Share to XFirst, thank you for your continued support over the years. Some of you have been with us on the art journey for nearly 10 years now. Hopefully many more to come!
Let’s take a look at how 2025 went and set up some goals for the new year.
You can see previous wrap ups here: 2020, 2022, 2023. I missed a few years (consistency is not my strength!).
What Went Well
Overall, it was a strong family year, with art and writing taking a bit of a backseat. I’m okay with that, while the girls are still so young. How often do you hear “I wish I had worked more and spent less time with my family when I was younger”?
Some highlights from the year:
- We moved house and I set up a new studio. Our last home was not suitable for two kids and a dog. We moved to a single-story home (no stairs!) and converted the garage into my new studio. I’ll do a studio walkthrough when I get a chance.
- Arabella turned one, and Elora turned four. Both girls are healthy and thriving. Elora is showing a keen interest in art and painting. She is often with me in the studio working on her own creations as I paint.
- I painted from the kayak around Tingalpa Creek.
- I did a solo art trip with Kobe to the Noosa Hinterlands. Three days of painting and exploring.
- We did family trips to Byron Bay, Kingfisher Bay, and Fiji. I didn’t get any painting done, but I did get a heap of inspiration and reference photos.
- We launched the Tree Workshop, and I critiqued over 100 student paintings featuring trees from around the world. We will open this up to the public later this month.
What Didn’t Go Well
It wasn’t a prolific year in terms of my output. I didn’t paint or write as much. But that should change this year, with the house move complete and us finding our stride with the girls.
New Paintings
I completed nine paintings, including a few studies. Not many, but I have been going for quality over quantity these days. And I spent the last few months of the year working on my Elora painting, which is nearly complete.
New Posts and Videos
We published around 60 posts and newsletters and eight videos, including:
- Lesser-Known Claude Monet Paintings
- Lesser-Known Vincent van Gogh Paintings
- A Comprehensive Guide to Landscape Painting
- Plein Air Painting in the Noosa Hinterlands
- George Elbert Burr’s Watercolors
- Painting an Impressionist Landscape Using Palette Knives (Video)
- How to Paint Highlights on Water (Video)
2026 Goals
I want 2026 to be a year of creating. More good posts, drawings, and paintings. And I want to continue exploring and doing plein air painting. There’s something so raw about painting amongst the landscape that you cannot capture in the studio.
Your Turn
How was your 2025? What do you want to get done in 2026? Feel free to share in the comment section below.
Regards
Dan and Chontele Scott
Draw Paint Academy
Hello Dan,
First, we should actually thank you for your continued support, your suggestions, ideas, links to paintings and artists, and your way of encouraging all of us! I always look forward to your emails!
I took your tree class this year and as a result, ended up painting more trees from my travels. Not that I produced a lot or great masterpieces, but it gave me a different way of observing when I am outside, and I enjoyed painting them. And your notes from previous classes sure were helpful! My good intentions are to paint more this year and to include more landscape painting.
Happy 2026 to you and Chontele!
Agnes
Happy New Year Dan/Chontele and family,
Firstly, may I thank you for your impact into my own art journey for several years. Your newsletters are invaluable to me, perfectly timed and needed, to give inspiration, or to challenge the status quo. Often times just confirming my own thoughts.
2025 was a very challenging year that seemed to take away a lot of opportunities to paint, other than household kind. We tried to simplify life, yet still seemed over busy with life in general. Thankfully, we both saw an improvement in health and yet felt like 90yrs some mornings. To remedy this we both took exercising and fitness more seriously, I joined the same gym as my husband, sadly, we only find time to attend once a week!
2026 we aim to make the gym twice a week and only complete home projects less involved than those of this year. With regard to my art, I am still simplifying as I try to declutter from art books, (love reading books!) and be much more organised in my now dedicated space that doubles as my office/library too. Gardening being a love of my life since childhood, takes up time too, however, I intent to paint outside more (in own secluded garden) especially with oils, pastels, and charcoal too, weather permitting. My biggest de-clutter was taking everything to do with acrylics to an art society to encourage those who want to use them.
To share art with others is pretty special, so being able to make art that people can look at and it speak to them, this is my goal. I love that Elora is already an artist!
God bless you all this year and always with health, plenty of joy, divine appointments, and God’s abundant favour. Thank you, again for your faithfulness,
Love and prayers, Sandra (husband David)
Happy New Year!
