Fly Away

My birthday was yesterday and I got a bunch of new art supplies from my family as gifts.  One thing in particular I was really looking forward to trying was a set of Turner Acryl Gouache.  It's different than regular gouache in that once it's dry, it won't get reactivated so adding layers won't interfere with what's already there.  I spent the evening playing with them and I really, really love them.  They dry to a matte finish and it's very smooth.  This is a like a combination of opaque watercolors and acrylic paints.  I went with a more illustrative look for this painting by copying an image I found in a book that I took out from the library.  I was attracted to the illustrations when I saw the book.  It was in Bengali so I wasn't able to figure out who the artist was. I have been on kick of trying out new styles and themes.

Edited to add:  After doing some googling, the illustrator is Leo Lionni.  This practice painting is for personal use only.

The Cat Angel

One of the places I volunteer for is a non-profit cat rescue operation called Catz Jazz.  While I haven't had the opportunity to help out with the cats yet, I did volunteer to paint a memorial painting for one of the kittens that passed away in 2012.  They would like to set up a memorial page on their website for some of the special kitties that died.  I was requested to added angel wings to the cat.  I found this to be more difficult than I anticipated.  Overall, I'm pleased with the way that this turned out.  I worked from a blurry photo however I think I captured the essence of sweet Mokie in the painting.

Inside My Sketchbook

I keep a sketchbook that has only pencil drawings in it.  Sometimes, I sketch out ideas for paintings in it.  Other times, I just doodle and have some mindless fun in it.  The following series of 5 minute sketches were done with the aim of mindless fun.  I started the first few while watching a Woody Allen movie that my husband rented.  I generally don't like Woody Allen movies but I figured I'd give this one a try.  It was To Rome with Love.  Well, I didn't like it at all.  I sat through it with my husband and sketched while listening/watching with half an ear.  The following evening, I brought my sketchbook to bed with me and I sketched more of these funny looking characters before I went to sleep.  They make me laugh with their silly expressions.  I think I have more of these in me.  We'll see!

Prompt6ix #3

This week, Tammy gave us a new series of prompts to work from: decadent, tree or petals, magenta, rubber stamp or eraser stamp, painted polka dots and diagram.

For me, decadence comes in the form of chocolate molten cake.  My all time favorite dessert.  The leaf stamp is made from an eraser I carved a couple of years ago.  It got good use in this spread. I'm really enjoying these prompts so much.  I get lost in the creation of them and hours just fly by.  I love working in my art journal because there is no pressure for it to be a piece of art.  It's just play.

To The Moon and Back

I used to tell me daughter when she was little that I loved her to the moon and back.  And she would reply that she loved me to infinity and beyond.  She's an adult now and I still love her to the moon and back.  Sometimes though, I wish for those simpler times when she was still a little girl.

This was done on 11" X 14" canvas panel with collage elements, stamping and acrylic paint.  This is in the style of the Tree Free Spirit class I'm taking although this time I tried to make it more of my own rather than replicating Mindy Lacefield's work.

Journal Prompts

I like the idea of journal prompts.  It takes the pressure off of trying to come up with something to art journal and at the same time it's challenging to figure out how to put all the pieces together in a spread.

Tammy from Daisy Yellow has put together journal prompts called Prompt6ix Personal Journal Prompts.  For #2 in the series, the prompts were: lime green, raindrops, ogee pattern, treasure hunt, acrylic paint and grunge.

I had so much fun with this.  The quote reads "The wise man does not lay up his own treasures.  The more he gives to others, the more he has for his own. - Lao Tzu"

Art journaling

I seem to be on a role with the creativity and art making...and I'm loving it!  Here's a journal spread that I finished a couple of days ago.  I drew this girl from imagination.  I had the urge to draw a face so I did.  Once she was drawn, I had to figure out what I was going to do with the rest of the spread.  I flung a little paint here and there, stamped, painted some more added some collage and there you have it.  Then I found a quote that resonated with me in the moment.

"Only as high as I reach can I grow,

Only as far as I seek can I go,

Only as deep as I can see,

Only as much as I dream can I be."

- Karen Ravn

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Listen to the whispers of your heart.

