Building Habits that make Painting Daily Automatic

"Queen of Diamonds"  20 x 20 mixed media on canvas

If your paintings could talk, what would they say?  I think mine would want me to set them free!  They would want me to let loose instead of trying to control every move. We’ve all been taught to think carefully before we make a brush stroke and to know what we’re going to do before it happens. But that creates anxiety doesn’t it? If you’re like me my hand begins to shake and I stress over “getting it right.”

“The moment you doubt whether you can fly, you cease forever to be able to do it.” Jon Barrie, author of Peter Pan from Jan. 2015 Woman’s Day.

Those doubts tighten your muscles, the flow of paint, and the release of energy that makes your composition exciting. Having a well thought out plan is one thing. Allowing spontaneity to occur and to alter your initial concept is when the “magic” happens.

“A watched pot never boils.” When you keep too tight a reign on every stroke, every composition, or you over analyze your progress, you may miss out on something enchanting and remarkable. Let it happen! Just do it.

"Cafe' Costa Rica" 20 x 20 acrylic on canvas

If your paints could talk, what would they say? Mine would be angry with the disorganized mess, with the damaged caps from using a nut cracker to get them off, and the crimped twisted tubes, etc. A neat freak I’m not! I get so caught up in painting I sometimes forget that a neater pallet and a more organized paint box would actually make my job easier.

Recently I subscribed to Eric Maisel’s “Sunday Newsletter: Emotional Healing”. With my free subscription, Eric had a free gift: “The 97 Best Creativity Tips Ever” by Eric Maisel, 2011 all rights reserved.

I’m going to share with you the first 10 tips on Eric’s list.

1.  Be consistent in showing up. Getting to your creative work only once in a while won’t keep it alive. Make “routine” and “regularity” sacred words!

2.  Who knows how many artists fail because the light that shines through them is refracted in a thousand directions and not concentrated in a single beam? Pick projects and complete them! It is not really possible to work on a thousand things at once.

3.  One of the best ways to help yourself create every day is to craft a starting ritual that you begin to use regularly and routinely. When your ritual becomes habitual you will find yourself moving effortlessly from not creating to creating.

4.  Make the following pledge: “I will do some creative work every day, if only for fifteen or twenty minutes.” Honor your pledge for the next two weeks and spend fourteen consecutive days creating.

5.  Looking for only the perfect time to create? Forget about it! You are always in the middle of something so it is right in the middle of things that your creating must also happen.

6.  Even small amounts of time can be used for creating. Do you make use of fifteen minutes here and twenty minutes there?

7.  Are you good at capturing your own creative thoughts? Or do you let them slip away by telling yourself that they weren’t really all that good or all that important? Stop that! Start right now doing a better job of capturing and recording your ideas.

8.  You must reckon with your own character. Creativity requires curiosity. Are you curious enough? Creativity requires risk-taking. Are you willing to risk? Creativity requires energy. Can you marshal and unleash your energy? Creativity requires patience. Have you cultivated that quality? Turn yourself into the artist you need to be!

9.  Telling our truth can bring us pain and get us into trouble, but worse pain and worse trouble await us if we keep silent. Tell your truth—carefully, artfully, and courageously!

10.  Say yes to your creative work! Avoid maybe like the plague. Maybe is a state that takes you right to the edge of meaninglessness. Maybe plays to your weaknesses, your anxieties, and your doubts. Maybe frustrates you and disappoints you. Avoid the maybe trap!

How you Look at Clouds may determine how you Paint them

"Vikeholmen Lighthouse , Skudeneshavn, Norway"  Acrylic on canvas

I once heard that unless your clouds are the center of interest, don’t paint what you see – paint what people expect and want to see clouds look like. In other words, don’t allow the clouds to “steal the show.”

I’ve had to work at clouds. Landscapes sometimes overwhelm me. I always do better focusing on portraits and close-ups of details. But I want to do better. I love to study cloud formations and enjoy their beauty.

What do you see in the shapes of clouds? I see teddy bears and turtles, and fat round babies. I see enormous faces from different places. My imagination depends on what kind of day it is.

