1/24th of the way through a new year! Holiday bustle and bitter cold stifled my creativity this past month. Also, trying to achieve that special state in which passion, inspiration, skills and abilities coalesce. I’ve worked as an artist for a long time and I know that you can’t just wait around for inspiration to strike (inspiration is for amateurs) but you also can’t force it. It is a delicate balance finding the current where inspiration becomes inevitable. For me, I need to be caught up on chores and responsibilities, I can’t work at my best if I’m feeling disorganized, stressed or overwhelmed. So, that’s great motivation for me to keep my shit together!
Sometimes my imagination explodes with so many ideas I could never possibly paint them all. I get so many that I can’t even write them down fast enough to recall later. Other times, the muse juice just doesn’t flow… In these droughts I can even look back on the ideas I’ve written down but the spark of inspiration just isn’t there. Without it, I can still produce a painting but it never looks nor feels as captivating as it should, it FEELS like work. And that’s just not how great art is created (In my opinion). So, I wait… (The waiting game is my least favorite of all the games…and I’ve played booger tag).
But, the spark eventually finds its way back to me and new ideas abound. I love it when this happens because it just carries me away in new directions toward things I never imagined possible. Even this post; it’s like a starting point guiding me to new horizons. I’m not normally so long winded but today, I’m going with it.
Rather than staying stuck, I like to try new things. I’d rather try and fail than do nothing at all. You either win or you learn. So, I tinkered with some digital mash ups (DMU’s); that’s where I take my past works/photographs and use the computer to edit/change the colors and combine them in different ways. Digital art of sorts, but all the components are things I’ve painted/photographed with my own hands and imagination, my own stock images. Here are a few that have emerged sofar…
“Infinite Aurora”
“Infinite Threshold”
“Infinite Quiescent”
“Skyward”
Because these are digitally created no “originals” are available… BUT prints can be made!
Unrelatedly (ish)… WTF is up with the internet?!? I don’t know if it’s just me but I have been increasingly inundated with SPAM, scams, trolls, bots, AI theft, etc. I used to enjoy scrolling social media but now it just seems like a steady stream of ads, clickbait, phishing, theft, ad nauseum. I want to stay connected with my peeps all across the world but moderating everything has become more work than it’s worth. Subsequently, I’ve been posting less, scrolling less and missing you guys! Hoping to find a way through this onslaught of BS so the internet can be something enjoyed rather than endured.
In other news, I am now engaged to a widowed Nigerian prince who wants to buy all my art! *Yuk, Yuk*
As the weather warms up, so do my spirits and I’m looking forward to what will be created this year! Art shows start booking up as we head in to Spring and it is always a treat to paint live in the sunshine and see your smiling faces.
Until Then...
The latest art & updates happen over on Facebook & Instagram…
(You just have to sift through all the scammer crap)
