recent posts

blog archive

follow dawn's blog

Enter your email address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts.

creating 60 paintings in 30 days and other bad ideas

by | Nov 3, 2017 | Uncategorized

A selection of landscape paintings from artist Dawn Chandler's recent 60:30 Project

The first 20 “traditional landscapes” of the 2017 60:30 Project. Among them scenes of Santa Fe; the Galisteo Basin; Lake Wentworth, New Hampshire; Haines, Alaska; Los Poblanos in Albuquerque; and Taos.

 

Back in September — because evidently planning to be away for a month on a 4000+-mile road-trip wasn’t time consuming enough — I decided to set a challenge for myself of creating 60 paintings in 30 days. Lots of artists do this sort of thing from time to time, although most artists are smarter and more reasonable than I am and therefore usually set the goal for a much saner (though still challenging) 30 paintings in 30 days.

I don’t know what I was thinking, if I was thinking at all. Maybe because I know how time-consuming planning for a roadtrip and getting my house, personal life and business life in order in anticipation of being absent for a month can be. I know that when undertaking such planning, my art production always takes a hit. So I wanted to keep creating until my departure, despite the distraction of an upcoming trip.

Also, I’ve done daily paintings before. Back in 2006 or so, I created a small 6″ x 6″ landscape oil painting every day in the month of February, and then offered each painting for auction on eBay. Talk about exciting!! Nearly every one of those paintings sold, and it was pretty cool watching some of those bids com in and then shipping dozens of paintings all across the country

And at other times I’ve dedicated whole years to daily paintings, though these we more like dairy entries. Like in 1999…. oh, but maybe I’ll save that story for another blog post…..

Anyhow. the parameters that I set for myself in September were to do a 30 quick little ‘traditional’ landscape paintings. But I also wanted to stretch myself with a bit of play. So I decided that after I completing each traditional landscape, I would use that as the source of inspiration or “jumping off point” for another painting, this one allowing for more “play” and experimentation. Sometimes this second painting was a clear take on the traditional landscape; other times the two bore little if any resemblance. All, though, were fun to create!

Several contemporary landscape paintings from artist Dawn Chandler's 60:30 Project

A selection of the mixed-media ‘contemporary landscapes’ of the 2017 60:30 painting project. These are fun and loose semi-abstract interpretations of the more “traditional” landscapes done in oil.

 

Also, September’s 60:30 project was to be more about quantity — getting 60 paintings done — than requiring myself to paint EVERY day. For I just know from past experience that life intervenes and sometimes it’s just impossible to get in the studio some days. In the end though, I did paint most days, though some days I painted more than two while other days I painted none.

And now I have stacks of small paintings taking up space in my studio!

So I’ve decided to make them available to anyone who’s interested, and have a little fun along the way, by putting them on eBay and starting the bidding super low. This means if no one else bids, someone could potentially grab a sweet little painting for a fraction of the usual price, as there will be no minimum reserve price beyond the starting bid.

If, after 24 hours, a painting receives no bids, it will be placed for sale in my online shop at the regular prices. The “buy now price” will be double the usual price, to to encourage people to join in the fun and excitement of bidding.

Here are more details:

Location: ebay.com
Seller Name: taosdawndesigns
Dates:
Every day through the month of November, 1 – 30, 2017.
Time of Auction: 7:00pm New Mexico time.
Items: 2 paintings each day: One “traditional landscape” and one “contemporary landscape”
Duration: 24 hours

If a painting receives no bids within the 24-hour auction, it will be placed for sale at the regular price on my online gallery store on Etsy.

30 TRADITIONAL LANDSCAPES
Medium: oil on panel
Size: 5” x 7” x 1/8”
Regular Price: $225
Starting Bid: $60.30* + $9 shipping/packaging
Buy now price: $450 (this is to encourage people to join in on the fun and excitement of the bidding!)

30 CONTEMPORARY LANDSCAPES
Medium: acrylic & mixed media on paper mounted on panel
Size: 4” x 6” paper mounted on 5” x 7” x 1/8” panel
Regular Price: $185
Starting Bid: $30.60 *+ $9 shipping/packaging
Buy now price: $370 (this is to encourage people to join in on the fun and excitement of the bidding!)

A plein air oil painting of Santa Fe's Galisteo Basin painted by artist Dawn Chandler

From the 60:30 project: A quick plein air oil painting from out in the Galisteo Basin, south of Santa Fe. Paintings like these are up for auction on Etsy through the month of November with a starting bid of just 30% of the regular price.

 

A contemporary landscape painting of the Galisteo Basin by artist Dawn Chandler

From the 60:30 project: A more abstract version of the Galisteo Basin, south of Santa Fe. Paintings like these, too, are up for auction this month on eBay, at a greatly reduced starting bid.

 

Here are the links for the current auctions (updated 11/10/17); these auctions will end at 7:00 this evening, when the next two auctions will begin. [Read below for how to get on a daily announcement list for the day’s paintings.]

Painting 17 in the 60:30 series

Painting 18 in the 60:30 series

Also, I’ve set it up so that if you’re interested in this project but worried that you might forget to check the auctions, you can receive a daily link to the day’s auction paintings:
Simply send an email to studio@taosdawn.com
with “LET ME KNOW!” in the subject line.
I’ll shoot you a daily message (just through November) with the links for the day’s two auctions.

Important: you can always do a search on eBay for “Dawn Chandler” to find the current auction)

And — if I can get my act together! — I’ll be posting the auctions daily on FaceBook at www.facebook.com/DawnChandlerFineArt/
Also also on Instagram at  www.instagram.com/taosdawn/  (where you can view all of the 60:30 paintings via a search for #dawnchandler60in30)

 

A plein air oil painting of Taos Mountain painted by artist Dawn Chandler

From the 60:30 Project: Many of the paintings are of the Taos area — like this one, from a glorious late summer evening up on The Mesa with friends.

 

By the way, last night (Thursday November 2nd) concluded the first two auctions and some lucky person in the Southeast won FOR A STEAL these two sweet little paintings of/inspired by an early summer morning up in the “magic aspen forest” above Santa Fe. Basically she just got $500 worth of art for about $100. If you’ve been wanting an original painting of mine, then these November eBay auctions are your chance to score something really fine at a sweet, sweet deal.

Two original paintings of the Santa Fe Forest painted by artist Dawn Chandler and recently auctioned on eBay

Two original paintings of the Santa Fe Forest painted by artist Dawn Chandler and recently auctioned on eBay FOR A STEAL.

 

Yep. Don’t know what I was thinking — if I was thinking at all…

Now to go ship off these paintings off to their new home in Georgia!

🙂

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save