Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas
Love the atmosphere of this photo. 

The beginning

I'm still exploring the use of only four colors.

Titanium White

Phthalo Blue (Green Shade)

Quinacridone Crimson

Hansa Yellow Med.

I'm beginning to question why and feel like I may be taking more to the Artist in Residence studio soon. 

I'm also exploring the discomfort of leaving a the page incomplete when my time is up. 

In other words, when I stop for the day, that's it. 

No more work on that page. 

You do know that I make these rules for myself day-by-day. 

and 

I usually break a rule day-by-day. 

Merry Christmas

♥

About Chance and Difference

cooking class in San Miguel

about chance and difference

I really don't know what that means.

For some reason, in that moment, it seemed that it might be relevant.

Purpose

values in charcoal

My truth: I struggle with purpose. 
I don't think this has always been true.
Just true for two or three years. 
After each piece of art that I create, a voice whispers, "what is the purpose?". 
Or sometimes it is, "what's the point?"

During the first week of being an Artist in Residence, I realized  maybe I discovered the "purpose" as in what's the point! I think it is just for the beauty.
Maybe it is just that simple and maybe I don't need any other purpose.
For beauty and as my friend suggested, for happiness. 
Yes.
♥

True Art Journey

graphite face sketch

Day 2

It didn't take me long to ditch the paint-before-sketch intention.

My truth after one day is, I just need to show up and pick up a brush or anything that will make a mark. 

true art journey

On this day I decided I wanted to have another go at the same reference.

I also decided the sketch was enough. No paint needed.  

First, I journal my daily plan or intention and then I do the art on the back of the page.

♥ 

Reclaiming

painting a face

Day 1 

The Thrill

The thrill came immediately after the Dawning (remembering the purpose of The Garden Palace) and the Awakening (realizing I had a daydream tiny house waiting for a unique artist in residence experience).

At first, the thrill was just the sense that the job of reclaiming my daydream was no longer too huge. And that, I tell you was an amazing feeling.

Then, as I began to go over there and be in the presence of all the reminders of unfinished projects, the excitement set in. The remembrances did not weight me down.

I began to get that swirling  feeling in my head, heart and stomach when inspiration makes me feel like I might explode.

 

painting with 4 colors

In the Journal

My Plan

Regarding Art:  Before my first trip over there, I determined that I would take limited art supplies and my Chance Luck and Destiny Journal which I had not touched in years. The original purpose of this journal was to explore painting faces without a sketch. OK, I will do that.

Regarding Reclaiming: I planned to spend time with my journal first and then before leaving for the day, I would accomplish a reclaiming task no matter how small.  

♥

The Awakening

Artist In Residence Studio

The San Miguel Infusion of clarity

I started this series by expressing a need to share and document how the infusion of San Miguel may have effected me. I knew there were many layers of my truth to put in the picture. Telling it seemed complex and necessary. However, putting all the details here may have only been essential to me. Here it is in a nut shell.

I felt a shift. I did not feel a jerk or a jolt. I would say it was more like a slow, gentle, lingering nudge. It was like a dawning. An awakening.

San Miguel may or may not have had anything to do with it. I just know that I came back with an infusion of friendship, love, art, color, clarity, calmness, and openness. Furthermore, in my rested mind, body and spirit, I was in a place of reception.

The dawning was remembering the purpose of The Garden Palace which was plain and simply for my own pleasure while making something beautiful that might only matter to me.

The awakening was realizing that I had my own tiny house for a unique Artist in Residence experience. And I didn't need to know what that meant; I just had to do it.


But here is the thrill! The sense that the job of reclaiming the neglected and abandoned Garden Palace was a situation too enormous for me to even attempt was g.o.n.e.! 

The artist has been in residence now since November 18th using the Chance Luck and Destiny Journal.

Next I will share what that means.
♥

Chance, Luck and Destiny

I'm wondering, are you up for a challenge?

I am feeling really challenged right now as by mere chance last night I injured my poor sick foot and can not even stand on it.

I am trying real hard not to think of the possibility of missing my Italy trip.

Or at the least, I'm trying not to think of hobbling through the Rome airport.

It is making me feel sick with swarms of some creatures in my stomach.

And I'm just trying to get my mind off of the pain with a challenge of my own doing.

I am always ShArOn.

While gathering some papers and text and images and other collage ephemera

for my Italy trip,

I found a poem in an old book, Chance, Luck and Destiny, that I have used for a visual journal.

I am getting to the challenge....really

This is only one page of  the poem.

The poem is by Peter Dickenson and is from his book, Chance, Luck and Destiny.

So, here is the challenge:

I am challenged to "paint words" sometimes.  Are you?

When I read the first lines of this page,

"Ow, Lady in red petticoats,

Now will you be my bride?"

I was listening to my imagination when it went wild!

I haven't started anything yet and so I thought there might be someone out there who would enjoy a little kick-start.

If those words inspire you to "paint" them,

I hope you will jump in and join me.

If you do, let us know. We will want to see.

♥ Sharon

A Birthday Day

Today is my sweet little girls birthday. She probably wouldn't like that I am sharing this particular picture. I am always trying to capture that pouty mouth in my paintings.

Haven't yet. Nevertheless, this picture was my inspiration for this journal page.

I have made six journal pages now and I thought I would share with you some things I have discovered. Not about my inner self so much but about my painting challenge.


I challenged my self to paint faces without first doing a pencil sketch. I've challenged myself to use other than flesh skin tones. I challenged myself to paint the face right across the middle of the book. I challenged myself to not paint hair and then I did. Paint hair.



