Art is a demanding goddess!

Yes, art is a demanding goddess. Every day I face an empty art journal page or canvas, and every time I wonder what to put on the surface. It's never self evident. I have techniques, yes, and I rely a lot on previous experiences, but when all is said and done, I have to just "go with it." Only when I look at the finished page do I know if I like it or not.
However, who cares if I like it or not? It's not about me and my likes, it's about showing up at the page or canvas and be open to the creative flow. It is always there, but my head is usually in a thousand other places. Being human is not easy...not if you want to continue to explore art. In some ways it gets harder all the time because you are always put in front of the choice of being more and more true to yourself.

I put up a lot of resistance to showing up more authentically in my art. I might not like what wants to come out onto the paper and I judge it instantly and put it aside. I have no idea why I experience such resistance toward exploring the next step of the evolution, but I do.
Still, I can't stop making art, so I might as well suck it up and be more brave.
There is a lot of cookie cutter art on the web, and some of it I love. I try some of the techniques and they are lots of fun. I'd say it's more of a craft approach to art, and it can be very rewarding. ANY art expression is good; it brings us closer to who we really are and urges us to grow inside.
At some point there is the wall of resistance in front and a wall of "no-going-back" behind you. The only way is to move forward, one dot or dribble of paint at a time.
The Universe doesn't give a hoot about the product, only about how I grow inside. Sometimes these art pieces take a long time. To break things up I do some art journaling pretty much every day.

Anyhoo, I was inspired by Tamara Laporte's technique of using magazine faces to create your own art journal portrait. I had a lot of fun making these videos.

"Dark Queen." I was going to do a whole spread, but decided to make two shorter videos. Only one is made so far.

Below, is "Lace." I used some lace in that spread.

Try something new today! Just show up at your scary blank surface and see what happens!

Here's to that tough Goddess of Art.

xo

Maria

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A Special Kind of Longing...

I spent the last few days making art, and oh-how-great it felt!  This time I used only paint, working on three canvases simultaneously.  No mixed media in sight, even though I love that style of art.  I painted and doodled and the face showed so much longing that the title became "A Special Kind of Longing" whatever that means in the scheme of things.  I was happy with the wild colors as usual.  This canvas measures 10x10" and has 1.5" sides.  The other two canvases are not finished.

I have created some pieces that never made the blog, so here are some pictures of those:

Some urban birds on a mixed media canvas titled FLY, 12x12"

Old furniture painted with turquoise chalk paint...

A chime without bells.  I made it from recycled lamp parts and LOADS of beads and crystals.  A friend received it for Christmas.

Matchbox mixed media for a swap on the Mixed Media Facebook group.  It went to Canada and I got this lovely altered Altoids tin from artist Lisa Scott in TX:

Isn't that gorgeous??  I love it!  

Besides art, I have been doing some writing.  I started the second book in the Trials of Hallion series: Crystal World.  One thing is for sure; when you multi-task you never get bored. :)

Happy creating in whatever media you love! 

Goddess or Angel of Creativity....

You choose the name for my latest painting!  She doesn't have wings, but she is an angel ... or goddess.
36X24" acrylic painting on canvas.  It evolved intuitively as I had an abstract that I'd thrown paint at before.  The face and the symbols came out of the initial spatters.  A fun way to create.... :)  Of course there are lots of dots!

Got another collage made...it was fun!

Here's a new collage I just made. I don't know how I felt about the finished portrait of the woman, but then it struck me: "Look Deeper" is the title because when we look behind the trends, the fashions, the looks, the attitudes, the demands of society, we encounter the mystery of our souls. That's where the true I/we live, and our connection to nature is a link that takes us into the wonder of life.
I started on a 12x12 gallery wrapped canvas with wide edges. I do love those; you can paint them in a color that enhances the artwork. Then I glued random paper snippets all over the canvas, careful to make sure the edges were glued down completely.
When dry, I went over parts of it with a wash of paint in different shades.
When that was dry I squirted some glue that gives interesting ridges and patterns when you paint over it when dry. (see picture)
I used acrylic paints to paint the woman, and I glued the glove on and a butterfly and dragonfly from some gift paper I had. A nice glossy varnish finishes off the piece. Varnish adds depth to the artwork.

"WEIRD" is almost finished...

Yessirre, I'm almost finished with "Weird" and truly weird it is. I'll be posting a picture of it shortly. I have two areas to cover with weirdness still, but I do like the colors (if I may say so myself.) I worked on it for 6 hours straight last night, and was so wired from all the creative output that I couldn't sleep until LATE.
Toward the end of my toils, I squirted out a glob of violet paint from a tube, and it went all over Bailey's paws. The canvas is so large it covers the chair where he usually sleeps. He didn't react even though I took a super wet paper towel to his paws. He just let me rub the paint away, but his yellow stripes now have a violet tint... Bailey, the punk cat. That should put the fear of God into his rival, the black stray tom with no tail.

Sunny here so far. Everyone is waiting breathlessly for Fay to land. I have to keep my rain flip flops handy...

Maria