9/18/25 watercolor/collage, day 4 / 2022 painting discovered /  by Philip Tarlow

9/18/25 watercolor/collage 11.25x14.25” as she looked following the adjustment to the two rocks.

11 AM: this morning, following my meditation, our coffee and our half hour walk up the trail, i addressed the issue of the two creek rocks, which were way too dark and grabbed your attention to the detriment of the composition as a whole.\

after trying to lighten the rocks using watercolor, my solution was to collage greyish paper onto the rocks. i did add a few marks with a black pencil, and left space below the collaged paper for the dark rock shadows to be seen.

as a result i feel much better about this piece and am ready to declare it resolved. mikela, who now joins me every morning in the studio, wholeheartedly agrees. she’s right here working on her educational product, and her presence inspires me. agyter all these years of working separately; she in the house and me 500 feet away, in the studio, we’ve discovered that working in the same space inspires us both. considering tha our house and my studio were both built in the early ‘90’s, this is quite a discovery!

BELOW: before and after this morning’s changes to the two rocks. good decision, eh?

12:09 PM: today, after completing 9/18/25 watercolor/collage, i began sorting through a large pile of works on paper, which had been piled on top of my filing cabinet. amongst them was this 2022 untitled painting in oil on linen, 15x17.5” which i placed in an empty frame i had handy.

untitled, 2022, 15x17.5”, oil on linen

9/18/25 watercolor/collage, day 3 /  by Philip Tarlow

9/18/25 watercolor/collage, 11.25x14.25”, day 3

10:46 AM: when i gazed at yesterday’s version of 9/18/25 watercolor/collage i got the feeling that it wanted to become a creekscape, so early this morning, that’s where i took it. the female figure is familiar if you follow my work, and adds a note of mystery. the rocks. trees and water are inspired by creek photos i’ve shot over the years, and the collaged piece on the right is from a reproduction of an 18th c. chinese landscape. what i’ve posted was updated at 4pm.

BELOW: yesterday’s version on the left

9/18/25 watercolor/collage, day 2 /  by Philip Tarlow

9/18/25 watercolor/collage, 11.25x14.25 “day 2 as she looked at the end of the day

7:35 PM: i did quite a bit more work on this piece, and here’s how it now looks.

9/18/25 watercolor/collage, day 2

9:47 AM: i made a few additions to yesterday’s watercolor/collage.

BELOW: yesterdays version on the left

9/18/25 watercolor/collage, day 1 /  by Philip Tarlow

9/18/25 watercolor/collage, 11.25x14.25” watercolor, colored pencil & collage on bristol paper, day 1

3:34 PM: after spending my morning doing a little studio cleanup/reorg, i launched into this new one: 9/18/25 watercolor/collage. it’s actually made with watercolors and colored pencil, as well as a few collaged bits.

as is true for many of my recent works, this one could easily remain as is, and the trick is knowing or rather feeling when to stop. when i placed it alongside other recent pieces of similar size, it was a relief to experience just how uncompicated it is and therefore how clearly and brightly it sings it’s song.

"9/16/25 watercolor/collage" /  by Philip Tarlow

9/16/25 watercolor/collage, 11.25x14.25” as she looked at 4:30pm

1:16 PM: this morning i started 9/16/25 watercolor/collage, “ on a piece of 9.25x11.25” bristol paper. as i began working, the skies over crestone darkened, threatening rain. the initial drawing of mikela watering the plants in our entryway is in colored pencil. the collaged elements are from a printout of a 17th c. chinese scroll, which i’ve been crazy about ever since i discovered it some months ago. right now, as i gaze at the piece on my east wall, the collaged bits seem a little too strong. so i may stop posting and go back into it.

4:26 PM: i worked all day on this one, so what you’re looking at is how the piece looks right now, and i’m done for the day

day 2 of "9/13/25 colored pencil/collage" /  by Philip Tarlow

9/13/25 colored pencil/collage, 11.5x14.4” colored pencil & collage on bristol paper, as she looked at the end of the day

2:42 PM: today o took "9/13/25 colored pencil/collage" to the next stage, making quite a few changes and additions, using both collage and colored pencil. the piece now has a geometric framework. a familiar plant has appeared, it’s green leaves spreading up into the composition. and blue collaged paper now gives the impression of a sky, making all that lies below into a kind of landscape. the red flower i started with yesterday remains in the upper central portion of the composition. this piece stands out in it’s boldness when placed next to other recent works, while clearly belonging to the same stream of visual sensability.

BELOW: 9/13/25 colored pencil/collage yesterday and today

day 1 of "9/13/25 colored pencil/collage" /  by Philip Tarlow

3:07 PM: this morning a workman arrived to cap the leaky valve that feeds water to our refrigerator freezer, interrupting work on this new piece. thus far, it’s colored pencil & collage on bristol paper, with no watercolor. but that may change tomorrow. right now we’re both exhausted, since we’ve been up since 3 am, when the leaky water coming down through the ceiling from the kitchen, upstairs, woke us up.

the renovation of our kitchen will be complete on wednesday, and until then we’ll be having our morning coffee in the studio, where mikela has been working on her educational platform. this is the first time we’re both working in the studio, and i love it!

9/10/25 creek drawing / 9/10/25 BATHROOM DRAWING /  by Philip Tarlow

2:06 PM: whenever the urge to go up to the creek and draw/paint comes over me, i have to listen. so at about 11 this morning, i started preparing my equipment, loaded it in the car at noon, and drove up the rocky, narrow dirt road, past shumei and the zen center to the creek. i say the creek, but actually there are quite a few creeks, with water rushing down form the 14K mountains above crestone.

when i completed the initial drawing in quill pan and india ink, i began using my colored pencils. after about an hour, i started back down to the studio, where i collaged a piece of paper over the second rock form the bottom, which wasn’t working for me, and declared it resolved.

while preparing to take my morning shower, i brought some drawing materials with me into the bathroom. why not, i asked myself, take very opportunity to draw? this may be the start of a series; we’ll see.

9/10/25 creek drawing, 16x6” colored pencil, collage & india ink on bristol paper

the creek this morning at about 11:30am

9/9/25 watercolor/collage /  by Philip Tarlow

3:28 PM: `i started a new 11 1/2 x 14 1/2 watercolor/collage this afternoon. i’m at the end of my painting day, and here’s how it looked moments ago.

9/9/25 watercolor/collage, 14 1/2x 11 1/2” as she looked moments ago