The Toy Box

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I am a slow painter.
It takes me a long time to produce a painting that I like.

I do not mind working slowly and meticulously, because by doing so, I try to minimize the mistakes that I make.
Regardless, I make loads of mistakes during the process of drawing and painting, and often spend much time correcting my mistakes.

Beside the time that it takes me to draw everything to my satisfaction, I also add layers of colors to create a nice opacity and a tonality that does not show the background canvas, nor leaves too many brush marks.

The slow work is meditative and calming.
I do not enter the studio with the intention of "finishing" today.
I take my time and savor the long days painting.
In fact, I always feel a bit of sadness when I near completion of a painting that I worked on for months.... It is as if I am saying goodbye to a friend that I spent many intimate days with....

I painted one single painting during the two winter months that we spent in Colorado recently.
I call the painting, "The Toy Box."

All of the toys painted in this painting represent real designers' toys.
They are very collectable and some exceed a market value of $20,000 each.

I love those toys and wish I could collect them all, but instead I enjoy painting them.
The designers' toys are playful, mischievous and many look like they have an attitude.   

When we travel, I often visit toy museums and enjoy roaming inside, looking at all the lovely toys and imagining the kids who played with them.

We are in New Zealand now and I am working daily in the studio on another art project that I will post soon.

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