Judy Collins saw things in the clouds around her (inspired by Joni Mitchell’s words):

“Bows and flows of angel hair and ice cream castles in the air
And feather canyons everywhere, I've looked at clouds that way
But now they only block the sun they rain and snow on everyone
So many things I would have done, but clouds got in my way

I've looked at clouds from both sides now

From up and down and still somehow
It's cloud's illusions I recall
I really don't know clouds at all.”

If you want to catch Collins singing, watch this video. 

 

Is there a right and a wrong way to paint clouds? Some people think so. I did not get into a juried show once because the judge did not like my clouds. I've since tried to improve upon them.

"Beach Buddies II" 20 x 16 oil on canvas

Two different artists below show you two very different techniques. One starts with the “lights” and makes small circles, adding the darks later. The other starts with the darkest darks making odd rather than defined shapes. Both agree that the results should suggest transparency.

Tim Gagnon likes to create fluffy cumulus clouds.

Mark Waller, the artist below, believes that clouds should be made up of random shapes. Like Gagnon, he believes that paint should be applied gently and loosely. “Little circles” should come after not first, and be defined by the dark straight edged underpinnings.

"Vikeholmen Lighthouse, Skudeneshavn, Norway" a close-up view 20 x 16 acrylic on canvas

Pros and Cons of Control – when Enough is Enough

(A good example of "controlled" looseness)

We all like to feel in control of our lives, but some things are simply unpredictable. This year, travel and medical problems and procedures made it difficult to keep my blogs up to date on a regular basis. The interruption into my routine of writing and painting brought to mind the catch-all phrase emphasized in the movie Forrest Gump “Shit Happens.”

When this chaos affects. me and you, our projects and paintings may get messed up; and sometimes they turn into mud.  Almost every aspect of artwork must be supervised and controlled meaning that you should have some idea what you want to say, how you’re going to say it, and a visual image of how you want your composition to look.

(Yes, the artist knew what he or she wanted, but left room for creativity)

Even when you loosen up and release your tight grip on the brush, you are still in control. Taking a feathery fan brush and holding it loosely doesn’t mean you don’t know what you’re doing. I watched Lynne Pittard expertly push her oil paint with the tip of a fan brush softly and lightly; lifting as she finished each stroke. Lynne left behind perfectly separated sea grass in her wake. When she wanted to indicate seed, she simply pushed slightly downward (See YouTube video below).

The brush dangled loosely in her fingers as she moved the creamy oils with gentle persuasion. Although her touch was light, she remained completely in control because she knew what she was doing.

(Expressive Control -- A vision and a plan without rigidity)

Clouds can be made in much the same way making them look wispy and fluffy. Control comes in when you understand the feeling you wish to create and exactly where the clouds are needed. Keeping the paint smooth and flowing assists in the process. But if you get too carried away, the clouds may take center stage rather than settle into the background. Let’s face it. There is fun and pleasure in applying paint to canvas. But if you get lost in the process, you lose your overall vision and focus.

Certain techniques such as glazing require a soft touch. Waves that rise and fall spilling frothy foam over translucent layers must be executed with a gentle hand; but in every case, the artist is still in control.

The secret to a successful painting is to make it look effortless, as if the paint has been laid down with a feather rather than labored over or overworked. In order to do this your vision must be clear. On the other hand, you don’t want to be so rigid that unexpected splashes of color or shape are withheld because they weren’t part of your original plan.

Style dictates how brush strokes are laid down. Bold colors and broad swashes of paint help tell a different story. I have a new painting in mind that will require this approach. I personally believe the diversity in our world is beautiful and the people in it have unique individual stories to tell. Cultural differences may also require a bolder brighter touch.

Somewhere I heard the expression: “Let it happen.” If that’s a bit too unstructured for you, then have at least a concept or a story that must be told. Sometimes simple is enough.


Lynne Pittard's "sea grass" tutorial:

What are you waiting for? Just Begin!

