I want.

 

Woods Road 

6 x 12 oils

More and more I find myself dissatisfied with what I am producing in art.  Yes, the pieces are technically sound, but really quite boring. I create snapshots of the world around me on canvas or paper but inside I want more. They gyotaku moved me into different directions and helped break some of the boundaries but I need to push further. 

I don't want to join the realms of chocolate box painters.  I want my work to speak for itself.  I want to break the rules.  I want to create stories on canvas.  I want to create mysteries in paint.  I want, I want. Wanting isn't good enough.  I need to turn that into action.

Its easy to point out the shapes that are missing, but not as easy to find the missing pieces and make them fit into a slot.  Even writing in this blog becomes stale.  It seems like deja vu so often.  Here is X, done with Y, size of P, blah, blah, blah.  Who really cares?

So what to do? 

I need a plan.  I know the direction I want, more or less.  I want looser, broader, more colourful.  I want structure without structure.  Not abstract, though that may appear, but forms that are recognizable that have life and brightness to them.  I won't know what they are until they appear.  And I won't know if it will solve my quest and frustrations or just make them worse.

I pulled out this oil, called Chocolate Road, that I had done last year.  I'm currently looking at old pieces and trying to revitalize them and give them some more life.   I added colour into the trees, glazed the dark muddy water and rutted road and am happier with it now.  The original piece is below so you can see the difference. Better or worse?

Original

Art and its production is almost a living thing.  It grows and changes.  Accepting that and allowing myself to grow along with it instead of fighting against it is something I need to learn.

Motivation and sketches

On the long, traffic ridden drive home today I listened to a podcast as I often do.  This was a Conversation with Dan McCaw by Leslie Saeta and Dreama Tolle Perry on the Artists Helping Artists Blogtalk radio site.  I really have to recommend that you take some time and listen to this conversation.  His insight into making art had me saying, yes, yes, yes as I drove.  He has a strong grasp on the world of art and some profound statements to make.  Its one of those keeper pieces that you'll listen to over and over I think.

If you have many pennies, you can purchase a copy of his out of print book A Proven Strategy for Creating Great Art.  And three more new books are in the works he says.

I'm still snowed under with work and art but there are always sketches on the end of my pencil and always a sketchbook within easy reach.  These two were done while lounging on the sofa, perhaps 10 minutes each.  Its a kraft paper sketchbook, a fading felt tip pen and the blunt end of a white pastel pencil. 

A new member of the Rodent Wall

I break rules.  Like the one that says you're not allowed to paint on the walls.

In my studio, over time, various little rodents are appearing in various mediums on the wall next to my work table.  This wall has been classed as the 'Rodent Wall', though other species may appear eventually.  They're a little like thinking out loud.  I don't know when one will take up residence around the telephone socket, they just appear randomly.

This little field mouse came in today, scouting out a home for the chillier nights of autumn.  I think he may hang around for awhile.  I hope the other residents adjust to sharing their space.