Walk In The Meadow

Walk In The Meadow

30 x 30"

oil on canvas

© Nicki Ault, 2015

I have really been enjoying myself at the studio these days. I have been trying to paint new and different prairie landscapes (for me)- I feel energized in a way that I haven't felt for awhile. "Walk In The Meadow" is another attempt to be bold and interesting with my brushstrokes and mark-making, while at the same time thinking about some of the things I have learned at Atelier 2302. I am well aware that this painting is nowhere near what the masters would have produced, but for me it represents the fact that I am thinking about things that I never even understood pre-Atelier 2302. For that I am grateful. I have a long way to go, but I am willing to play the long game.

Aside from this experimenting, I am also stretching my wings for the group show I have at Hues Art Supply in June with Bridget Aitken and Jacqueline Faye Miller. We are all trying to paint out of our comfort zone and that has me vibrating a bit. I have painted some real duds for this show (they will be on the cutting room floor), but a few have worked out and that has me really excited. I think this is exactly what I needed to get me out of my slump and I thank my colleagues, Bridget and Jackie, for pushing me to a new place and I thank Paul Trottier at Hues Art Supply for giving me a reason to do so. I will show you the work that makes it to the exhibition once it is decided.