Capture those magic moments before they get away!

I’m usually a “hang in there” kind of person. I stayed in a 30 year marriage long after I knew that things were never going to change, and I endured a miserable job even after I discovered the boss was a manic depressive chameleon. He ran hot and cold, but always impatient and mean.

I’m not a quitter, and I can always be depended upon to do my job. But when daily circumstances become stressful that’s the time to pull back and re-examine what you really want in life. Can you relate?

I’ve always been able to juggle my schedule and keep several things going at once, but suddenly I’m feeling more overworked than usual. I’m finding fewer hours for creative ventures so instead of trying something unusual, I'm sticking to a painting of birds because they give me peace and I find them beautiful.

"Brown Thrasher" 20 x 16 acrylic in barn wood frame

We all go through this hassle each day: deciding how to spend our time, and what  comes first the chicken for the table or the golden egg for the bank? Our well-planned days seem to unravel before us, and we run from one endless pursuit to another. Our “to do” list outgrows the available minutes we have to spend. We start feeling exhausted and unfulfilled.

Surprise! It isn’t more speed, more arms or more time we need it’s a slowing down of our mind and our attitudes. Instead of trying to cram more “stuff” into fewer hours, we need to savor the ones we have.

Did you know that when you ratchet down your fast pace and live in the moment, it seems like time moves at a slower pace? When you delight in each bite of food, rolling it over on your tongue, chewing it purposefully and immersing yourself in its flavor that extra five minutes you spend actually seems like 15?

"Fuchsia Fantastic" 18 x 14 Acrylic on canvas

When you rein in your usual tendency to forge ahead, pause and enjoy a child’s smile, your spouse’s goodbye kiss, a neighbor’s wave, the new fallen snow or the freshly mowed lawns of your neighbor’s. Notice that your body relaxes. Instead of frazzled nerves and a churning stomach, you’re in the moment. More than that, you’re in command of your mind and emotions. You’ve mastered the art of self-control.

If it were only this easy! I know it’s a constant battle. But wanting to gain mastery over your life is a virtuous desire. I dropped some activities thinking I was going to get on top of things, but I took on more responsibilities instead to fill the void. If you really want to have more time for the things you enjoy, avoid this trap!

Pacing and balance are our two greatest allies. Life has a rhythm that helps us sense when things are off and when they’re not. By nailing down the moments and reveling in each passing second, we lay claim to our dreams.

Abstract Realism – Yes, you can do it!

"Moonshines" acrylic on 18x24 canvas (abstract realism)

There’s tremendous freedom in doing an abstract painting. To do them well is the greatest challenge. What attracts the viewer? The colors, shapes, values, and most especially the mood. How does the painting make you feel?

Some abstract paintings are stark and limiting. Others may distort shapes or simplify images. According to Sue St. John, author of Journeys to Abstraction “The choices are vast and nothing is wrong. Abstract art can be incredibly liberating.”

Think of abstract art as fluid. Allow your brush to intuitively follow your imagination and mood. Take an idea, a theme, a feeling and express it in liquid motion. Keep in mind that an abstract artist is expressing “concepts” rather than exact depictions.

Abstract realism combines the best of both depending on what you choose to emphasize. Shapes and colors may be in the abstract with one part of the painting rendered true to life as the focal point. The reverse is also possible. Take a realistic background and an abstract center of interest. Inspiration is all around you.

I have an artist friend who gets inspired by fabrics. She can turn a small element of design into a full-blown abstract painting.

Look for shapes and patterns in your environment: the way light and shadow play out and create designs, structures, and lines. The world is full of texture, color and form. Examine how they work together and how they make you feel.

"My Trail of Tears" mixed-media on canvas

To advance a theme or emphasize a point, some artists incorporate symbols into their artwork. They are interesting. They provide additional information. For example, if the artist’s vision is “new birth” or change, a butterfly would help signify this metamorphous.

Many symbols are already familiar such as the circle (infinity, cycle of life, wholeness); the Egyptian Ankh which symbolizes the harmony between the physical and the spiritual worlds. Pentagrams (five-sided stars) represent the four elements of earth, wind, water and fire and how they are bound together with the fifth element of spirit.

The study of symbols alone would provide you with an astounding number of paintings and the basis for combining realism with abstraction. This should not only release you from preconceived notions about earth and life, but inspire you with countless stories and designs that are unique and personal. Above all, have fun!

"Moonlight Magic" 11x14 mixed media, layered acrylics

The following link should provide you with some great ideas. I’ve also included a quote by well-known artist Sherrie McGraw:

“A painting is more than the subject matter or the story it might depict. Good painting carries an undercurrent of beauty that expresses something beyond subject matter, beyond the tangible reality. It is this level of seeing that makes a painting a living thing, something that speaks even centuries after the artist is gone.”

http://emptyeasel.com/2009/03/31/3-ways-to-add-abstract-elements-to-a-realistic-painting/

Fact or Fiction – It All Depends on Your Point of View

(Work in Progress)

Do you believe in fairies? Peter Pan did, but then what does he know? He’s only a child -- a figment of   J. M. Barrie’s imagination. Barrie not only created Pan, but TinkerBell, the most beloved fairy of all time.