"Ibis on a Perch" (looking forward) 11x14 matted/ready to frame

Sometimes the hardest part is starting; applying paint to canvas, words to paper, or bringing to life what only you can see. So you stall. You wait until you are in the mood. You procrastinate by savoring that perfect cup of coffee. Instead of eliciting your muse or the God of creation, you fiddle and fudge the morning away, waiting for inspiration. Not.

In case you haven’t heard, it doesn’t work that way! Action creates energy, energy spawns creativity, and creativity opens you up to receive inspiration. Get those fingers moving! Take those notes. Scribble that quick sketch. Don’t wait until everything is perfect. Imperfection creates “happy accidents” that happen when you're not uptight. Be loose. Quit worrying. Just get started.

"Moonlight Magic" 11x14 acrylic on canvas (my "happy accident!")

One day I was ready for an appointment, but had about 20 minutes to kill. I grabbed my kindle and started reading. Because I was worried about being late, I kept looking at the clock. Believe you me, when I glanced up to see what time it was, the minute hand had barely moved. It was like watching and waiting for a pot to boil. I was amazed at how many pages I was able to read in that short a time.

Progress comes in small increments. You don’t take a giant leap and reach “Go” (as in Monopoly). You take one square, one step at a time. The secret is to keep moving forward. It matters not how far you get in one day. Tiny units of precious time add up. Like the saying, “How do you eat an elephant?” Answer: “One bite at a time;” and in your case, one byte or one brush stroke at a time.

This week, I’m training in a new girl to take over my part time job. The company decided to hire a full time person rather than pay for two part time people. Throughout the day, she kept saying “I’m overwhelmed” right now. She was trying to eat the whole elephant in one or two days. I remember the feeling well. But she’s sharp, she’s tech savvy, and she will learn the ropes, one step at a time.

"First Daffodil" 16x20 acrylic on canvas @ http://carol.allen.anfinsen.artistwebsites.com

Why do we get so impatient with ourselves during the inevitable “learning curve?” As certain as night follows day, what initially takes extreme effort and energy to perform will soon be done by rote. Actions that are difficult in the beginning will become mechanical within a few weeks or months.

Anxiety attacks are commonplace in the beginning. But if you stick with the job and just “do it” rather than stressing out over it, “This, too, shall pass.” The job, the project eventually gets easier. Remember the adage: “Of all sad words of tongue or pen, the saddest are these, 'It might have been.” ― John Greenleaf Whittier

"Dregs of Winter" matted and ready to frame (There will be a spring)

We had a dear artist pass away last week. She lived fully, taught art for many years, and established her own reputation. I don’t think she ever looked back with regret. She lived for today. When you reach the end of your life, never feel that you “missed out.” For better or for worse, “just do it!” Start each day with a dare. Challenge yourself to begin, even if you use baby steps at first. Don’t get left in the dust. When you reach the end of your life, never feel that you lost “what might have been.”

Building Habits that make Painting Daily Automatic

If your paintings could talk, what would they say?  I think mine would want me to set them free!  They would want me to let loose instead of trying to control every move. We’ve all been taught to think carefully before we make a brush stroke and to know what we’re going to do before it happens. But that creates anxiety doesn’t it? If you’re like me my hand begins to shake and I stress over “getting it right.”

“The moment you doubt whether you can fly, you cease forever to be able to do it,” said Jon Barrie, author of Peter Pan from Jan. 2015 Woman’s Day.

Those doubts tighten your muscles, the flow of paint, and the release of energy that makes your painting exciting. Having a well thought out plan is one thing. Allowing spontaneity to occur and to alter your initial composition is when the “magic” happens.

“A watched pot never boils.” When you keep too tight a reign on every stroke, every composition, and over analyze your progress, you may miss out on something enchanting and remarkable. Let it happen! Just do it.

If your paints could talk, what would they say? Mine would be angry with the disorganized mess, with the damaged caps from using a nut cracker to get them off, and the crimped twisted tubes, etc. A neat freak I’m not! I get so caught up in painting I sometimes forget that a neater pallet and a more organized paint box would actually make my job easier.

