More energies…

I finished ( at least I think I did lol) the latest large painting. A mass of energy directed onto the canvas, this one is what it is and the responses to it have been interesting and diverse, which is what all art should evoke. At 40 by 60, with the bold colours and movement, it is not for the weak of heart, or for those who favour more subdued colours or scenes, but I love it…I think…unless I work on it more. Unfortunately, it has been difficult to get a photo that captures the essence of it live as the light tends to play with the layering of glazes and changes the colours and the details.

untitled-View 1
oil on canvas
40/60
knives

Untitled-View 2
Different light
Oil on canvas
40/60
Knives

And something that harkens back to the series I have been playing with. This one shows the complimentary yet conflicting energies that sometimes we deal with in our souls.

Energies
Oil on Canvas
Knives

Energies

After a while of different directions (turtles, moose, aboriginal inspired styles), I found myself swinging back to the knives. I had a need to return to bolder, bigger, more movement. There were energies at play, building, waiting to be told in giant stories with broad strokes, energetic slashes and colour, colour and more colour.

Awakenings was the first to emerge, followed by Vertigo, the largest canvas to date that I have worked on, almost as tall as I am. Both of these are going to TAG Art Gallery in St Catherines, along with Ghost Spirit and others.

The last one is untitled to date as it is still a work in progress, but it is pure energy, an explosion of colour. We will see where that one ends up, but channeling energies seems to be where I will be playing for the next while.

Awakenings
Oil on Canvas

Vertigo
Oil on Canvas

Size perspective-artist and Vertigo

Untitled-Unfinished yet

Energy

I am a firm believer that we as artists are conduits for energies. Sometimes a work will “flow” effortlessly onto the canvas a symbiotic meeting of spirit and media. Other times, there is a battle, a struggle where it seems like energies are at cross purposes. Perhaps, the story being told isn’t the “right” one for the moment, the intuitive spirit is waging an inner war with the logical, what is thought to be the “right” story.

For this painting, I started off with an idea or concept. I have always loved Georgia O’Keefe’s paintings and saw a plate created to represent her work that was stunning, a balance between delicate and powerful. I loved the energy that it had so started off with that in mind. Wrong. Somewhere deep within, my own energies, the place where I am in my psyche, spirit, was at counterpoint to what I thought I wanted to do. I started off in one direction and absolutely hated it. It was not subtle (not that many of my works ever are). It sat there, heavy on the canvas, flat and boring and disappointing.

I looked at it. Left it. Looked at it again. Was tempted to pitch it. But stubborn woman that I am, I was determined to fix the damnable thing. And that was when I let it go-the preconceived notions of what I thought I wanted to achieve, the ideas of what it “should” look like. I pulled out my knives, mixed a crap load (technical term) of colours that I “felt” at that moment, and hit it blind, no direction, no “have to”, no “thinking” or “should”, just “be”, let the energy and where I am take me into the space and place where the energies are just channeled from the soul onto canvas.

I am much happier with the energy of the piece, the flow of colours, contrasts and movements because that is where “I” am. And that is the whole point really sometimes 🙂 Not the best pic as I took it on my phone since the painting is wet, really large and hard to move, but you get the idea I hope.

And I found another moose at 4am…

Apparently, once again, sleep deprivation leads to interesting things. The moose, which was a sketch, and then a sketch on canvas, and then some colours here and there, came full circle at 4 am. There are still some more details and finishing touches, but it appears that this is the direction I am going in for a while yet.

Moose

The latest in the new series…

Apparently, when most people are sleeping, I am up at 3 am. And like anyone else, I did what any other good little artist would do when sleep is evasive…I finished off another painting. Still playing around with different aboriginal influences, this one has a lot more details. Maybe lack of sleep. Maybe whole new direction. Still needs some finishing touch ups due to caffeine induced shaky hand lol. Will see what the moose ends up looking like after I get a nap or two in.

And a turtle, and a bird and a moose…

They are done. At least for now. A bit of this style, a bit of another, they seem to compliment the directions I have been taking as of late.

Ghost Spirit-Oil on canvas

Spirit Wind-oil on Canvas

Turtle-Oil on canvas

New Year Sale!

Once again, with the new year, comes new things. However, in order to make room for new things, new styles, new fun, i need to downsize some of the pieces currently taking up residence in my limited studio space.

All works not currently associated with a gallery are on sale up to 40% off. If there is a piece that you have been eyeing up, send me a message with the title, and I will send you details regarding prices. Please note that prices do not include shipping. Pieces can be shipped on the stretcher bars, or I have successfully shipped different pieces around the world by taking them off the stretcher frame, rolling and sending. That would mean, however, that you would have to get them re-stretched, or framed accordingly. Please also check for import fees depending on your country.

