This is me in my 'studio'-- which is actually my back porch. Because the oil paints are so smelly and pastels create a lot of dust, I try to do all of my work on my back porch- but I mentioned all of this before.

So, what do I mean by my title? Well, something else that I have said repeatedly is that no matter how hard I try, I cannot escape my painting style. A great example is the old woman with the lamp on my previous post. Another is Leroy's Barber Shop:



These are the types of paintings I do without any visual references. They lack absolute realism and would never be mistaken for photographs. Shelly calls this style "Americana". It is the style I have been struggling to escape; to "grow" beyond.

Other artists have distinctive styles and do quite well. For example, Artisticgypsy (Lora) has a unique style that is also not photo realistic, but she does exceptionally well and does not regard the lack of photo realism as a handicap. I think the difference is artists like Lora don't fight their uniqueness, but embrace it. Lora paints gypsies, Indians and animals. I am all over the place as I try to force myself to escape my personal style.

I surrender! I am going to embrace my style and paint people as I see them and as I love them. I love painting people and showing all of their imperfections (like big butts), and how endearing to us 'real people' are. No, not photo real, but emotionally real. I have been desperately searching for a direction when it was with me all along. I was fighting it, which is so typical of me. I am my worst enemy and critic.