Recently I subscribed to Eric Maisel’s Sunday newsletter: "Emotional Healing”. With my free subscription, Eric gave me a free gift: “The 97 Best Creativity Tips Ever” by Eric Maisel, 2011 all rights reserved.

I’m going to share with you the first 10 tips  from Eric’s amazing list.

1.  Be consistent in showing up. Getting to your creative work only once in a while won’t keep it alive. Make “routine” and “regularity” sacred words!

2.  Who knows how many artists fail because the light that shines through them is refracted in a thousand directions and not concentrated in a single beam? Pick projects and complete them! It is not really possible to work on a thousand things at once.

3.  One of the best ways to help yourself create every day is to craft a starting ritual that you begin to use regularly and routinely. When your ritual becomes habitual you will find yourself moving effortlessly from not creating to creating.

4.  Make the following pledge: “I will do some creative work every day, if only for fifteen or twenty minutes.” Honor your pledge for the next two weeks and spend fourteen consecutive days creating.

5.  Looking for only the perfect time to create? Forget about it! You are always in the middle of something so it is right in the middle of things that your creating must also happen.

6.  Even small amounts of time can be used for creating. Do you make use of fifteen minutes here and twenty minutes there?

7.  Are you good at capturing your own creative thoughts? Or do you let them slip away by telling yourself that they weren’t really all that good or all that important? Stop that! Start right now doing a better job of capturing and recording your ideas.

8.  You must reckon with your own character. Creativity requires curiosity. Are you curious enough? Creativity requires risk-taking. Are you willing to risk? Creativity requires energy. Can you marshal and unleash your energy? Creativity requires patience. Have you cultivated that quality? Turn yourself into the artist you need to be!

9.  Telling our truth can bring us pain and get us into trouble, but worse pain and worse trouble await us if we keep silent. Tell your truth—carefully, artfully, and courageously!

10.  Say yes to your creative work! Avoid maybe like the plague. Maybe is a state that takes you right to the edge of meaninglessness. Maybe plays to your weaknesses, your anxieties, and your doubts. Maybe frustrates you and disappoints you. Avoid the maybe trap! 

If you want Eric’s free gift of “97 creative ways to keep working” sign up for his Sunday newsletter “Emotional Healing” or email him @ ericmaisel@hotmail.com

Chasing Perfection – is it a Wild Goose Chase?

"With these Hands -- Love"  24 x 18 oil on canvas

We all want the perfect life, the best husband or wife, wonderful children, and a great job. If you’re a creative, you also want a bestselling novel, a T.V. series, or a show in a prestigious gallery. That perfect project is almost within reach, you can feel it in your bones, if only you can find the right combination of skill and good luck.

If you don’t believe this is true, take a look at recent sales of self help books. As people chase after their dreams and unrealistic expectations, these books continue to fly off the shelves. Their banquet of promises serves up redemption (of career and soul) with a helping of hope for the hopeless. Their combined themes provide a dose of inspiration and a jump-start of motivation. 

But there’s one thing these novella's leave out: the work involved in becoming “all that you can be” is up to you. You must do the work. You must practice every day. The grueling effort to succeed must be done by you. When you close the book, you are alone.

"With these Hands -- Hope" mixed media on 16 x 20 canvas

I gave up on perfection long ago when I discovered that it was impossible. We mere humans are simply too fallible. We’re programmed for failure, and we must accept this. Failure does not mean the end of anything. For some it is the beginning if we pick ourselves up and try again. Our success should not be dependent on what others think or say, but on what brings us joy and satisfaction.

Some people defy logic and become successful in spite of criticism or failure. Why? Because of their drive and their love for what they do. When they fall, they get back up. They face their demons and try again. Their tenacity may seem foolhardy to some, but it is what gets them up in the morning.

That perfect novel or perfect painting does not exist, anyway. In fact it is the slight errors, the overlaps, the imperfections that give artwork its “painterly” effects. Only beginners strive for perfection trying to make the lines perfect and straight. The seasoned artist is satisfied with illusion, energy and emotion. Once you give up trying to be perfect, that blend of relaxation and looseness takes over and guides your brush intuitively.

