Art Resolutions is a self-imposed initiative to create an art study everyday for a year.
Animals lurking.
Sometimes you can try too hard. In a world where time is tight and many people plan, plan, plan to fit in everything they want–there are things, like art, that don’t fit into the plan. I realize that this goes against the concept of practicing routinely to develop mastery. But I’m really talking about something different–the spark that fuels the practice.
Automatic drawing or other spontaneous creating provide a view into skill you have developed in particularly in line. It is a creative Rorschach, if you will. Removing judgement and allowing you to see things that may unintentionally emerge. The joy of this kind of discovery can revitalize the norm and eliminate a mental rut.
Two Cranes.
All this is to say that my current exercise in paint values and spontaneous painting has revealed some inner muses. I see animals. In yesterday’s exercise, a fish emerged. Today’s image looks like tandem cranes. Besides exploring the beauty of new textures and unintended layers, there has been a special freedom in seeing a different nature to my work–and, of course, finding critters embedded. Letting go is liberating.