Happy Unbirthday to me (Happy Blirthday)! :) Yep, this time last year I started this blog. It was a way to document my art discoveries and connect with like-minded people. I think it has been serving those purposes successfully, in addition to a few more (like promoting my art and keeping me accountable for the time not spent painting! :))

At about the same time, I also joined the Everyday Matters Yahoo group, which is an extremely supportive and positive community of creative people at various stages of their artistic development. They will instill confidence into any self-doubting art blogger :) I have been out of touch for a while now, mostly just because there isn't enough time to keep up with my painting projects and commissions, update all the online places I'm at and look after a very active 1.5 old kid. I sure do miss the camaraderie and the weekly sketching challenges!

So, what do I want from another year of art-making? Several things:

• Even though right now I paint more than I ever did (actually...no...I did have a painting boot camp in my second year of architecture school in Ukraine), well - I want to spend more time painting
• I want to work bigger. Do more full sheet paintings
• Get that watercolor class going...really
• Do more landscapes
• Go to more art fairs and participate in more shows and competitions
• Join an art organization or two
• Take a workshop or two
• This is more of a "need to" - find a gallery that I like and get in there

Quite doable, I think!

And now, since you made it this far, you qualify for the exciting stuff! I was going to do some kind of a givaway to celebrate my "blirthday," maybe do a drawing of names and give somebody a giclee print. Instead, I am giving away an ORIGINAL PAINTING!!!

The way I am going to go about it is this: you send me a photo, I pick one that is the most artistically appealing and interesting to me, make a painting based on this photo, and give the painting to you!

A few guidelines:

1. Submit photos to watercoloredhands@gmail.com between now and February 6. You have a month.
2. You may submit more than one photo.
3. Photos cannot be copyrighted material, i.e. you can't take somebody else's photograph and submit it to me, unless they give you the permission to do so.
4. Subject matter can be anything. Portraits, pets, landscapes, architecture, industrial, cars, bikes, flowers, whatever.
5. Do look for some drama in your photos. Pictures with strong light/shadow contrast, intense emotion, saturated color often make the most interesting paintings. This, of course, doesn't mean that I wouldn't enjoy a photo of a foggy morning, for example.
6. I am looking for high quality photographs. Avoid unfocused, blurred, washed-out shots.
7. I especially do not recommend flash in portrait photos. Try taking those in natural light, either by a window or outside when the sun is low.
8. If you have a story to go with the photo, please do tell it! :)

I think this is it...Can't wait to see what you have!