the same type of doubt and to not let it get to her and work through it or stop for a while and come back to it the next day.

Beginning of my Journal.
I want this journal to tell my past story and my present activities.  I want to show past projects and collections and current interest and thoughts.

Objectives are

• Stand for Something
• Tell my story
• Get the message out there.

Also I have a link to share of female Surrealists Artist

https://www.artsy.net/article/artsy-editorial-8-female-surrealists-who-are-not-frida-kahlo