Goals

"A New England Lighthouse" 5 by 7, Pastel Painting

Available Here

It's that time of year again - time to start thinking about setting goals for the new year. I recently found my list of art goals that I'd set for 2011. There are many that I didn't meet (such as the number of paintings that I wanted to accomplish) and some that I did (such as my financial goals related to my art). Even though I didn't meet many of my goals, I still believe in setting them. Goals give you something to strive for and even if you don't achieve them, you're still moving forward.

For this year I'm not going to set a goal for a certain number of paintings that I want to do. Instead, I've made a resolution to find a better balance for my art and quilting. I think I've come up with something that will work. Instead of trying to paint one day and quilt the next, I'm going to alternate weeks. One week I'll paint, and the next I'll quilt. It should work rather well.

I'd love to hear your art related goals for the new year!

Art Goals for 2011

"A Day Away" 9 by 12, Pastel Painting

NFS

Art Goals for 2011

1. Paint at least 4 times a week (I'd like to be able to dedicate more time but I'm also a full time college student).

2. Keep the computer off while I'm working, or if it's on, let it be for listening to music only.

3. Paint what I want, not what I think others will like.

4. Try to nail down a few subjects that I really enjoy and can improve on.

5. Dedicate a lot of time to painting animals.

6. Overall spend less time on the computer and more time painting.

7. Paint some larger paintings.

8. Dedicate more time to drawing.

9. Experiment with watercolor underpaintings for landscapes and skies (in pastel).

10. Participate in monthly painting challenges.

11. Blog more often (at least 4 times a week).

12. Complete some larger paintings for the gallery.

13. Complete at least 150 paintings this year (this past year I completed approximately 75).

14. Start doing a "painting-of-the-month." (A larger more detailed piece)

15. Continue studying painting books and generally keep myself educated in anything art related.

16. Participate in at least 1 painting competition.

17. Spend more time painting with watercolor.

So there it is. I sort of feel that the list isn't complete, so I may add to it. I hope in publishing my list of goals it will help to keep me focused on them. I'd love to hear any art goals you have for the new year! :)

"A Day Away" is one of the first pastel paintings I ever did and it was completed in February of this year. It's nice to compare my earlier works to my more recent ones and see how I have improved.

I hope you all had a great Christmas!