WISDOM AT THE CROSSROADS PODCAST.
Lessons of inspiration and creativity inspire change on todays episode.
A Change of season might lead to a change of scale But Scaling down in size does not mean we are scaling down the visual impact.
There is a new trio evolving on the paint wall in real time. We learn a triptych is not simply an image spread out across three adjoining surfaces but an opportunity to explore 5 independent compositions
The gifting of art part is not something I recommend but A triptych named “Bloom”f did become a fledgling daughter’s housewarming gift. Bloom was also a lesson in keeping things fresh, of letting go of expectations and walking away from a composition before the bloom is off the rose.
Teamwork is key and this group are currently demonstrating they can hang out and and mix things up, and still look fresh and refreshing in a tired utilitarian space. My own art is on loan in my own home for time being, brightening up one our most under appreciated spaces. Art blooms, indoors year round, though this trio might only be with us for a short season.
Practice is the key word when it comes to MEDITATION in this episode which begins at 8:55 In the recording.
In it I am guided to guide you on a visual journey where we plant ourselves in the present. We are reminded meditation is not a test but an evolving process and that our bloom is radiant perfect and open to the potential that exists around and within us.
I love how a few minimalist strokes are suggestive of personality purely by the shape they create.
This is a detail of Panel 1 of the triptych “BLOOM” Hopefully this snippet gives you an idea of the loose marks on the surface. Each Panel 18” x 24”, Acrylic on panel, 2020
In this episode a new season inspires change. For me after a long northern winter (some might say relentless this year) I am more than eager to shake off the heaviness of winter coats and boots and get outside in a landscape that is not always conducive to a simple walk around the park.
At the studio I have been very productive through the long winter. I have been working on a lot of commissions and one of them is a triptych on panel. Each panel is 18” x 24” which is an adjustment from the run of 48” squares and pairs, 4’ x 8’ that have kept me busy for the best part of the last year.
I find I get physically comfortable working in a particular size or shape so changing it up requires some physical as well as mental adjustments. Going from large squares to much smaller rectangles has been noticeable. This new trio was inspired by “Bear Necessities”, a relatively new piece on canvas, 36’ X 48”, which the client loved but could not fit into her space. I like to remind clients with particular requests that I cannot replicate any image exactly, and I don’t want to but knowing what they like when I start can be helpful.
BLOOM Panrel 1, 18” x 24”, Acrylic on panel, 2021. The gold orange was a new purchase that became the central focus of the colour story in this trio,. I love the way it balances with the pink/choral.
Translating a painting of mine into a triptych doesn’t mean simply spreading the image across three surfaces. A triptych requires each of the individual images to solve an individual compositional puzzle. Together the trio then becomes a separate composition, enhanced by all of the parts presented together. This group so far are a colourful team. Painting them while spring is delayed outside has been a nice contrast to the muted greys of late winter snow and ice underfoot and they have kept me mindful of the potential for spring to eventually arrive.
This triptych might be finished in time to appear in the blog for this episode in which case I will include it, but I can’t make any promises that I won’t over paint it just yet. (sorry just some details available below) :)
Today I would like to introduce you to a same sized triptych also painted on panels 18” x 24” each. They were painted in 2020 and I have just recently hung them up in an often overlooked space but our back door. Painting them was a short journey through process before they embarked on a longer physical journey internationally when our daughter first left home.
Too much time indoors for me recently highlighted the desire, I called it a need, to refresh indoor spaces at home. This trio now hangs in our back entry way is called “BLOOM”. The name partially describes the suggestion of a garden loosely defined across the surface and also references our hopes for our daughters as she set off on a new academic adventure.
Words are powerful, just like the name of a painting , they connect us to memories, sometimes lessons we have learned through our experiences. This triptych though a gift had spent the best part of this past school year leaning out of the way after our daughter returned from the US to complete her studies in Canada. I have taken it upon myself to refresh an area we had become blind to and show them off while they are visiting.
BLOOM Panel 2, Acrylic on panel, 18” x 24”, 2021. Without supervision I can’t get the trio together so please bare with me. This panel though painted as the central panel and intended to hang as the middle child, is now hanging on an adjacent wall to the left and right panels. The sisters are .. accommodating a tight space and hanging up and down from each other. .. and I like it.
I have to say, I don’t recommend gifting art, mine or anybody else’s. In this case though I know my first born pretty well and since she had been at my studio before leaving home and had shown enthusiasm for the trio that was then developing on my paint wall, I knew they would be well received. As a rule I don’t encourage my clients to gift art to anyone but themselves. Art is subjective right, and though you might be a regular client and a big fan, bless you, wanting to support my studio practice with a purchase, someone else unfamiliar with my work might find my use of colour scary and relegate your gift to a back bedroom , the equivalent of the time out chair for a painting, and nobody wants that. I want you to celebrate your art and display it proudly in your personal space.