In the beginning we must learn the steps that lead to perfection and know the rules that govern our craft. After that, we must joyously create in order to express the passion within. If we are lucky (or blessed), our journey will include not only mistakes and possible failures, but moments of clarity that will make our efforts worthwhile. 

"With these Hands -- Wonder" mixed media on 18 x 24 canvas

Finding your own way in a crowded marketplace

"Reggae Night" acrylic on canvas

In case you haven't noticed, I took some time off from painting this past year. I did a few fun things, personal projects; but for the most part, I stayed away from painting sessions with my art league and the usual mad dash of competitions and shows except for those already scheduled. I needed space and time (plus I had 1 wedding and 4 funerals).

I felt I was placing quantity over quality. The pressure was piling on, and in order to meet deadlines, I was slapping paint without experiencing the joy. There were still a few things on my to-do list that I wanted to complete, and a few old canvases that I painted over. But for the most part, I laid my brushes aside.

I’m trying to reassess what direction I want my creative energies to take. I want to enjoy what I’m doing more and not take myself or my journey so seriously. If success comes in the process of seeking, I’ll be happy. If it doesn’t, then I’ve enjoyed the ride.

"Prayer Circles, mixed media on canvas

Success and achievement require sweat, blood and tears, but if we aren’t having a good time it shows in the end product. Balance is the key, and I felt I was off balance spending too much time in social media and promotion, and not enough time on inspiration and soul searching. I needed to explore my weaknesses and strengths, and what I wanted to accomplish.

Joy must be a part of the creative life or our “children,” our babies suffer. Cranking out paintings for the sake of producing something that may or may not sell is a losing battle. There’s a difference between honing your skills every day in the act of fusing your passion and love or just going through the motions because “you’re supposed to.”

Waiting for inspiration is not the answer either. It’s an excuse. The fear of failure can shake us to the core and cause us to “seize up” in a nervous frenzy. In order to create, we must be in the moment and love the simple pleasures of applying paint to canvas regardless of whether the painting brings us success or not.

Playing to the judges or the critics doesn’t cut it. If we manipulate the thought process to satisfy others without the passion, the result may be a skilled piece of work that is flat and lifeless.

"Fish Market" mixed media on canvas

In a local publication called: “Inside Gateway-Colonial,” I read an article in their Lifestyle section titled “Simple Ways to Find Deeper Meaning” Unlock what’s inside – passion, individuality, community – to connect with what’s important by BPT News Service.

The author said “A new movement is emerging, where people are pausing to find deeper meaning in everyday life. . . The theory goes that if a person recognizes and nurtures those activities they love most, they are better able to do what they’re great at in the world. . . Rather than getting swept away in a hectic schedule, try focusing on what truly matters.”

I realized that I was focusing on what mattered to the judges, to people in my art circles, and to the critics, rather than to my own gut feelings. I was allowing my insecurities to rule rather than my strengths.

In the busyness of doing, I’d lost touch with myself and what was important to me. I was blind to the things that make me unique and different. I was trying to ape what I thought others wanted instead of listening to my own drum beat. Sometimes we have to be willing to make mistakes in order to forge ahead in new and uncharted territory.

"India Rising -- the Lost" mixed media on canvas

Mind over Matter – Imagination is at the Heart of it!

"Shimmy Shake" 11x14 mixed media

I’m working on some illustrations. Aside from the story line, I’m creating purely from imagination. The more I create, the better it gets! The secret is to see clearly an image of what you want to paint or draw. In this way, an artist breathes life into a painting by creating real characters that seem almost alive.

There is great freedom in creating this way. Sometimes I need a model or a photo to see how an elbow or a knee looks when it’s bent at a certain angle. Or I may want to capture a frown or a surprised face and verify how that emotion shapes the human face. Are there wrinkles around the eyes? Does the mouth form an “o” shape?

