October 20, 2009 - Day 71

Da Vinci watercolor & India Ink on Saunders Waterford paper

Basically today's painting is a colored doodle. I used to draw these a lot as a teenager. I start with one shape and then just keep adding a shape or a pattern until the paper is full. Once that is done I add the color.

I never realized that I had such issues around abstract art, nonobjective art and nonrepresentational art. I can appreciate everything from propaganda art to illustrations in children's books but anything even slightly abstract and I feel like the artist is trying to scam me.

Creating these abstract paintings the last couple of days has really angered me. I feel like I am not painting a "real" painting when I paint abstract. I feel like I am scamming people by these paintings because I don't consider them to be real art.

Art takes skill and technical ability. These abstracts are pointless and stupid but because they are creating such strong emotion in me I am going to keep doing them. Maybe it will blow out a couple of my blocks along the way.