Friendships and Inspiration

A good friend of my is an artist too. Our approach and work are complete opposite.
She approaches her work with quick bold strokes and confidence, me on the other hand sketch lightly timidly and second guess myself. Pastels and joy are the order of the day for her and me, I tend toward brooding shadows and black. In my work I lean toward realism and she paints in a delightfully dreamy way.
No ones work is better than the other just very different and we both  capture the essence of our subject matter.
When I see my friends work I am greatly inspired. Not only by the wonderfully crafted and dreamy  pieces but by her approach.  Seeing her dive in completely and boldly somehow frees me to do the same. Now when I look at my work I am less critical and welcome the unexpected.


Here a piece made by the brilliant Sara Cohen.

Drawing to the Beat Part 2:Surrender

After painting blindfolded this is what I ended up with.  It really does look like a dog. I entertained the possibility of something else but I just couldn't see past the dog. So surrendered to what  it was and ran with it.
It just so happens that I love dogs.  As an only child the family dogs were my best friend. In this piece I really focused on the eyes and capturing the soul the animal. The face of the dog monopolizes the canvas so I wanted to bring the viewer in deeper with the expression of the eyes.I created contrast by taking a so called tough dog breed, the rottweiler and gave it  a sensitive caring expression.

Here is the finished product!

I really love this chaotic technique. Like life, it's about making the most of the hand you are dealt with.
Much inspiration to you! Cheers

Drawing in the Light of the Moon

I didn't want to get out of my warm cozy bed.  It was one of those days when things seem overwhelming and I had a bit of a case of the blues. I just didn't feel like working on my art. Blame it on the moon.


Gently I enticed myself out of bed and got moving. I made a nurturing cup of tension tamer tea and put on my favorite internet radio show. Then I approached my drawing
.
Things seemed to get better as let myself flow with it. I made lines, dabbed pan pastel then erased and tweaked my work. The blood started pumping. As I strung the pieces together I felt more together.


This isn't a pull yourself up by your bootstraps approach but a gentle coaxing. One foot in front of the other instead overwhelming to do list. The actual doing of the work was healing. And when I looked up the sun was out and bright and I felt the same way too.




http://www.panpastel.com/


http://www.celestialseasonings.com/products/herbal-teas/tension-tamer


http://www.ohotto.com/radio/soul_connexions/