Beat the Heat -- Summertime Brain Slog is just Ahead

"Fairy Glen" 11x14 acrylic on canvas

Somewhere in the last few weeks; I lost my “MoJo.” Maybe it’s the heat, which is already in the 90s here in Florida, along with muggy stifling air. The rising temperatures came early this year, and with them the beautiful Poinciana flowers weeks before their time. Early blooming brought one of the worst hayfever seasons in years.

I planted some cool weather flowers in February and they never took off because the season turned hot too soon. My brain wilted along with them. I'm going to cooler climes for a few days and maybe that will revive me.

(work in progress)

My weird and wild “Fairy Glen” painting is finished. After allowing myself “off the reservation” so-to-speak, I’m ready to get back to more serious painting. When this happens, I usually think "portraits" or at least a close-up view of something earthy and lovely. I haven’t zeroed in on what, just yet. My canvas is 20 x 20 so I must find what I consider the perfect subject.

I’m in one of those moods where I have to clear my head. I need some time and space to collect my thoughts and review some of those old photos and files labeled “to paint.” If all else fails, I’ll get close to nature and see if I can scout up some ideas

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With Bruce (Caitlyn) Jenner on the cover of Vogue, I know my meanderings must seem impossibly boring. Perhaps that’s why I’m seeing such strange artwork these days. Artists are trying to outdo each other in the category of sensuous, sensational, and stunning. The world of nature has suddenly lost its appeal, and people are going gaga for “Gagacious” curb appeal.

There are still some outstanding paintings and photographs happening on web sites such as Red Bubble, Fine Art America, Art Span, Etsy and others. There are also juried competitions not only in your local art galleries, but online. While you’re cooling down and trying to get a grip on your own art career, Google for these contests and enter them. They can not only inspire you, but give you a sense that you’re not so bad after all should you snag a win.

(From an old Stereopticon card cc 1898 by Strohmeyer & Wyman) Anfinsen Art on Etsy 

One thing I’ve learned is that you can’t create in a vacuum. Your mind must be chock full of “stuff” and nonsense in order to create. If nothing else, re-read your old art magazines.  Look at Family photos and old photographs for gems that may stir your emotions to the point of creation. If all else fails, read a good book. I’ve been reading some exciting historical novels and mysteries of late.

Here is an old Stereopticon card, one of the first colored ones. copyright 1898 T.W. Ingersoll
Anfinsen Art on Etsy

Oh, I know what you’re thinking. Isn’t that just a diversion to keep you from typing on your keyboard or slapping that canvas? Perhaps. But it also fills my mind with a lot of new images and ideas. The secret is to have pen and paper at hand. I’m constantly jotting down ideas, sometimes even just a word. I search. I scout the Internet for what’s out there. If cyber space is not already inundated with similar images, I know I’ve got a winner.

Explore your neighborhood, nearby parks, lakes and beaches. Once you’re out of yourself even for a few short hours it’s amazing how refreshed you’ll feel and ready to get back to work!

(close up of one side of the card. Notice the group of people? Rough carriage rut road?)

Catchy Tunes and Titles become the Springboard for Ideas

Father and daughter welcome new baby

Artists, Small business owners and entrepreneurs are getting hoarse trying to hawk their wares in an overcrowded marketplace. As they vie for attention, their petulance is showing up in ads, and in their names.

“Angry Orchard” is a new brand of apple juice “with a bite!” If that isn’t feisty and in your face, I don’t know what is? Let’s hope their bark is as good as their bite.

“Wild Dolphin” is a start up company that is capitalizing on the sugar and citrus products grown nearby to make rum. It’s a perfect fit. Tours and samples lure customers to taste and see if this isn’t the best rum made anywhere!

"Does this hat make me look fat?" 11 x 14 pencil drawing

“The Purple Dragon” capitalizes on Mahjongg lovers in the area who want to make new friends and play the game they love. Of course, Chinese Dragon’s, especially purple ones, create a fun environment where winning is not only based on skill, but the luck of the draw.

Names do make a difference. The title of a book certainly attracts attention. And yet fine artists seem reticent to name their paintings preferring that the viewer draw their own conclusions. The thinking is that the artist doesn’t want to influence a viewer’s perception or imagination. Whether this is a good practice or not is still being debated on social media.

Personally, I enjoy knowing what an artist has used as a title. I try to envision what he or she had in mind when they created the piece. Sometimes I see their vision and sometimes I don’t, but it doesn’t stop me from looking and wondering.

"I Stand on the Brink" 8 x 10 pencil drawing

I also enjoy letting my own fantasy run wild through the forms, shapes, and colors on a canvas. If done well, the painting will lead me through a labyrinth of contrast and values that are interesting and exciting. In my opinion, a title just gives the viewer a nudge and a head start.

Search engines find your blog titles much easier if they have some length and substance to them. Understanding “catch words” and trends can help bolster your topics. Words in headings that have fire, sex, red, wild, or sizzle seem to attract readers. Hit songs with fire in their title have become instant hits. However, overuse of any hot word or phrase becomes old and tired in a twinkling on the web.

It’s fun to create catchy titles. Sometimes the titles I create actually give me an idea for a future painting or a themed series. In your spare time write down those catchy titles and save them. See if they don’t become a springboard for creation.