From birth, we’re persuaded that make-believe is fun and that magic is real. At Christmas time, Santa Claus is our jolly red benefactor and will reward us according to our behavior. If we’re naughty, we may receive a rock or a token of displeasure; but if we’re nice, our wishes may all come true.

Many cultures playfully indulge the existence of gnomes, elves, and leprechauns. Thanks to The Wizard of Oz, we acknowledge both good witches and bad. We have only to embrace their existence, and our heart’s desire will be granted or impeded. Depending on outcome, we are eager to attribute good luck or bad to whatever happens; and we try, like anything, to avoid the latter.

In futility, we perform rituals, incantations, and exercises to please the whims of the Gods. Our superstitions and practices are sometimes held in higher regard than our own personal faith and greater than our hold on fact or reality.

Favorite stories are often built upon dreams that eventually come true. Cinderella went from a serving girl to a princess at the whisk of a magic wand. Her fairy godmother turned her into a dazzling beauty and helped her gain the adoration of a handsome prince.

The story of “The Elves and the Shoemaker” reminds us that hard work and honest effort are rewarded, and that when we do well, even the “wee folk” seek to do our bidding.

When life gets really tough, though, we pray to the invincible God to bail us out. After all, He’s a God of sympathy and compassion, or so we’ve been taught. But if He doesn’t give us what we want, what then? Why, it only proves what we thought from the beginning. He’s not real.

Many people imagine God to be like a giant Genie or a kind old Santa Claus that winks at our sins and imperfections; a God that will often grant our wishes if only we go to Him. When our prayer requests are not granted, we fall into disappointment. At those times, we imagine that God is an angry avenger who punishes us for our disobedience.

Many people think that the Bible is simply a book of legends and fairy tales. Partly because they see God either as a great imposter or a myth. This conclusion is an insult to those who believe that biblical scripture is the infallible Word of God.

"An Open Book" 16x20 mixed media on canvas (SOLD), but prints available.

Deep down we all hope that God is real, and we want to have faith in Him; but how many of us actually suspend our disbelief and exercise our faith in the omnipotent creator of the world? Why is it so much easier to trust in ethereal beings from the netherworld than to depend on the one true God of the Bible?

So long as faith is lacking in the world, people will continue to rely on horoscopes, signs and wonders for answers, and the world will continue to flounder in darkness. (That’s my story and I’m sticking to it!)

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

Nail it Down, Make it Clear, Let it Happen!

"Swamp Angel" oil on canvas 16x20

The title: “Nail it down, make it clear and let it happen” is good advice whether you’re a fine artist, a performing artist or a writer. If you don’t nail down those ideas, they may scamper away forever. A brief note, a sketch, a few notes on a blank staff or a melody that gets stuck in your brain are sure to bring your thoughts back for testing.

Good ideas need to be tested. Either they blossom or they don’t. If they seem to go nowhere, they are probably just wisps of imagination. If your idea sticks and mushrooms into viable substance, it may explode later in a magical way.

When you're ready, take that sketch, that idea and develop it on paper or canvas. Make your vision as clear as possible. What your inner eye sees must be understandable to others. Giving your idea clarity becomes your first draft or your “working model.” Once you have it nailed down and visibly clear, you’re ready for the next step.

"Reggae Night" acrylic on canvas

At this point, being fluid is the key. If you’re too rigid, your efforts will become stiff and unbending. When that happens, your idea may become trite or stagnant. Freedom to float around the edges and let your inspiration lead you is crucial. Gut instinct and the willingness to take a risk or a daring leap is what separates a good artist from a great artist.

Acting or creating in a daring way is scary. You’re thinking, “Am I on the right track?” “What if this turns out to be a bad idea?” What will other people think?”

Self doubt is your worst enemy. Fear can keep you from discovering what’s just under the surface and within your grasp. Don’t get “stuck on stupid!” Believe that you are just as good as the next person in bringing a conception to fruition. Obviously training and skill assist you in this journey and make it easier to bring your passion to life.

When I started my artist blog, I wanted it to be different. Sure I was interested in featuring my art and enticing people to go to my online galleries, but I was in hopes of more. I wanted to inspire other artists, especially beginners with high aspirations, to overcome their fears and succeed.

My initial purpose was to motivate people not only to be better human beings, but to trust in their own inner voice. 

It’s sad when people give up. Even those who have become a success often give in to self-induced doubts fearing that they’re not good enough to be “up there.” 

 If you can hold on until you get past those dark days, there is usually a light, a glimmer of hope at the end.

What a shame to give up just weeks, days, hours, minutes before the light dawns and you see your way clear to turn your dreams into reality. Plant your feet on a solid foundation, dear friend, and hold on for dear life!

(Joseph Campbell's quote inspired this painting) "Release -- My Trail of Tears" 30x24 mixed media