Ellington

UW junior Andrew Martin is not an artist — he hasn’t even taken an introductory level class in the subject. But this business major has a goal: He plans to create 365 paintings in a single year.

On Aug. 1 of this year, Martin added painting to his daily routine. His collection, to contain 365 works in total, will comprise one painting for every calendar day. The project’s progress can be followed on his blog, “Year of Paint” (yearofpaint.blogspot.com).

When shopping for artwork to decorate their new apartment, Martin and his fiancée came across the art supply section of a local bookstore. Shortly thereafter, Martin decided to embark on the 12-month journey.

One would imagine that such an ambitious endeavor would be undertaken by an experienced artist — someone with formal training and refined talent. But when Martin first put what he describes as “bottom-shelf” acrylic paint to canvas, he had no experience whatsoever.

“It’s a completely blind venture,” the aspiring artist said of the collection. “I realized that I kind of liked it and decided to make it into a challenge for myself.”

He is no Vincent Van Gogh, and next to himself, his blog readers are some of the first to acknowledge it.

“I would expect the same degree of progress from a 5 year old,” one critical reader commented underneath a painting on the Web site.

Overall, however, the feedback has been positive. Martin has allowed his artistic technique to develop through trial-and-error process. Practicing concepts like shading has allowed his painting to evolve in the months since his project began.

“It’s already easier to do some of the things that were amazingly difficult in the beginning,” the artist said. He has even identified specific themes he hopes to revisit and improve upon.

“I’m not happy with all of [the pictures],” he said.

The subjects of Martin’s painting vary from piece to piece. Some of his inspiration comes from viewer suggestions. He hopes to create more pictures from this user-generated content. Martin’s artistic inspiration comes from just about every source imaginable.

“It’s generally anything I see throughout the course of the day,” he said.

The message Martin hopes to send through his project is that lack of experience or training should not deter individuals from capitalizing on their creativity.

The undertaking has not distracted the entrepreneur from his business school education, and he has no plans to switch career paths. However, the perseverance necessary to complete the ambitious project is something Martin said is pertinent to his field of choice.

Even though his newfound passion is only a hobby, the lessons he has discovered through it have applications in many aspects of his life.

“It’s nice to be able to sit down at the end of the day and do something you’re not used to,” said UW student Jamie Barker, Martin’s fiancee, about the therapeutic effect of the project.

Barker herself has contributed several pieces to the assortment of paintings that cover much of the kitchen wall in the couple’s apartment.

Martin isn’t sure what the future holds for his painting, but he hopes to display the “Year of Art” collection on campus upon its completion. While he wishes to sell a number of his pieces to finance the artwork, he also plans to keep a majority of the paintings from the project.

Until then, he will continue to explore the depths of his creativity, inspiring hesitant up-and-coming artists one painting at a time.

Reach contributing writer Lexie Krell at development@dailyuw.com.

Want to know more?

Visit yearofpaint.blogspot.com