Toiling With Seashells

©Dora Sislian Themelis

Toiling at this seashell oil painting, and it's been hard work.

Happy work, but hard work.

Every afternoon it calls me to sit and work a little more, here then there, slowly as ever.
See that seashell I'm pointing at? It is my nemesis, cousin to Mr. Resistance, whom I haven't seen around here lately. I've kept my date with the studio and I'm unavailable to "him."

However, this little seashell causes some distraction and push back, which invites the thought: "Is Mr. Resistance planning a visit soon?"

To get this shell to look right, meaning how it actually looks represented in paint, I squint real hard at it. I'm working hard to render the shapes, shadows and lights as they are instead of how I think they look.

I tried every brush I had to make the right strokes. I mixed color after color to find the right light. I reshaped the form to see if that helped me. By the time I had to end my session I had painted, scrubbed and repainted this one area a number of times to feel comfortable at this stage.

I posted this photo of my frustration on Instagram.

Can you tell I was gnashing my teeth?

Today I am back at the easel to confront the seashell of misery once again. Here's hoping this time will be the last and I can move on towards finishing this work.