I have been an acrylic painter for just over 5 years now and your workshops and master classes have helped me so much. Although I use a different medium, the theory is the same🙂
And I love your posts on the masters…
And your recommendations of books that are a ‘must read’.
I look forward to your regular emails so much!
All the Best to you and your family for 2026!
Thank you!
I have paid for a course and life keeps getting in the way. I can’t wait until I get into the class! Thank you for all your tips and keeping us up to date with your family Best of luck to you and yours in 2026
Dan, you have given so much to us. Don’t know how you do it. If this is not much for you then you are more incredible. Do spend as much time as possible with your children. Thank you for sharing your family with us. You are the one artist I look forward to receiving your e-newsletter. I spend intentional time to read. I’ve learned and relearned so much from you. The inspiration, history and your thoughts is priceless.
Thank you
Thanks Dan for sharing your gift with us. I was touched while reading your year end wrap up. Spending time with family is priority. Balancing that priority with financially supporting our families presents some challenges. Congratulations on your new home. My total for 2026 is to continue to be focused on the process and not rush. I find rushing oftentimes creates rework. I need to reduce the rework. Thanks again for all that you do.
Thank you, Dan. I always look forward to your emails – your thoughtful analysis of masterworks, observations on the creative process, and the planned approach you bring to your work. I find your posts and emails unfailingly humane, grounded in self-knowledge, and inspiring to this Kiwi hobby artist!
I’ve been painting for a year and a half now after retiring from a career of manufacturing wood floors. I’m still looking to discover my style of painting. I’ve been attracted to portraits, focusing on family and friends. I’ve started Dan’s master class in landscapes and a still life that my wife wants. I’ve especially enjoyed studying the masters and what makes their paintings great. I look forward to Dan’s emails each day. The more I paint the more I want to paint.
My art goal is to create smiles (even laughter). This often leads a simple little painting to become part of a massive installation. Life is full of challenges. I’m planning lots of art this year: a couple of series and some decorations for my home.
Hoping 2026 is happy and healthy for our growing crew of artists
As the year draws to a close, reflecting on what went right—and what didn’t—offers a quiet but powerful reality check. It reminds us that progress is rarely linear, and that every experience, whether smooth or challenging, carries its own lesson.
Daily life unfolds around responsibilities, expectations, and unforeseen challenges, all subtly shaping the choices we make. In the midst of this constant movement, it’s easy to lose perspective unless we consciously pause.
Taking time to reflect is not about judgment, but awareness. It allows us to realign, to acknowledge growth, and to step into the coming year with intention, clarity, and renewed purpose.
Thank you so much for all of your helpful insights and recommendations. The courses thus far have been extremely valuable in my ongoing effort to strengthen my painting skills.
I don’t usually set many goals for the new year, but for 2026 I am making an exception. My goal is to deepen my understanding of painting—particularly highlights and values—and to become as comfortable, confident, and playful with painting as I am with sketching.
Once again, thank you for your guidance; it is truly appreciated.
I appreciate your easy to follow, instructional lessons, describing each detail envoled in a painting.
So glad l joined your Draw Paint Academy platform several years ago.
Thank you for inspiring others in their works of art.
Best wishes and blessings through the new year!
Linda Burns
Thank you over the years for inspiration. I enjoy watching the paintings you do and how you do them. I am one of those who had aged into painting when I was about 50. I painted consistently for a number of years; always trying to do better. At about age 80 I noticed that painting was becoming hard to do and realized that arthritis had found its way into my hands and other joints. It has become hard to set for very long and my arms and hands give out long before my mind does. I don’t have any ideas on how to lessen the problem so I do a lot of looking and enjoying all art. If and when I decide to paint again I will enjoy the challenge even more.
I want to paint more this year.thank you for sending so many good pictures and tips.you are so good.Id like to try plein air painting but too self conscious.
Dan I think you are talented, generous and willing to dive deeper. Enjoy your young family. And new studio.
Thank you.
Hello Dan and Chontele, from Sonoma, California,
I enjoyed your wrap up newsletter above. I vote yes to the reality of life and congratulate you for accomplishing your beautiful paintings as you moved and reestablished your home, your studio, and your life while continuing to write to us.
I’ve been a member for many years. I’ve signed up for some of your classes. I’ve saved every posting you’ve sent over these years in order to go back and digest the content. That folder is stuffed full with so much interesting information! Thank you for sharing your experience and life with us readers and fans. You are much appreciated by me and by many across the globe. My promise to myself for 2026 is similar to yours. I will paint and write more.
