Are we having fun yet?

The atmosphere was amiable. I enjoyed seeing the women at the painting class which was meeting again after the summer break.

I walked around to say hello and see what everyone is working on. One woman was painting a bird on a branch from a glittery Christmas card. According to her, the feathers looked fakey, the branch went in the wrong direction, she needed lessons, she was just wasting paint, etc. I admired her brilliant colors and told her. She dismissed it like it was a fly on butter.

It continued in that vein for a while. Me trying to give her a lift...She countering with something negative. I decided to move on. I’d forgotten her name.

I had done a search for landscape photos and downloaded a few to the I Pad in preparation for the class. I haven't done very much in the way of sweeping vistas so I thought it would be a good opportunity to learn something. The teacher communicates well and can be really helpful. It’s always good to tell myself it’s a practice piece, anyway. Then it’s all just an experiment.

I looked over at Ms. Fakey Feathers. I hadn't thought of asking her if she was enjoying herself.

I must not/must resist

I continue to produce my Above and Below pictures which has grown into quite a collection. I enjoy doing these abstract landscapey and watery pieces. I have put a number of them up on my walls in frames. I like having my pictures surrounding me.

With each of these, I used paper with a nice tooth, or texture. Then turning it on it's side, I lightly dragged a stick of oil pastel  over the paper. Because the paper is so rough, the color sits on the little peaks and leaves plenty of white. I started each piece the same way, using different color oil pastel. As I felt like I was experimenting, I admit I didn't take the time to plan out the picture. I was more interested in the kind of effects I'd get.

I've used oil pastels with watercolor before, so I knew not to use a good brush, or one that was too soft. A good brush gets kind of torn up and waxy. The soft one fills in too much of the white.

The oil pastel acts as a resist, causing the paint to skip. I mostly held the brush by the end of the handle, in an effort to apply the paint lightly. l always find it interesting to focus on the materials and/or technique instead of an object or photo in front of me. There's great freedom in not having to get it right.

Spot On

I rarely spill anything. Can't remember the last time, but the other night I was using purple watercolor and didn't realize it was dripping off the table until I shifted in my chair and it dripped on my foot. Shreeek! Besides the purple splashes, there was a purple puddle on the carpet the size of a slice of white bread. 

I grabbed a full sheet of paper towel and began to blot. I blotted and blotted and filled the wastebasket with purple soaked Bounty. 

Then I sprayed the stain remover we bought some years ago when we had the ungrateful dog houseguest.

I was dizzy from bending over and inhaling stain remover when dirty beige bits of carpet fibers started showing through the now fading purple. A few more rounds of spray and blot and it really was looking good. We were heading out to an appointment so I sprayed again and left it to marinate. Came back several hours later to find....a purple spot the size of a slice of white bread. But it really was much lighter. 

What was I doing with the purple paint before it ruined my carpet and maybe my relationship? I was just messing around. I got interested in dark lines on a painted background. Not sure where I was going, but tried a few variations. Here are some samples.

Like Night and Day

Day

Night

I always have the IPad handy when I'm painting. I use it to take photos of the work at various stages to see how I'm doing. I sometimes use a stock photo or my own, which I keep open on the screen as a reference.

As most of the work is viewed online, it's helpful to see how it looks on a computer. I will make changes based on what the camera captured.  As the pictures are back-lit on a screen, they look different than in person (often more vibrant). It's also convenient for uploading a pic to my blog or sending in an email.

The IPad is not always the best solution as you cannot get a high enough resolution for printing. If you want to get prints made larger than a postage stamp you need a camera.

Lighting when taking photos is, of course, vital. When I'm painting in the studio after dark and have lights on, the colors are very different than when I take a picture in daylight. Here's a dramatic example.

Take Away-an exercise in mindfulness

Non-dominant hand

As I first saw it

Taking lines away

This week, in our mindfulness art group, we explored drawing an object as it is, then drawing it again, taking something away. This prompt could as usual, be interpreted in whatever way we chose.

There were beautiful flowers on the table and I took a few to my seat. In the warm-up, we drew the object as we saw it, with non-dominant hand. After that came drawing it again and again, taking something away each time. What we took away was left up to us.

When asked to describe our experience, I realized that taking something away, even if it's a mark or color, not only can radically change the picture, but it can also change the way I feel. As I brought fatigue and sadness to class, (the reason to be discussed over drinks some time perhaps), doing this exercise tapped into a sense of loss. Each time I took something away was a very powerful experience. I was aware of feeling vulnerable already, and thought I was playing it safe by just changing line, layout or shape, etc. Interesting...

Taking away the stems, leaves

Changing view, background, layout

Sea Me Later

Well! It's been really tough. We've been in techno-hell for about 

2 weeks. The voicemail was down, the TV kept crashing; the computers just kept loading and loading. It goes on and on. Could not rely on any of our devices. It's been seriously stressful and disturbing.

It has been particularly limiting since I'm in the middle of several projects; all on the computer. I see that after I spend a few hours wrestling with Mail Chimp or Wordpress, there isn't much energy left to draw or paint or write.  

I have an agreement with myself to create something on paper every few days, and to post to the blog. I have not been able to produce much recently. I did finally, last night, finish this piece. 

So the message is to just keep going, even if it feels like you're under water, without oxygen. Chances are, you will surface very soon, and begin to swim with the current.