A New Series…of sorts

I blame it on the moose. No, really, I do. People sometimes have a hard time following where my art is going, where is the “natural progression” that shows “growth”. I suppose I can understand that if you are used to looking at an artist who paints series after series in the same style, you could consider them “developing” their “art” as opposed to someone like my who skips and hops back and forth from series, to style, then back again. The problem is, that is just the way my brain works creatively. I suppose I could, if someone pinned me down and forced me to, paint the same things over and over and over again, thereby definitively creating a box me in, write it up in a sentence statement “style”, but why, other than to facilitate those who feel the need to define me, would I want to if that isn’t who I am or how I work?

Anyhow, back to the moose…and I blame this latest diversion on it. I liked the moose even though it’s not complete, so I thought of playing with elements of that style, combined with my style just to see what direction it would take me. These are by no means done yet. With the holidays upon us, crazy kids, baking and all the rest, I will need time to finish them, but it will give you an indication of the latest direction my work is taking.

Soul Walker

A moose is a moose…unless it is a piece of art…

I have this tendency to do “interesting” er,  ahem, things and perhaps things that regular folks don’t tend to do, like use doors and regular old rocks for mosaics, or driftwood for wall art. I truly believe that allowing the creative process to break free in unique ways is part of not only my spirit and soul as an artist, but also part of my duty as an educator. One of my students proved to enjoy making overly large paper mache items. When it came time for our winter themed creations, with visions of all things Canadiana and Christmas bouncing around in my brain, out of my mouth popped, “so___, how would you like to make a moose?” A MOOSE?!? sigh..silly me for within 15 minutes he had taken a rather large garbage bag, stuffed it, and had it shaped for the rather enormous, almost life-sized head of well, a MOOSE! What to do, what to do…and I mean really, what do you do with an almost life-sized head of a moose when working within the confines of a classroom space and a number of other students, other projects etc. When in doubt, get someone who knows how to build things. A colleague of mine fashioned a small pony sized wooden saw horse to use a substrate and the real work began, scaling down the head somewhat, adding paper, sculpting with more paper and tape, adding antlers and ears, then layer after layer of gooey wet paper to seal the thing together. A coat of gesso and it appears ready to go. Even if not the most anatomically correct, it is rather LARGE and rather cute, my little albino classroom companion. The next steps involved figuring out what to do with him. Should I/we paint him in a realistic manner? Should he be turned into an interpretation? If you have ever been lucky enough to see the moose in Toronto, those fabulous artistic creations, then you would know the dilemma. In the end, we decided to go with a First Nations art influence and celebrate our Canadian First Peoples. From Ontario, we are interpreting the Woodland School style and from the west most definitely some Haida. When it is complete, is should be a figure standing for both our environment and people…we shall see what unfolds as we progress. Note to self, never, ever make suggestions when the mind is occupied with things or the heavens know it we will be building giant elephants and rain forests.

Crossroads…

And here I am again, at the crossroads. Well, at least artistically or metaphorically.

A bunch of ideas are playing around in my head and on the sketchbook.

I have a very cool, tripped out funky sketch, something that I really haven’t done before except in sketches, and maybe a bit in my “Jazzman”. I love it as a sketch and want to paint it…but…am just not sure how it should play out on canvas and with paint.

I also have a new forest series sketch. I’ve taken the concept a bit further, highlighted the powerful moon in the back and played around with landscape and trees…but…it reminds me a lot of “Whispers” in a way, and is that a good thing, or not, and do I want to do another one along those lines.

There are the dark hedges of Ireland that I have only seen in pictures to date, although i have plans to go, and they totally fascinate me with their tendrils entwining, the patterns and colours, the mystery and mood they create in contrast to the path they allow through. I have a sketch and I want to do them…but…where will my interpretation take me and how to capture the magic of such a place.

And then sitting outside with the sun filtering through the birches, the fall leaves falling and blowing, I had another idea about doing a background like those in the forest series, but then taking the palette knives and doing powerful birches in impasto..but…hmm….

There is a story waiting to come out and I can feel it pressing upon me. I know that there is something that I “need” to do and can feel it…it makes me antsy and dissatisfied and edgy as an artist. I can almost put my finger on it…just. Sometimes, when life gets so frenetically busy, the psyche for lack of a better term starts smacking me upside the head, telling me to sit…be still…listen…hush…breathe. And again. It will come.