My best to you and your family.
Virginia
Hi,
Thank you for sharing your goals and your paintings with us.
My Goal for 2026 is all about colour and producing a reasonable life painting using Acrylic which I find extremely challenging.
Vivianne
Dan,
I really appreciate your posts and the things you share, and always learn something new or get some good inspiration (tips and lesser known paintings by well-known artists, for example). The ones in the lower left (sea w/wave breaking on beach) and in the center (grassy slope w/trees and hills in misty background) are really wonderful! Looking forward to reading more in 2026.
Rich
(Oakland, CA)
Thank you for everything you do to help those of us trying to learn and find our footing in oil painting.
Dan, I agree with u 100% quality over quantity and those 9 paintings you did last year show it. They are amazing! I watched progress, videos, ect of each one. Through your Emails I have learned a lot. You inspire me so much, especially when I get stuck which is a lot. Keep up the great work and know its appreciated!
Happy New Year
Donna Trombetti
Rhode Island, USA
I look forward to your emails, so very much. It’s the nudge I need to pick up my brush on days when I wouldn’t even think about painting. I subscribe because I admire your work, your effort, and your honesty in describing the balancing game between creating and family/life. Through your emails, from art lessons to photographs and personal reflections, I receive the dose of inspiration I need, to simply ….. get on with painting! Very best wishes for 2026, your family and many, many thanks for your (and your wife’s – clearly, this is a team effort!) generosity in teaching, posting and conducting this forum of encouragement and exchange. I love it.
What medium do you use? I’m very sensitive to toxins
Hi Pamela
Dan uses oils and odorless solvent 🙂
Chontele
Hello, Dan!
I enjoyed your wrap up simply because of how honest it is about the reality of daily life snd our goals as creators of art of any kind. I am thankful for all I’ve learned since joining your group, the techniques, media and tools. Most important though is that I have come to understand and appreciate the spirit of the thing, the process of creation. I don’t aspire to be viewed in a museum and I don’t have to earn my living by my creative work. But I do need my creative work because it gives purpose to my life above any other contribution I make to humanity. While I am in the painting process, life is beautiful, never mind what else is going on in the world around me. Peace reigns in my space. The work itself is the saving grace, and it’s even better when I decide I like the result of my effort. So, many thanks for everything so far, and I am looking forward to another year of creative growth.
Mary Lu, you expressed my thoughts as I was reading Dan’s wrap up for 2025.
Dan, thank you, too, for your honesty about the reality of daily life. I have been a caregiver for over two years and it has consumed most of my time. I think of art every day and see a painting in many things and in many ways. I pray I will be able to devote time for art this year. As Mary Lu said so well, the cares of life go away while I am lost in painting. It is the best therapy! So, thank you, Dan, for being an encourager as well as an excellent art teacher and mentor.
Thank you for the excellent summary of your year. I’ve been following you and I’ve enjoyed how you teach a different way of learning about various artists, in addition to your advice on how to approach a painting. In my case, I paint watercolors and I’ve been working with two artists throughout the year, sharing my questions with them and managing to paint things that I find acceptable. This year, I’ve set myself the goal of creating my own works, because until now I’ve only painted what I see in class. My aim is to apply what I’ve learned to my own art; that’s my plan for 2026: to create a series and see what happens.
Dan, thanks for always inspiring and encouraging those of us who are just beginning to learn the basics of art but have a huge love and desire to grow in our talents. I painted briefly about 45 years ago , but then I marry the most beautiful , fun, and adventurous girl ever. 3 boys came quickly and life art was soon forgotten. But 3 years ago I slowed down at work, my wife and I own a hair salon where we both work, and decided to pick up a paint brush after about 40 years . I quickly realized this would be something I could really enjoy in the coming years. A few private lessons and hours watching YouTube videos have brought my work a long way. Didn’t mean to bore you with my life story but the point is, it’s never too late to pick up a new hobby. You are so wise to put your family first, the years go quickly.
Dear Dan,
Thank you for this excellent overview of your 2025.
Really appreciate your great didactic talent on top of your artistic skills.
I used to live in Noosa for 10 years. Worked as a GP in Eumundi.
Went back home to Amsterdam in 2019 where I found my passion for art and started drawing and painting at the Wackers Academy.
I always wonder what would have happened in my life if I had met you there and you could have been my teacher…
I appreciate what you do!
Warm greetings
Patti Slegers