paintings on paper

One of the exercises I want to implement into my studio practice is to paint and draw from observation. I know this might be a basic practice for many, but it's one that tends to get pushed aside as I often find I am racing ahead to get lost in what I am working on....

I recently started making paintings on paper, while taking a break between larger paintings. Perhaps because I wasn't thinking about them as 'paintings' and approached them as experiments, and the fact that they were from direct observation, I found the process of making them to be really liberating.

I like the idea of starting the studio day with looking and observing. It seems like good practice....like practicing your scales when playing music - doing your warm-ups, fine-tuning, and gathering information along the way.