move

This puppy has been finished for a week or two, only I didn’t know it was finished til the other night. I just suddenly ‘realised’. Which is cool because I couldn’t work out what more it needed.

These progress shots don’t seem to start very early on, but it gives some idea of how it came together.

What’s also cool is it seems to be one of a building theme, which incorporates colour and figures in a slightly abstract way. I think it’s being heavily influenced by Nia actually; I’m still averaging three classes a week and it seems to impact my whole life. As my teacher says, ‘the wind blows everywhere.’ I think about dancing all the time!

It is hard to describe that internal ‘click’ I feel when I’ve added colour and lines intuitively for a while and then I SEE it, the image the painting wants to be. It’s kind of a buzz actually.

The colours in this one make my heart beat faster! I’m so happy with the figure, which just emerged on her own; I couldn’t have created that sense of a movement captured if I had painstakingly tried. It makes the paintings feel like they’re out of my control, which is both a relief and a bit frustrating at times.

Anyway, I’ve called this one ‘Move’ and it’ll be available in my shop shortly.

PS. Thank you so much for all the lovely supportive comments about the work I produced during my pen and ink class. It was really encouraging and is helping me keep the creative momentum going! xx

pen and ink class :: week 4

Today was the final class. Part of me is going ‘Noooo! I have so much still to learn!’ and part of me is ready for the next thing, whatever that may be.

I am inexplicably exhausted at the moment and didn’t take my most fired up creative self to class this morning. As ever, I had no idea what I was going to feel like drawing {planning ahead is useless for the likes of me, it’s all about how I feel in the moment}, just a bunch of images I’ve gathered over the years and a decision to trust that something would emerge.

It did, thankfully. {Note to self; remember that trusting allows for the thing you are trusting to happen, to happen. Nice.} There was quite a bit of practising, as watercolours ~ today’s area ~ are unfamiliar to me. I found it pretty challenging; they are unpredictable and don’t behave at all like acrylics. Claire suggested I photocopy my peacock from last week and practice on the photocopy. Also to try a few methods in my sketchbook so I don’t ruin my original. All very sensible. And look, the feathers came out beautifully! So I feel comfortable to try that on the real thing.

Since I am working a lot with figures at the moment, the urge to draw that was strongest and I had this striking image from some notecards I had years ago. I swapped the banana skirt for a tutu! And played with blending the watercolours once I’d drawn the outline with pigment liner.

Well I won’t be winning any awards for superior watercolour action any time soon, but I’ve learned a lot and enjoyed the class, so what more can you ask for?

I simply must have a nap now.

pen and ink class :: week two

I’m really enjoying this class, and pen and ink as a medium.Today we used black Quink with a brush, which gives lovely yellow and blue tones when you add water, and pigment liner pens for outline and detail.

I’m finding I get great pleasure from balancing large, loose areas with careful detail. I also learned that next to white/lighter areas you can put dark and vice versa, which really makes the image stand out.

And I’m very happy with this dude.