What 31 Days of Painting From Life Taught Me

Reflections on the Strada Easel Challenge

This past January, I participated in the Strada Easel Challenge—a commitment to paint or draw from life every day for 31 days. No photo references, no made up motifs. Just observation, decision-making, and showing up daily with whatever time and energy I had – which varied greatly.

Like many artists, I’m prone to thinking that a “successful” painting session needs to result in a finished piece. This challenge gently—and persistently—proved otherwise.

Lesson one: daily practice doesn’t need to be precious.
Not every session produced a resolved painting, and that turned out to be the point. A quick sketch, a 10-minute color study, or a small impression done with focus and intention was enough to reap the benefits of the practice. Showing up consistently mattered more than outcomes. The habit itself sharpened my eye and quieted the internal pressure to produce.

Lesson two: I really love painting still life!
One of the unexpected joys of the challenge was rediscovering how much I enjoy painting still life. Glass in particular completely captivated me: the reflections, distortions, hard edges against soft light, and subtle shifts in color to capture its transparency and reflection. 

Lesson three: it was refreshing to step away from landscapes.
As a landscape painter, I spend a lot of time responding to wide-open spaces and changing light. Focusing on still life felt like a reset—contained, intimate, and controlled, even with a big brush! It reminded me that many of the same skills apply regardless of subject: value relationships, composition, color temperature, and confident mark-making. Changing subject matter refreshed my relationship to the act of painting itself.

By the end of the month, I didn’t just have a stack of sketches and studies—I had a clearer sense of what kind of practice means. Painting from life every day reinforced that growth doesn’t always look dramatic with a complicated set up. 
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As I move forward, I’m carrying this lesson with me: progress happens when you show up, look closely, and give yourself permission to practice without expectation.