I meditate daily for about 20 minutes midday. For me, meditation involves an adapted legs-up-the-wall kinda yoga pose. First, I read for about two minutes. Then, I take off my glasses, close my eyes, bring awareness to my breath and to my senses. Next, I bring to mind 10-12 immediate specific things for which I am grateful. The sound of workers on a roof down the street. An email from Martha. A book waiting to be picked up at the library. After that, I am still, in body and mind. Or still in body but not in mind, and then my mind quiets again. Or not.
Today, before meditation: no idea of what I would paint.
After meditation: picked up a sketchbook and brought myself a little unexpected smile. Part of the smile came from the irony of having painted something related to Christmas, a holiday about which I have a few(!) conflicted feelings. The bigger part of the smile came from remembering the earliest Christmases of my life, in Cranford, NJ, about which I have no conflicted feelings.
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Waverly Christmas
4.5x6.5", acrylic and ink on paper
holiday
2015
$30 |
8 comments:
Dotty, I wish I could meditate. I need to!
This painting shows several things that you have clearly nailed: modeling to show the form, movement,light,perspective, and personality (yes, even inanimate things can have a personality!). It's a great piece!
Laurie,
My meditation practice, ironically and to my great amusement, began several years ago after I raised my voice in complete resistance and exasperation while talking with a friend to complain, "I don't have F***ING time to meditate!" Do with that what you will!
Thanks for your feedback re Waverly Christmas. Tell me what you mean by "modeling to show the form."
Part of the fun of this piece is that the trigger was a flat, unpainted wooden ornament I received as a gift this year. All the movement and personality came from inside me from deep memory.
Dotty
I LOVE this one! I swear I can remember that ornament. Awesome how 3-d it looks. Did I mention that I love it?' Amazing how shiny it looks. Amazing what a little bit of meditation can bring out of you. Love it!
LOVE that I hit the spot with this one! Thanks for your enthusiastic response!
So beautiful and joyful Dotty! Paint more Christmas... and keep it alive a little longer :) LoL.
Funny you should mention keeping Christmas alive a little longer. I actually have one or two Christmas projects I do every January! I do them in January because it's typically a quiet low-key non-holiday month, and it often even offers up a couple of snow days that feel like bonus days because I don't see students those days. All that said, I've never before done a January 30-in-30 … the month is not feeling quite as low-key as usual!!
What I mean is the value changes, from lights to darks on an object being affected by light. Your value studies (shading) have really paid off! I'm going to try to meditate when I have more F****ing time! haha! In other words, after this challenge!
Laurie, thanks for your explanation and affirmation re value changes. Even more, thanks for a bona fide out-loud laugh at your response to my response re having time for meditation!
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