J as in Jerry

It's going well so far. Not only this month's project, but also the whole idea of a "project each month" in general. I don't know why I am so surprised. Except that it's way surprising to have an idea and also have follow through. I've continued March doing cartoon background paintings. I've done four of them now! There's a definite part of me that feels like a hack making these paintings, copying someone else's creation. But I have to talk myself down from there. The paintings are studies and still art on their own. And they are bringing me so much joy to stare at. There's roughly a week left in the month. I'm not sure how many more paintings I'll accomplish, but I know that just because the month is over, doesn't mean I have to stop that activity. February's project was "humorous essay writing." I took a four-week class and produced four essays. (Interesting that "four" is a reoccurring number here. I w...

 The What To paint a series of Looney Tunes backgrounds.  The Why I really enjoy painting, but I don't make the time to do it enough. The last painting I made was just over a year ago. The one before that was the year before. In the spirit of my monthly projects, I threw "painting" on the list of options not really sure what the focus would be. And there are fewer things that terrify me more in this life than the proverbial blank page/canvas. So I needed a focus. Nearly every Saturday afternoon, my man-friend and I frequent a bar in downtown Chicago where we enjoy beers, burgers and heckling our favorite bartender. It's become somewhat of a tradition that the bartender will change the channel on the television at the far end of the bar to show cartoons, simply for our viewing pleasure. So the two of us will sit there for a couple of hours, indulging via our stomachs as well as our eyes. A couple of months ago, man-friend and I were discussing the artwork that goes int...