"Moonshines" 18x24 mixed media

My imagination seems to be working overtime these days. I’m seeing faces and forms on our bathroom floor caused by water marks and the path of the sunlight as the day progresses. I try to draw these faces quickly before they get away.

Having a sketch book at hand when you’re not at your work station makes the job easier. As a writer, I learned to carry a moleskin notebook with me wherever I went. I’m still a note taker jotting down my first impressions of a subject. My descriptions later turn into drawings.

"Lucky Lady" 11x14 mixed media

The most important treasure an artist has is his imagination. It is a living and breathing thing that needs to be nurtured, coaxed, and used in order to thrive. By doodling a little each day, your imagination can be teased and coddled into being creating artwork or characters that may be fleshed out into something more substantial.

Many abstract paintings have faces, images, and forms tucked away in places that bring an intense interaction with the viewer. These images may be from collages or strictly from imagination. They bring a human element into the work that becomes personal and intimate.

"Release" 24x30 mixed media

 

The more you use your imagination, the freer your brushwork will become. Loose brush strokes add energy and vitality to an otherwise static painting. By learning to visualize your subject matter, you’ll be able to create something truly original.

Even a painting done from a photograph can take on a life of its own when you allow your mind to run wild and your heart full control over your paint brush.

(The above pictures are part of a two-page spread in my children's book: "Inez Ibis Flies Again")

The book is about how to deal with a disability and moving into self acceptance:

"I know a place where heron feed," she offered, encouraged by Will's thoughtfulness. "Would you like to go?"

"I'm there," Will said as he lifted his wings against the twilight.

Inez forgot all about her leg as she made ready to fly. She didn't notice the limping and the hopping before take off. She was beyond happy, and Will was her friend.

A Workshop by any Other Name

Inspiration and fun highlighted a demonstration by the renowned artist Art B. Cunanan, a water colorist from the Philippines who lives in Ontario Canada. Once longing to be a comedian, Art’s wife, Lu, suggested he stick to painting. A professional oil and acrylic painter at the time, Art moved into watercolor for the freedom it provided for spontaneity. His secret? “You must plan ahead!” He paints for the “light,” which requires leaving areas of the canvas unpainted where you want and need the most light.

“Loose” is his watchword and Art slathered watercolor paints on a dry canvas with vigor and imagination. Using plenty of water and a mop brush or “rigger,” Art places color first in sky areas, using his favorite cobalt blue wash, but only in certain areas. He leaves some white spaces for clouds or light.

Working his way down the canvas, Art splashed in some yellow near the “eye line” Art prefers to paint plein air and from his imagination. For our demo he worked from a photograph so we could see how he applied his interpretation of what he saw to the canvas. Using only a few light pencil marks to define negative space and light, he worked loosely around those parameters.

The rigger brush provided a point when he needed detail, but mostly he washed many different colors over areas of the canvas, leaving them unblended; a splash of alizarin here, a touch of yellow ochre there. He never uses green, but prefers to add cerulean blue to areas of yellow mixing them on canvas to make green. He stressed that too much time on a canvas produces overworking and “tightness.”

Masterful at what he does, he wrapped up a beautiful finished painting in about 40 minutes as we sat with our mouths hanging open. For a beach painting, he also spattered some droplets of color to add texture to the sand and some finer shadows. He stressed that colors should appear in different areas all over the canvas to provide continuity.

Cunanan added people to scenes with simple shapes and the stroke of a brush tip. Two legs were single strokes of a different color (no feet or detail). A head was a simple dab of paint. What brings the people out and makes them viable along wiith other details? Art uses a touch of white gouache on the shoulders and head. His people look realistic and add to the energy and interest of the painting.

I will be taking a full day workshop from Art next week while he is here in Fort Myers. In the Spring he has workshops in Spain and Italy. In the summer, Cunanan teaches workshops in France. Of course, he teaches in his beloved Ontario where he is more familiar with painting snow scenes than beach scenes and pine trees more than palm trees.

Please go to Art’s web site and enjoy his wonderful energetic portfolio
@ http://www.artcunanan.com/