Pushing Through

This little canvas, 24 x 24" has been giving me grief from the beginning.  If you follow me on Facebook, you will know there was a melt down in the studio over the weekend and I scrubbed this one back to the bare bones after making several attempts to paint it.  Well I'm happy to say, persistence pays.  I don't know of anywhere else in my life that I have more confidence that if I just keep at it I will be able to create something decent no matter the struggle to get there.  Maybe it's because the challenge is only about me and where I'm at and what I can accomplish as opposed to pleasing someone else, or figuring out what someone wants or expects of you and delivering.  Here in the studio it's just me and the Creator within, and so I persist in a way I never have in other areas.

Karin Lynn, a new blogging artist friend talks about power walking and her art in the same way, so I know I'm not alone.  Only it's the art that is building me from the inside out, maybe the power walking will come later ;-) Only in my dreams!

I will be donating this piece to the River Valley Gymnastics Club as part of their fund raising.  They have a number of other wonderful prizes they are selling tickets on along with my painting, so I'm hoping they do well.

Now to start thinking about a new mixed-media piece I was just commissioned to create. It's a nice size 24 x 48" with lots of special and meaningful elements to go into it.  More about that as it progresses, in the meantime hope you are all happily creating.

What's In A Name?

Triptych yet to be named

As you can see we have a nice snow storm going on, what a difference a day can make.  Yesterday was so mild, in fact the last few days have been so warm it melted down a lot of the snow coverage and reduced the snow banks considerable. I was out with the dog with a spring jacket on and no mitts or hat, today we had a blast in the storm!  I love the hush that swallows you up in the middle of a storm. Nothings moving, no cars, no people only the silence.  It's been an easy winter, not much snow accumulation so no complaints here.

Later today I will be delivering my latest commissioned triptych to its new owner.  It was commissioned by a friend for a friend.  These girls have known one another since they were six and are now in their 30's.  It's wonderful to see the closeness that still endures after all those years and it was a delight to create a piece that would remind them both of the beauty and endurance of their relationship.  I've not found just the right name for the piece yet, but feel it should somehow encompass and celebrate this theme. Maybe, Resolute or Unwavering.  Perhaps I'll see if they would like to name it together.

For The Love Of Triptychs!

I'm finding a number of my clients prefer the look of triptychs.  The three piece panels seem to capture their imagination, allowing for more possibilities.  Right now the commissioned piece I'm working on is two 12 x 24"s flanking a larger 20 x 24" done in earth tones.  I had a lot of fun coming up with the overall design (always have to think ahead when working with the Gorilla Glue)  I've got the initial layers of paint down, now I'm finessing some detailing and considering additional glazes/washes of colour in places.  Taking pictures always helps me at this point, allowing me to see it more objectively and take notice of things that need help or are a problem.

Lots of things in life seem to require that step back and a closer look before you can really see what's happening and what you might need to do about it.

Just glad to be painting, how about you?

Ancient Wisdom

'Ancient Wisdom' Acrylics & Inks on canvas 24 x 48"

I've been working on something that I kept seeing in my minds eye while completing a triptych for a client, called Ancient Strength.  Using a similar design layout, I could see it in more muted, fall like colours.  Although there are numerous things alike, from the branching tree like design, to the use of crackle and inks, the results are shockingly different.  I consider the new piece another break out piece and only hope that I will be able to get pictures that capture it's quiet elegance.

Is it shameful to call my own work elegant?  Perhaps I should explain myself. I only compare my work to 'my' work. Where had I been, where am I now and how does this piece compare to those that came before.  Should my gaze shift to others work and begin to draw comparisons I'm sunk, so I don't go there :-)  I am hoping that my talented daughter will be able to get some good quality pictures of Ancient Wisdom, but in the meantime this is what my limited camera and abilities can produce :-) I love the random clocks tumbling through space in the piece, (see below) I guess there's a story behind this piece when I consider the choices I made. Tree's have long been a love of mine, they speak to me of the ages, of time passing, ringing us with life's experiences, marking us with all that it brings, the seasons of abundance and the seasons of blight, just as a tree shows it's life's map within itself, so do we.

"The creative process is a bottomless reservoir of expressions.  As we try to do the same thing over and over again, we realize that exact replication is not the way of human expression." S. McNiff

Ancient Strength

'Ancient Strength'-Three 12 x 24" canvases

This was a special memory piece I created for a client.   (My apologies for the poor quality of the photos but the piece left the studio before I was able to get better shots, but it gives you an idea.) Working with the client I was able to incorporate some special elements beginning with the abstract tree running across the canvases as well as their up coming wedding date, along with other elements that helped to make this a meaningful piece.

Basic layout

Break Out

Just putting the finish on the triptych I've been working on the past week or so, the owner picks it up tomorrow.  They're happy and so am I.  It's some of the best work I've done to date!

Although it has been a major challenge, this new piece has turned out to be what I call a personal break out piece.  We all have them, that 'One' that pushes you, taking your current abilities and blending them with new inspiration and techniques that takes you to another level in your art.  When you stand back and look, you know you've gone to a place you've never been before and it does feel good :-)  Those that know you well and know each piece that you've created recognize it too.

You were right, my artistic blogging buddies, there was something just simmering away while I struggled with illness and being 'stuck' in January.  You encouraged me to just hang in there and in its time things would break open.  Thank you for your wisdom and encouragement, it's wonderful to have the support of those who've been there.

I've taken a lot of pictures with my little camera, unfortunately that's the best I can do before the piece leaves the studio for it's new home.  In time I'll share them with you, but I've got to wait for the big reveal before I can do that.  So for now this is just a snippet and a word of encouragement to those who are out there pushing themselves for their own break out piece or struggling through a slump, you will get there! Key to this happening for me has been a willingness to embrace my inner critic, allowing the questions to arise within that push me to go further, to try something else, something new, to risk what is for what can be.

"In order to improve, the process has to be able to look at itself and make adjustments. As I create there is a critic who accompanies each phase of the process. I embrace the critic as a companion, a necessary aspect of creative expression..."  Shaun McNiff  Trust The Process