Procrastination and incubation

I read another artist's blog this morning and she had me laughing out loud. She's working so hard on trying to understand and end a habit of procrastinating when it comes to painting which is now her occupation and source of income.  Her observations as she works through all this sound so familiar and ring so true. I woke this morning intending to paint up a storm but have yet to lift a brush. On the other hand I've gotten side tracked over and over, starting projects and letting each one distract me further as I discovered something else that needed tending to as I worked.  Fortunately I'm not trying to earn my living with my paintings.  I'm retired and can mostly pick and choose what I want to do each day.  I also have an understanding husband who usually does the grocery shopping in addition to most of the cooking, so I'm only under self imposed pressure and or disappointment when I don't make time for the thing that really makes me happy, painting.  

Updating my blog may be the closest I come to working with my art today, but I am determined to share my last two paintings.  I've already shared them on my Facebook page.  As I searched for a title for this posting it dawned on me that much of the time I'm procrastinating I actually have ideas about paintings underway, or paintings I want to do, that are incubating.  I may be thinking about colors or compositon or lighting while I'm occupied with something else.  I also spend a lot of fun time on the internet educating myself about techniques and different styles of painting.   It all goes into the incubation folder in my brain.  I bet my very talented artist friend has something similar going on while she's procrastinating or tending to things that need doing, as I prefer to call it.   

Boardwalk Morning and The Sleepers were both inspired by photographs shared on the website Paint My Photo, where photographers upload their photographic art with the idea of allowing artists to paint it.  The only request is that the artists post their paintings there and credit the photographer.  It's a wonderful website for artists who don't have the opportunity to travel about and take pictures and there are no copyright issues to worry about.  As far as I'm concerned, the 2 pictures I chose for inspiration begged for me to paint them as soon as I saw them.  The boardwalk scene gave me an opportunity to imagine a beautiful sky and work with shadows on the beach.  I loved the humor of the sleeping tourists.  I exchanged messages with the photographer and was told she took the picture in Florence Italy, and I recalled feeling similarly sleepy and exhausted when we visted Florence in May of '98. I wanted to work with different colors than the photo showed so light would lead your eye to the white blouse and think I accomplished that.  Some of those ideas in incubation are taking hold.