Beautiful work takes time. That doesn't mean what we create isn't beautiful, it simply means that our most powerful creative voices evolve over time in layers of knowing, of trusting, of exploration, and of purpose. I just wrapped up a four day workshop in Oklahoma City at the North Gallery and Studio and what a wonderful experience it was to paint with them and chat about this.
As we discussed how we chose our subject matter, we chatted about is why it is so important to seek out the marks and ideas that we each find fascinating as opposed to painting what is trending. There is deep resonance in a subject matter that connects to our core, even while we are developing what our own version of beautiful is. That beautiful takes time. I was late to the party, as a self taught artist, and began painting in my 30's. For years I painted anything and everything that made me happy and with every stroke it brought me closer to what my version of pretty, or beautiful, or compelling was.
Today, I have a strong understanding of how I view the world and what fascinates me. Much of this feeds my creativity and finds a home in what and who I paint. If you look closely you get a sense of fracturedness, oddity, costumery, and a love of the unexpected as well as an intense love of color. These combine in a perfect storm of eclectic lushness....or what I like to call, "eclushtic." Teaching other artists to seek out these types of ideas is a pleasure because in my heart I get that it helps them move closer to their beautiful as well.
Painting strong takes a lot of practice and time for our visual languages to develop. Breathe...paint...ponder....paint...seek....observe...paint...ponder
and day by day your beautiful will emerge.
This painting, "Let Us Go Then, You And I" is the piece I began during the workshop as an abstract and flipped to figurative using the elements I love and adore. The balance between abstraction and figure as well as narrative is delicious here and I adore so much how the final piece turned out.
As we discussed how we chose our subject matter, we chatted about is why it is so important to seek out the marks and ideas that we each find fascinating as opposed to painting what is trending. There is deep resonance in a subject matter that connects to our core, even while we are developing what our own version of beautiful is. That beautiful takes time. I was late to the party, as a self taught artist, and began painting in my 30's. For years I painted anything and everything that made me happy and with every stroke it brought me closer to what my version of pretty, or beautiful, or compelling was.
Today, I have a strong understanding of how I view the world and what fascinates me. Much of this feeds my creativity and finds a home in what and who I paint. If you look closely you get a sense of fracturedness, oddity, costumery, and a love of the unexpected as well as an intense love of color. These combine in a perfect storm of eclectic lushness....or what I like to call, "eclushtic." Teaching other artists to seek out these types of ideas is a pleasure because in my heart I get that it helps them move closer to their beautiful as well.
Painting strong takes a lot of practice and time for our visual languages to develop. Breathe...paint...ponder....paint...seek....observe...paint...ponder
and day by day your beautiful will emerge.
This painting, "Let Us Go Then, You And I" is the piece I began during the workshop as an abstract and flipped to figurative using the elements I love and adore. The balance between abstraction and figure as well as narrative is delicious here and I adore so much how the final piece turned out.
MARK YOUR CALENDARS!
Now that my traveling schedule is wrapped up for the year I will be going live from my studio more often to chat about creativity, how to find deep inspiration from our surroundings, and offer a Q/A time as well. Below is the schedule for the coming month. This live feed will be hosted on my FB Page, www.facebook.com/landofardithian
Go Live Schedule for October (all times are 1230 Central)
October 7 -Tips On Constructing Movement With Brush Work
October 12 -The Balance Of Painting What I Love vs. What Is Trending
October 21 - Product Talk - What Am I Digging In The Studio These Days
October 28 - One Strategy That Helps Me Generate Unique Ideas
Set your calendars and message me if you have questions prior that you would like me to answer live!
As always, I so love connecting with you beautiful humans who support and encourage working artists. We all have such important gifts to offer and our creative hearts combined are a powerful force in the world.