The image above (by Forge22 Design), has been overtaking my brain for months. I’ve long since ordered several versions of it on Redbubble: my phone case, greeting cards, stickers, and a poster. The colors and the aesthetic speak to me. I’ve always been a fan of the ’80s vibe (even back when it was the ’80s and that was just the way things were), but the last several years have seen a resurgence of that color scheme for me.

Now I can’t create art that looks anything like that. Not even close. But I’ve painted for years (acrylic on canvas), and I especially like intensely colored abstract works. I get a color palette in my head and all I can think about is translating that to a big ass canvas.

It’s time to go pick up some big ass canvases.

I have three large paintings I’m planning on replacing. All are fine, but the color schemes no longer speak to me the way they did. The colors are too soft, too pastel, or too uniform. I need bright colors and dark colors and I need them yesterday.

When I ordered a poster of that image (titled “Neon Sunrise”) from Redbubble, it arrived slightly bent. Redbubble’s customer service is excellent and they offered to mail me a replacement. In the process I wound up receiving two more posters, so now I have three. I’ve decided to frame all three and hang them in our small bathroom to overwhelm the bathroom goer with all the Neon Sunrise they can handle.

I used to paint far more often. Since Cloud came to live with us (in March of 2014), I’ve painted far less, mainly because of how I paint and not wanting him to breathe paint fumes. I like to lay the massive canvas flat on the floor and move around it. Sure, it makes my back feel cranky later, but I like being able to see it flat. I’m sure I could still do this with him here and he wouldn’t bother the painting. If the fumes bothered him, there are plenty of other rooms for him to go to where windows can be opened (our living room has no windows, which actually works perfectly for all our books).

I’ve been imagining a lot of neon colors and deep navy blues that almost glow. I’ve been thinking about Far Cry 3: Blood Dragon’s color palette; lots of rich pinks and vibrant purples. I’ve been thinking of a neon rainbow, blurred and exciting. I’ve been thinking of neon orange and neon red with electric blue.

Neon is pretty much my color palette at the moment.

I have a few small canvases which I’m going to do test runs on. Whenever I take the plunge and buy large canvases (most of the ones hanging on our walls are 36×48), I always have that moment of anxiety where I don’t want to ruin them but I also want to get started and get those colors out. We may not be able to paint our walls here, but there’s nothing keeping me from getting those electric palettes on canvas where I can see them every day.

Sometimes there is that pull. I just can’t ignore it.

I’m also looking into finding a way to adjust some of the lighting here further to take advantage of the color-changing bulbs I’m so fond of. I finally incorporated them into the piano room (ORANGE ORBS OF BEAUTY), and I love being able to change the vibe of the room at the touch of a button on the teeny light bulb remote.

Now it’s time to ransack my painting supplies and get ready for all these beautiful colors to show themselves.

It’s going to be RAD.

And it’s going to be aesthetic as hell. Bring it.