I really struggled with the Jane Davies abstract landscape collage assignment. Despite my taking pleasure in process more than once (yay!), hopes that I'd also create something pleasing to my eye kept crashing and burning.
And I was feeling very discouraged.
Kept running around in circles.
Should I put my whited-out version of You Know That Wyoming out at the curb in the recycling bin? Certainly felt like a viable option, a practical and potentially useful way to clear inner space and move forward.
Should I give the piece another chance? And, if so, how?
I was at a loss and feeling burdened.
I woke this morning far from refreshed after significant insomnia in the night during which time I considered many painting ideas—all of which struck me as useless in the light of day.
Nonetheless, a genuine spark of interest in picking up my paintbrush again flared midmorning. It was just the tiniest spark, but here's where it took me when I fanned it … to a collage that pleases my eye!
I escaped my discouraged innerscape and created an abstract landscape! Hot damn!
 |
| Made for You and Me 8x8", acrylic and collage on watercolor paper abstract landscape 2016 $64 |
A recap of the journey:
 |
| collaged print matter |
 |
| veiled print matter |
 |
| color warmed up a bit |
 |
| hints of landscape |
 |
| abstract landscape |
 |
| buh-bye |
 |
| new colors; surface textured with foam stamps and wet cloth |
 |
| more collage added; tissue paper used to 'paint' refining touches |
 |
| finishing kisses of tissue; done! |
8 comments:
Oh Dotty, how you shine!
Ohhhhhhhhh, this is gorgeous, Dotty!
And I love thinking about painting during the night if I have insomnia. It means I'm not worrying about all the other "stuff" in life! Thanks for the progression on this, too. It's wonderful! You may be interested in an assignment I gave my class for Monday. They are to complete a painting of any size. The only request is that they focus on one main thing. My suggestions were:
Complimentary, analogous, split complementary, or any color scheme. Or a monochromatic painting. Or an all warm painting with a splash of cool. And the opposite of that. Or a mostly neutral painting with a splash of color. Or any composition with discussion of focal point. Or anything they want to do, as long as they tell the class their thought process. I'm going to do the same. Maybe it will get me out of my rut. I have 2 paintings to claim, but basically have been out of it.!
Love this piece, Dotty! It's great to see your whole process. Think how many other artists have multiple layers to their works! It's challenging sometimes to ignore that voice that says to "bin it," and keep going. What a transformation. I'm glad you described how you added the finishing touches. I wondered how that texture and detail was applied.
Laurie, thanks for your enthusiasm for Made for You and Me.
Laughed at our shared appreciation for having painting to think about to offset insomnia. Since bringing painting into my life, nighttime waking has been much more enjoyable than in the past!
THANK YOU for sharing the assignment you gave your class for Monday. Great ideas! Would love to be part of that group on Monday, seeing the art and hearing the stories!
Thanks, Corinna. I am so genuinely into process these days, a real gift that brings balance to my interest in product. The multiple layers are very compelling to me of late, both in the making and in the viewing after the fact. Glad you enjoyed my telling about process and how I did various steps; I find I go back myself to reread my blog when I'm working on new pieces.
Thanks, Sheila. It was fun to hear from you when Dave and I made a daybreak pit stop at the Starbucks in Wilkes Barre, PA, the halfway point between our home in MA and our daughter's home in VA. Right now I'm not shining to brightly, having left home at 200a!
This is really spectacular, Dotty! I love the explosion of red. WONDERFUL!
Isn't it nice, that you did not give up, and let the process just go its way? Hooray!
Simone, thanks so much! Isn't it all just magic—every bit of it? I agree: Hooray!
Post a Comment