Thursday, November 20, 2014

the new moon, the sun, and messy painting

So here's the thing...
I want to know more about the moon
and its effect on the heart.
The new moon comes in this Saturday
and I for one am relieved.
I've felt out of sorts for weeks now.
Many people around the world wait for the new moon
to begin new projects
to write that poem
to start that diet
to take that leap of faith.
Let's do it - this Saturday.
You and me.
It's a date!
This gorgeous photo was taken by Renée Belliveau,
a lovely young writer/photographer/artist
attending university near here.
Whenever i see photos like this,
I am blown away by the beauty.
Her father was a photographer.
She obviously inherited his eyes,
as well as his heart.
And I've had a few good days of painting lately...
I've been trying to loosen up for a while now.
(I used a paper towel here to remove the excess paint)
There's always that tendency for me
to have crisp lines, to clean it up, 
and I am trying hard to let go of this...
it just doesn't feel right anymore.
A bit less controlled than it normally is.
Still not great, but better.
I am noticing what I am drawn to in art,
and it's hardly ever the controlled paintings.
It's the paintings with splattered colours all over.
The paintings that feel messy and smooth at the same time.
The drawings with loose lines flying all over the place.
There are times in life for technique & control,
and then there are times for letting go.
i think i'm at the letting go stage of my life.
 Then I tried the same with a pencil drawing...
Sometimes, i like a nice, tight pencil drawing,
but these days, I feel like scribbling more than anything.
So I scribbled. ;-)
I did this in about 10 minutes first thing this morning.
It's supposed to be a facecloth on the table. ;-)
I forced myself to draw fast,
telling myself I had no more than 10 minutes.
I think I'll start doing this more often.
It's a good exercise to get the hand muscles going
and you know what?
It's not half bad.
For those of you out there who want to improve your drawing,
try this.
Quick drawings.
Messy drawings.
Doesn't matter what it looks like,
only that you get more comfortable with the pencil
and with the IMPERFECTION of the drawing.
It's not always about
how pretty it is, in the end.
It's about how you felt
when you drew it.

Maybe it's the kid in me, but
scribbling feels damn good.
:-)

7 comments:

  1. Hi Pauline.This is first thing I've ready today- my weekend (Friday) morning and it's put a song in my heart that I'll be humming all day. Your words and your pictures remind me of a Zen saying I read recently, " knowledge is learning something new every day, wisdom is letting go of somthing every day." Enjoy this beautiful journey of letting go:) Love the 'letting go' strokes of the lady in white languishing in the red sofa. xx

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  2. This is a wonderful advice! I like to get messy with digital art...it's more my forte...I just don't have the proper tools for how much storage it takes.. I hope you feel better on Saturday!! Apparently even hospitals have more emergencies during a full moon so there must be something to it. Beautiful painting too!! Loose yet still has you written all over i!!

    Hugs Giggles

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  3. Oops! Just reading your post on starting new on Saturday and it is already late Sunday evening - I'm always behind!! I love the idea of scribbling a little every day -

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  4. oh yes, it looks like you had fun .... :-) Sounds like great advice, the loosening up. It's thinking about the end result that blocks a lot of creativity. I'm trying to loosen up too, which works sometimes and sometimes not at all. I guess it depends what mood I'm in ...

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  5. I love your quick, "messy" creations ~ they're so lively, full of movement and passion!
    Love that moon and sunshine too. :)

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  6. Aww.. I like your work the way it is now, Pauline, but I understand the need for a change. Good luck!!

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