If you have listened in before you might remember me telling you how the beginning of a composition is loose and expressive as I allow myself to feel the process and act instinctively without too much attachment to an outcome. These early stages help to get me into the flow of the composition as I strive to cover the substrate in a foundation colour or colours .
In this little triptych the energetic action of the brushstroke is visible in transitions made between what would be the main attraction of subject and the supportive “foil” characters of foreground and background. In the composition there is no definitive horizon line. There is a definite suggestion of a space but that space is open to suggestion.
This triptych did become a gift and the trio made their way out of town wedged strategically into the tightly packed carload of possessions. In pandemic lockdown with International borders closed, sending a daughter off with a fresh triptych was the equivalent of me popping into her new space with a bouquet of fresh flowers for the kitchen table. They were designed to remind her this new space would still feel like home and in a pinch the seasonal colour of the natural world might help to add a little sunshine to a heavy academic load.
The timing of the departure probably did me a favour. Having a deadline can be helpful to the over painter within me as I didn’t have time to second guess myself or try to improve them and make them somehow “better” or more literal. Instead I added hardware to the backs and brought them home in time to pack them up with her belongings and send them on their way. This short time frame kept the trio fresh and sketchy, the colours are springy and by springy I mean they are soft and unmuddied. There is a peachy choral colour, it is not pink not orange, that reminded me of her baby gap favourites that make those colours hers in my mind.
BLOOM Panel 3, acrylic on Panel, 18” x 24”, 2022. The gift of art is not recommended. Personal taste is subjective. I know my work is not for everyone and I am ok with that.
In fact, “BLOOM:1/2/3.” seemed like an appropriate title in a lot of ways. Like any parent I wished for her to similarly bloom with no pre determined outcomes to confine her. Instead of giving each panel their own individual title as I normally would, I simply numbered them 1, 2, 3. I am as prone to being lazy as the next person and have been known to skip a couple of steps now and again but in this instance the numbers felt like they defined the trio as a unit while also making a reference to a few simple steps in the process of becoming.
The trio served their intended purpose during that school year but since then they have been taking up space banished to a random corner for most of this school year so I have reclaimed them, at least temporarily. They have been swept up, literally in a spring cleaning activity that decluttered a winters worth of jumble from the back entry way. It felt good to put this trio into view to remind us all that even though this winter is reluctant to leave there is hope that something will eventually bloom.
.Details from the new triptych on the paint wall
Compositional details , or poppers as we call them at our house, are what drive the viewer’s attention into and through a composition
The new triptych is the same size as BLOOM but the colour story is very different.
It didn’t matter to me that the trio was painted to be hung as a horizontal team. Without the appropriate sized space I simply stacked them. The composition is strong enough within the group that areas relate to each other no matter which way they are displayed. There is no dedicated lighting and the third panel is even around a corner on an adjacent wall but instead of feeling cluttered and busy the trio actually soften a much used utilitarian spaced and are inspiring a new season to bloom indoors, for now at least.
There are some lessons I have learned from this trio. The first as a painter to keep things fresh and simple and walk away from a composition before I try to “fix” it our clean it up.
Bloom Panel 1 Detail. Life is definitely lived in the details. I find myself drawn to small areas, always.
I love how a few minimalist strokes are suggestive of personality purely by the shape they create.
A painting, like the garden, is most inviting when left to its own devices. Our children are like a piece of art; precious, inspiring and something we hope will bloom in its own way, in its own time.
If your children are like mine, they, and their possessions, might head out on a personal journey but home will always call them home… and you can reclaim some of their possessions, at least for a while should you feel so inspired.
On the paint as I was preparing this episode was “Bear Necessities”. Since this episode was published this painting found a new home with newly transplanted clients who were keen to share their space with local art.
Thats the end of todays backstory. Thanks for tuning in to this episode. I hope the images are helpful and that you are finding something of your story within mine by listening in to the podcast, or catching up through this blog.
If my work or words inspire you please consider sharing the podcast with a friend or writing a review. You can listen to the full episode anywhere you get your podcasts. It costs nothing to do so and i would be very appreciative.
This week’s meditation begins at 10:55 in the recording. I hope you’ll take a listen
We are reminded meditation is not a test but an evolving process and that our bloom is radiant perfect and open to the potential that exists around and within us. all best
Should you have any questions or comments please feel free to reach out. I would be happy to connect.
Amanda