As a nature painter, I study landscape, and parts thereof. I studied birds a couple of years ago, flowers after that, and vegetables after that. My beloved trees have been studied for many years, and will be a subject for me for the rest of my career. I paint what I love the most regularly. That subject will be my strength onward, because I know it best. Trees and land are my favorite and what I do best. 

So, why not stick to those all the time? Because when you only paint one or two subjects, you don’t stretch and grow. You never paint poorly to learn new technique. You stick with the same palettes, brushwork, values. Your work becomes stale and predictable. Eventually, collectors have seen what you have, and look for something different. I know artists who do precise, excellent work, but their work looks just like it did 20 years ago. 

The other issue is that you become a rote painter. You can do it in your sleep. I never want to be that painter. I want to continue to struggle, to make ghastly mistakes, to learn new material and earth’s subjects. There are bird painters whose work makes me gasp with awe. I’ll never paint birds that well, but someday I might be one of those tree or landscape painters. 

This country painter loves a challenge…..