How many times have I been asked, or have heard other artists being asked, “How long did it take you to paint that picture?”

That’s a loaded question!  If I say two days rather then six months, does that mean the work is of lesser value? I never did understand why people ask this. Even if it took two days, it may have taken 10 years to get to the place where I could knock it out quickly.

Whoever said, “Anything worthwhile takes time and effort to achieve,” was correct. It took Michelangelo from 1508 to 1512 to paint the Sistine Chapel. Georges Seurat started painting La Grande Jatte in 1884 with a preparation of 28 drawings, 28 panels and 3 larger canvases. He roughly completed the piece a year later in 1885, but in a second stage, added more. So technically speaking the completion of the La Grande Jatte was just before its exhibition in May of 1886.

Whistler commented on the amount of time it took to complete Nocturne In Blue and Gold, “It has taken me a lifetime to get to where I can even begin to do this.”

Artists have different opinions and responses to how long it take to complete a painting. Some describe perfecting their works as a long, continual process of editing and re-editing. Others think it’s just easier to prepare and complete a series in a short period of time. Still some complain of being unable to finish a piece (for a variety of reasons). You can view other comments here: Readers Respond: How Long Does It Take You to Complete a Painting? 

Personally, I find it difficult to work on a piece for over a month. Most of my work takes several weeks to complete. I think about what I want to express for a long time. More often, one series follows the other in a natural progression of one idea opening up to the next idea. For example, I started many years ago with an interest in paper, and its origins and history, how it is made and how it was used for decorative purposes in different cultures. While teaching art in elementary school, I prepared a unit that included paper dolls. The paper dolls led to research on Victorian decorative arts. Later I learned about the cut-paper designs of the Pennsylvania Dutch, Polish wycianaki, German scherenschinitte, kirigami designs of Hawaii, cut forms of China and so on. My love for cut paper developed into a paper-cut series based on little people (or treeples) living in trees.  Eventually my trees evolved into florals, and I incorporated cut paper onto canvas with acrylic and craft material. In the meantime I took up meditation, and my florals morphed into swirling curvilinear shapes of color that included paper-cut mandalas.

I learn something new in each series. This propels me into the next set. This process begins with initial sketches, a studio prepared for work with standard paper and canvas sizes ready to go, and media that includes paper, acrylic, craft material along with my signature palette.

Patience, time and clear ideas developed over time led me to a seasoned approach towards my art. So now when someone asks, “How long did it take…? ”

I say, “Well, that depends… do you want the short version or the longer story?”

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