I'm participating in an art card exchange with my Bloom True group.  I decided to paint a 5" x 7" card on watercolor paper using the techniques I've learned so far from the True Free Spirit class.  This little painting took me so much longer than the bigger painting I did of the True Free Spirit Girl.  I worked on this for the better part of the afternoon and evening.  I think this is because I knew it was going to someone.  I was just so fussy with it.  Normally when I paint, I paint for me.  I don't feel any kind of pressure about the outcome.  That's not to say that I don't care what it looks like, it's just that I'm much more relaxed about it all because there is no one else's expectations that I'm trying to meet.

I hope she likes it!

True Free Spirit Girl #1

I finished my first assignment for the True Free Spirit class I'm taking.  I had to redo her face a couple of times because I couldn't get it right.  I'm looking forward to doing more like this and make it more of my own.  I pretty much tried to follow how Mindy Lacefield did it in the video so that I could get a good feel for how to do it.  These are monthly classes so I have plenty of time to practice this one before we move onto the next True Free Spirit Girl.  This was really fun and different for me.  I haven't done shading on a face quite like this before.

This mixed media piece was done on a piece of 8" X 10" hardboard that I gesso'd first. This is truly a mixed media -- collage, acrylic paint, stenciling, stamping, markers, pen and watersoluble pencil.

Follow Your Bliss

This is my first completed painting for the year.  I started her several weeks ago but she sat unattended until today.  My wish is that everyone has the opportunity to follow their bliss.  I truly feel lucky that I am able to follow mine.  Making art, painting, being creative is truly my passion in life and I feel bliss when I immerse myself in my creativity.

This lovely mixed media girl is on an 8" X 10" canvas.  There is a lot of texture on this one due to the collage elements.  She is available in my Etsy shop.

Happy New Year!

Firstly, I'd like to wish you a very Happy New Year.  I hope it is filled with lots of love, laughter and good health for the coming year.

My word for 2013 is TRANSFORMATION - spiritually, artistically, physically and interpersonally.

I have begun reading Julia Cameron's The Artist's Way: A Spiritual Path to Higher Creativity. I plan to work through the course in the coming months.

This year I want to try to pay more attention to the little whispers inside me.  You know the ones, where when you have to make a decision and your inside heart tells you the answer but it may not be the same as what your brain is telling you.  In the end, I find that had I listened to those whispers, my source, I would have had a better outcome.

I feel called to be of service in some way.  This feeling has been sitting with me for the last couple of months.  I finally did something about it.  I am going to be volunteering my time with two non-profits.  I have a third in mind but haven't worked out the details yet.  I will elaborate more on this in a future post.

Artistically speaking, I want to continue to explore different mediums and styles until my style emerges.  I don't know what that is yet.  I would like to also continue to find opportunities to enter my work in exhibitions, or other venues.

I plan to have a regular art journal practice.  I am going to do Journal Fodder 365: Daily Doses of Inspiration for the Art Addict by Eric Scott and David Modler with a group on the Art Journaling Ning.

I'm participating in a group called A Piece a Week.  Hopefully I will be able to complete a piece of artwork every week.  How cool will that be?!

I'm also doing the year long course called True Free Spirit with Mindy Lacefield.

I'm very excited to see where all of this takes me.

On the physical aspect, I plan to continue with my weightloss efforts and exercise.  I will be finishing the Couch to 5K program by the end of the month.  By then, I will be able to jog/run for 30 minutes straight. This seems like such an incredible feat for me. My plan is to enter my first 5K sometime in Spring once I build up my speed and distance. That's been on my bucket list forever.  My hope is that I will be at my goal weight/size by summer.  I will continue to go to the gym three days a week and run three days a week with a rest day on Sunday.

Interpersonally, I want to expand my friendship circle with new arty friends and rekindle old friendships that I let lapse.  2012 was a year filled with ups and downs for me personally and when I feel out of sync, I find it hard to be outgoing and personable.  I tend to retreat inward.  As a result, invitations to go out stopped coming after repeatedly being turned down.  That was completely my fault. I realize that I need my tribe.  I feel the void. My girlfriends filled me up in a way that's different from my husband (my relationship with him is great so it's not something lacking with us).  There's a sisterhood, a knowing, a comfort, a belonging that I felt with these women. My experiences with them were rich and soulful to me. I want to have that back in my life.

I'm very excited to see where this year of transformation takes me.  I have high hopes for this year.

This is the first page of my art journal for 2013.