"Guess Whoooo?" 8 x 10 pencil drawing

Healing the World through Natural Remedies and Cooperation

"Cafe Costa Rica" 20 x 20 acrylic on canvas

I’m having a cup of chamomile tea while I work. It’s supposed to be good for your immune system. I’m staying away from caffeine as I’m having digestive problems. I added a sprinkle of ginger to cut the sweetness of the flowery tea. Ginger is another digestive wonder. How do I know? I studied herbs and medicinal flowers using my favorite Public Library.

Before manufacturers got in the business of making drugs, people always used natural remedies in healing. I’ve used some of them myself: garlic for earaches and croup, dill seed tea for diarrhea and stomach ache, etc. Depending on how costly medicines and care becomes in the future, we may all need to learn about the natural healing properties of plants and seeds.

"Work-in-Progress" of Cafe Costa Rica

In the sixties, people were flocking to communes to share in "the love" and in the expenses like housing and food. Some of these groups were successful, and some of them ended up in bickering and violence.

Some people were attracted to the communes for a “free ride.” When they discovered they had to pull their fair share, bitter complaints and disagreements boiled to the surface.

Some of these “swarms” were brought together under the guise of religion, but instead of being anchored in truth, they were nothing more than mind control cults that preyed on the gullible.

I read about some of the early communes. I myself had longed to go to Alaska, the last frontier. Some of my favorite books tracked the early exploration and settlement of this spectacular land. The early settlers learned much from their Eskimo and Native American counterparts who shared their methods of gathering and storing food.

Additional knowledge was learned through experience and through bouts of hunger and starvation. Communes learned quickly that If you didn’t catch it, kill it or store it – you didn’t eat. People worked together building cabins, and bartering for food and game. 

An Indian mother showed a new resident how to put moss on her baby’s bottom to soak up the urine. Moss’s softness and drawing properties kept the infant’s skin smooth and free from chafing and rash.

Foods that the newcomers had never eaten were cultivated and harvested under the guidance of the natives. Using Alaska’s almost limitless supply of plant foods, fish and game made survivors out of them. A tough, hardy people, they faced unknown terror and starvation in order to carve out a new life in this wild frontier.

(Inspiration for the following painting: "Americana")

Could you survive if all the grocery stores were suddenly empty? What would happen if supplies were interrupted by terrorists or traitors? Would you know how to forage for food; what to eat and what not to eat in the wilds of your own back yard? If money was scarce and food lines were long, would you know how to plant a garden and feed your family or yourself?

Thanks to my parents and grandparents, I learned how to sow and to reap. Following in my mother’s footsteps, I canned tomatoes, green beans, applesauce, peaches and pears. When the produce was available, we pickled beets and cucumbers; cherries, apricots and raspberries. We made jams and jellies to spread on our homemade bread through the winter.

"Americana" mixed media on canvas

My father, a fly fisherman, caught fresh trout: rainbow and German brown that my mother froze for the winter months. We always had food on our table even when times were lean. 

If you are incapable of living in a world without electricity or technology, talk to someone who is. Prepare yourself, if necessary, for an uncertain future.

Paint Yourself a Hot Cup of Coffee and Enjoy the Brew

My Grandson owns a coffee shop online and one in the Great Northwest called “Café Solace.”  The beans are from Costa Rica, and there are many choices and blends that are absolutely delicious!  On a recent trip there, Bryce took a photo of the coffee beans above. I was so enchanted by the color and the variation of shapes; I envisioned a painting in the works.

“You paint it,” grandma, “and I’ll put it in my shop,” he challenged. And so my “in-progress” painting began.

Most ideas come from random things like this: a photo that catches our eye, a scene outdoors that takes our breath away, an emotional sequence of events that stays with us long after the event is forgotten by everyone else.

"First preliminary paint drawing -- work-in-progress"

Some ideas come to us in dreams; others through the gift of a vivid imagination. I’ve shared with you before my fascination with my bathroom floor and the varied shapes and images created from dripping water and bare feet. Some of these have actually ended up as parts of paintings.

Memories from childhood also inspire many paintings, especially when paired with the children we encounter in our own lives. I wish I could live long enough to paint all the cherubic faces I’ve observed and admired over the years.

"Moonshines" mixed-media on 18 x 24 canvas

Inspiration can also come from others. I’ve run a few contests on my blog with the offering of a print as the prize. Although there’s no money to be made, a contest draws audience hence potential buyers. In addition, the entrants have already given the artist permission to use their material, so anything submitted is fair game. Several adorable paintings and potential paintings have come from this source.

Contests serve a purpose, but they usually have a price. Sometimes they cost you more than you get in return. On the other hand, you get to know some wonderful people and oftentimes make lasting friendships. If you regularly have contests, make the competition challenging and fun and the prizes nominal. In that way, people will have fun and you won’t have a great outlay of cash. Are any of you game to name the work-in-progress below?

"Work-in-Progress -- Acrylic on 20 x 20 canvas

Newsletters and, of course, blogs reach out to people in a way that advertising can’t. I must admit, I haven’t focused on a newsletter, thinking my blog may serve that purpose. I find the interaction and participation in many online artist sites has been the biggest boost to getting noticed.

Above all, have fun doing what you’re doing. If you don’t enjoy slapping paint around and honing your skills in a competition against yourself, you should hang up your brush. In order to bring joy to others, you must bring joy to your work.

Here’s a link to my grandson’s online Coffee shop: http://www.cafesolacecoffee.com