Hydrangea Love

Hydrangea Love
12 x 16
Oil Painting by Pat Fiorello
$600

With the warmer than usual weather, Spring has definitely arrived in full force in Atlanta (along with a record breaking 9000+ pollen count).


 Just going outside and seeing all the colors can't help but bring a smile to your face.
Spring is a time of optimism, energy and color.


 I chose hydrangeas for today's post as my hydrangea plants are just starting to wake up from their winter's nap. It's exciting to see the transformation from winter ( I keep fearing those"brown sticks " where my beautiful plants used to be mean they must be dead) to the first buds popping out in spring.


Enjoy the spring colors and nature's invitation to get outside!

Red ,White & Gold

Red, White & Gold
12 x 12
Oil Painting by Pat Fiorello
$550


Did a more casual still life set up with roses and leaves the other day. My aim was to achieve a  little more random pattern than a formal still life set up and to create a feeling of moving back in space towards the gold pitcher.

Painting Flowers Alla Prima Workshop

Hydrangeas Alla Prima
12 x 16
Oil Painting by Pat Fiorello
$600

Taught a fun, new workshop this weekend at the Art School of Sandy Springs in Atlanta- Painting Flowers Alla Prima in Oil. Shared the approach I like of doing a transparent color block in then coming in with a 2nd phase with opaque paints while the first layer is still wet. It feels really natural to me and helps  the colors to stay clean and beautiful- especially important for painting flowers.

This was the demo painting from day 1- I apologize for the glare, still really wet when I took the photo on the easel under really strong light.

Had a great group of students and really appreciated their openness and willingness to suspend their usual way of doing things to try something new. I've heard the saying from Eastern philosophy that the way one becomes a master is to keep a "beginner's mind".  That is, approach each new learning situation as if you are a beginner, don't have all the answers and are open to soak it in anew without any preconceived opinions. If you come in thinking you already know, there's not much possibility for new learning. 

Tomorrow I'm off to a workshop with Laura Robb, so I will remember to pack my "beginner's mind"  as well to make the most of that workshop experience.

Happy Anniversary!

China Blooms
12 x 16
Oil Painting by Pat Fiorello
$600


Today marks my one year anniversary of starting this blog.   So far, I have shared  213 posts.  I had attempted a blog back in 2010 and kept it up for a total of 2 days, so being consistent over the past years feels like an accomplishment.


What was the difference between the 2 attempts?  Why could I be consistent the 2nd time around when the first time fizzled out after only 2 days?  As I see it, the first time I was doing  a blog because "everyone" said I "should". It seemed like a good idea. Of course  any sentence containing the word "should" typically comes from guilt or fear and ,at least for me,  has little staying power ( like" I should avoid eating so much chocolate"...or put in  your favorite indulgence, you know how well that's going!). 


 Logically what you "should" do makes sense, but as Tony Robbins says, unless you have a big enough WHY, you will not make a change in your behavior.   The notion that you "should" do something is typically not a big enough  reason WHY to motivate you over time.


The second time around,  I saw a new reason to create a blog. To have it be a platform to inspire others and share what I am doing as an artist and what I am learning in the hopes that it may contribute to others. Art has made such a difference in enhancing the quality of my life, that I  want to encourage others to include art in their lives- whether as an appreciator or a creator.  Hence the title of this blog: " Art Elevates Life" .


So if you are stuck on something, or keep trying and giving up, take a look at WHY you are doing it. Does it seem like a "good idea",  it's what "they" say or everyone else is doing it? You have the opportunity to really look and see if it serves your purpose or not and choose. And if you choose yes,   create a more empowering context or more compelling "why" that may help you stay the course, even when you don't feel like it.


I hope you have enjoyed reading my posts and maybe even gotten a tip or bit of inspiration along the way.  If you have any feedback or suggestions for year 2 topics you'd like to hear about, please send them my way. Thanks for following! Hope your day includes some art & beauty.


And Happy St. Patrick's Day!

The Sunroom

The Sunroom
16 x 20
Oil Painting by Pat Fiorello
$800

I've wanted to tackle this subject for a while in oils. I did it in watercolor several years ago  and the wet into wet approach worked really well. But had to approach it differently in oils. The challenge was to keep a pattern of sunlight despite the busy-ness of the subject matter. I started it several months ago and put it away- almost ready to scrap it, but the other day pulled it out again, restated the light passages and am now declaring it complete. The lesson of the day was never give up- you just might not be finished yet.

How having a batting average mentality can keep you going

“I've missed more than 9000 shots in my career. I've lost almost 300 games. 26 times, I've been trusted to take the game winning shot and missed. I've failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed.”

- Michael Jordan

Winter Whites & Berries
11 x 14
Oil Painting by Pat Fiorello
SOLD

 I guess basketball is more like painting than I realized. You need a lot of time on the court ( I call it "brush mileage"), lots of failed attempts to learn from and an attitude that persistence will pay off in order to succeed and grow.

I'm not a sports fan by any stretch of the imagination, but sports analogies can sometimes help drive home a point for artists too. When I coach fellow artists or students, I always encourage a "batting average " mentality. 

Major league players don't hit 100% of the balls thrown over the plate. If they hit 3 out of 10 they are probably considered a hero and will end up in the hall of fame someday. So why do we as artists expect everything to turn out? 


Whether it's show entries or gallery submissions, we are going to hear our share of "No's, or rejections along the way . Even when creating the artwork  we will have some pieces that just don't turn out. If we expect 100% "Yeses" or wins, then we will undoubtedly be disappointed. But if we have a more realistic "batting average mentality", then we can  avoid being upset or disempowered by situations and instead have a healthier perspective that it's just comes with the territory and is part of our  artistic  journey.

This is in no way to suggest lowering your standards of excellence, but just to keep a healthy perspective. You can remain committed to a goal or outcome but not attached to it.  If you are committed and it doesn't turn out, you are  left with your commitment and the possibility to take another action towards fulfilling on that commitment. If you are attached, making it mean something about you, then you will just left upset.

 I remember this from my Business School days in Service Management class:      
  Satisfaction =Perception - Expectation.

If your perception of the outcome is greater than your expectation you'll be satisfied.  Conversely, if you expected more than you perceive you got, you will be dissatisfied.   So if you expect 100%  from all your artistic endeavors,  it's unlikely that you will ever be satisfied. 


 So don't set yourself up for being upset. Be realistic. Take action. This time at bat you may strike out or get a hit or maybe even a home run.    You don't know till you try. What you do have control over is making the effort to get up to bat. And in the words of Winston Churchill, "Never, never, never give up".