New Years resolutions

Happy New Year everyone.

Is the New Year another day or a fresh start?  We all know changes have to be gradual if we are going to stick to anything.  In my studio I  have made a conscious effort to recycle more and use what I have on hand, and just create. This year, I will allow myself to make mistakes, let it be O.K. to not like what I do, and just focus on the process rather than the product.  We sometimes get stuck in planning.  When I reflect on my young art students I see them tearing through my hand painted boxes of scraps and ephemera creating magnificent works with an explosion of random beauty.  The older they got, the magic and whimsy decreased for most but a token few.  I need to remember this. 

 

"Eat more veggies" began with an old postcard that had this wonderful artichoke.  I fussy cut it out and set it on top of a page in my scrap watercolor journal.  I had prepared random pages in a handmade watercolor journal with gesso, stencils, inks so when the mood strikes, I'd have a springboard to create with.

Stampotique's Artichoke Monster  by Kira Nichols absolutely needed to jump on the page.  I had thrown away a spiral notepad in the recycle --- it peered up and begged to be incorporated in the composition. 

A vintage children's book is my source of "vitamin A", added sequins, washi tape, scraps, doodles, and a watching birdie snipped from Kira's Stack of Birds.

 

Preparing backgrounds in advance and setting them aside can be a great way to get your art engine going.  It is especially helpful if you have to budget your creativity time. 

 

Janet