The first thing I discovered was there is not much difference doing the sketch with paint instead of pencil. As a matter of fact, I think I prefer it for now.

This is not a discovery but even though I know the eyes are right in the middle of the face/head, I have a hard time with that. I clearly always make the nose too long.

The face on the first four pages were painted out of my head. I was just trying to get a human face on paper. I was pleased. Then, on "upside down world" posted yesterday, I was actually looking at a face (that was not in color) when I painted her. I enjoyed just laying in the light and dark colors and enjoyed seeing the loose effect. Something I long to do but can not stop blending and blending.

That was so much fun that I thought to use this picture of my daughter to paint my next page. I cropped the picture to the same ratio as the book spread. Then printed it but about 1/4 the size of the book spread. Here is what I discovered. I could not help but try to paint a "likeness" since I knew who the picture was. And so I kept blending and blending and overworking it.

Of course, I did not get the likeness and stopped trying when I realized that I was trying too. Getting the likeness was not part of my challenge. Another day for that. I moved the chin up more than once and move the mouth up once but never moved the nose. Anyway I really like it and maybe it is just me but she seems to be more of a portrait than any of the others.

Also, I like the composition of the photograph with the perpendicular lines that the door frame gave and I mimicked that with the paper napkin. I may paint in a little more definition on the flowers or I may decide enough.

I'm planning to have a great Monday. Hope you are too.

Enough for now,

Sharon

Upside Down World

Hope you are having a great

and

perfectly perfect weekend.

I think I am.

I like her very much. I leave interpretation to you.

However, my dear one said she looks like something from National Geographic. I think he gets it.

Enough now,

Sharon

Red White & Blue

I keep finding my name in the sale ads.

I enjoyed the graphic look on the "out of the box" page.

I'm watching the Olympic opening tonight.

Go Red White & Blue.

I already had this page prepped with the Atlas map.

So.

In my mind, it was all perfectly clear that I should do this. So far.

Why don't you take the challenge and find your name in some text and start a journal page or piece of art. Put you name down first. It is like signing before you make the ART. Oh yes, let's all do RED WHITE & BLUE.

Enough,

Sharon

Page Four

Your assignment... should you choose to accept it: Spend 5 minutes writing on your journal page starting with "I think people think I'm......." And go from there


Have you figured out that I add to my challenge with each page? My personal challenge for this page was to paint my lady without using any skin tone colors. And I made here green.....

with square pink cheeks

Enough for now,

Sharon

And So

after the last page, (not this one) I ask my friend .................

"So, tell me again, do you really like this face? The spread is kinda new for me but I can't get down and dirty yet. I can't and may not be able to get past "pretty".....not that my pages are pretty, but you know what I mean."

-

That's what I said to my friend Zorana.

-

and she said, ".............. she's great! And I do get the 'pretty pages' syndrome. I can't get pass that either. Maybe we should decide that it's okay to like pretty pages. I mean..... why would we want to make them differently? "
-
Well, Miss you-know-who....my muse....was obviously reading my e-mail. I know she has gone crazy and has really been jerking me around with the missing 'A'. I can hear her laughing right now as a matter of fact.
-
So anyway, I was really trying to play ART "out of the box". You will agree that this is very different for me.



By the way, the name of the book that I am using to make this visual journal is Chance, Luck and Destiny.

-
So, Friday at the desk, I started flipping through a magazine that came in the mail. It was one that I look at the then toss. Anyway, all I could see were these scrambled letters that said spelled Sharon. I had already prepped this page and it started out as "pretty". But then I saw those words......A Scrap of Paper. OH MY GOSH, this book is talking to me.

I must just glue these scraps of paper down and then see what happens.

Well, I'll tell you what happened. It was Norah's hand I'm sure. I just wanted to mask off a line. I was using painters tape that is not suppose to stick so good.

-

New Challenge.......down and dirty.

I think I rescued the page and I'm thinking, it was suppose to end this way......out of the Box.

But the Box really would have looked so cool if I had used translucent red that you can see through where it went across the face. I ended up using paper.

-

To see what I'm talking about look at the right side of the page where the red goes across the floral napkin. The masking tape worked on that side because it did not cross paper. The napkin was applied with gel medium.

-

Well anyway, I didn't mean to talk you ear off so....

Enough for now,

NOrah'S right hand

One more thing, I hope my friend, Zorana, doesn't mind that I shared a little bit of our conversation. She is moving today and on my mind. xoxox

Next Page

IN PROGRESS..............

Not finished.

Just saying HI.

Listen to me.

You don't have to wait until the sheets are washed and the dust is moved to play ART

Just do it!

Enough for now,

harson

I AM

What?

What do you mean?

Where is the 'A'?

It wasn't enough after all.

Visual Journal

Tonight I started a new visual journal. Yes, I really did need another. It's not about needing, it's about wanting. Wanting a challenge.

I am inspired to alter this book using instruction and guidance from a booklet that Juliana Coles offered on her Etsy shop. It is from one of her Extreme Visual Journal workshops.

I followed the homework assignment which was to make your name as big as you can and decorate it. So that's what I did. Of course I had to use a napkin. Thank you Julie for the beautiful napkins.

Painting faces without sketches shall be my personal challenge for this visual journal. I want to be able to just pick up a brush and paint a face. Concentrate while brushing the paint on and seeing the face before it is painted. And that is what I've done. I consider this page finished. But if the mood strikes and I feel like adding more to this page, I will. Tonight, I have done enough. But in the future, it may not be
enough,
Sharon