Painted Paper Swap

Oh, the joy of painted paper! What's even better, swapping some of it with other artists! Today I spent a great deal of fun with a few artists up at The Art Center at Lavretta Park hand painting large sheets of table paper to use in collage work. Imagine, art time in grade school, crayons, markers, paint, toys, you name it, we painted with it. 

Mixed media artists love some yummy papers, and collage artists collect painted papers from all over the globe. Painting large pieces of paper is a great way to try new techniques out on a large scale, loosen up a tight painter, and explore the wonderful world of color theory, all without rules or expectations. 

After the pieces are painted, they are cut up into manageable sizes, usually about 10" by 12", and stacked. These papers can then be used in all sorts of journaling, collage work, abstracts, and my favorite, paper swaps. 

When I arrived home this evening I found a package from the brilliant collage artist Elizabeth St. Hilaire Nelson. Her collages are stunning, all made from hand painted papers, so enjoying a delicious bag of paper from her is a an extra perk for me! You can view her amazing collage work on her website, Paper Paintings. 

If you are a collage or mixed media artist, you might consider hosting a paper painting party for your group, especially if you all are running low on unique, color and patterned paper, You can always swap with me as well, just message me at ardithgoodwin@gmail.com! 

Happy Painting, Ripping, Tearing, and Collaging friends! 

I Love Making a Collage a Day!

 

http://ardithscollage.blogspot.com/2010/09/my-collage-day-journey-has-started-join.html

Many friends of mine actually work towards creating a painting a day, which after much attempts at it, I found hard to get done. Yes, I do paint often, but actually painting every day was difficult and I began to marvel at their fortitude in getting it done. Then comes along a fellow artist who for the past several years has made a COLLAGE A DAY! Yep folks, cut and past every day, and that blew me away.  Not because of the creativity factor, but because as we collage lovers know, it's messy and totally can take over your house. Randal Plowman was managing to create one every day, which meant he had to be uber organized or something.....and I foamed at the mouth in envy.


This got me thinking....could I do it....should I do it.....so I tried it, without telling anyone, to prove to myself that I would be able to stick with it before I announced to the world that I was making a collage a day. Guess what?....I LOVE IT! Yes, I had to get super organized and have a plan, but the timing of it all seemed to fall into place. Not only did I enjoy starting the day with a quiet meditation, to talk with the big guy upstairs, but I decided to combine it with my collage making and then blog about each one. So, my blog, Ardith's Collage a Day was born and I did I tell you.....I LOVE IT?

Because of my back and neck issues, painting or creating anything big is really difficult. Each collage a day is only a 4" by 4" so that tiny size makes it much easier on my pain level. I also have realized how much more creative I am in my other work, because being disciplined about making one a day has enhanced my creativity. What's more, I love, love, love to combine art and writing, you all know that, so blogging about each one makes that the perfect marriage. Here are a few of my collages with links to their blogs. If you know a few of your friends who are blog followers, feel free to share, I love the feedback from you folks. 

BEST OF ALL......if you become a follower of this blog, my daily collage blog, or my Found Baby blog....I will send you a coupon worth 25% off any piece of original art! How cool is that???? Because you are a huge part of what keeps me going!


Living and artistic life is a choice....seek out the beauty in yours, :)

It's All About the Five Minute Walk

Be Still and Know

Fearless Bricolage Bird

Can Art Change the World?

I was recently interviewed by Art is Moving and they asked me this question: Is art moving and can it change the world? My answer was this:

"If it's not then I don't know what is and yes....it changes the world every moment of every day. When an artistic idea is born, the world is changed. When it is shared, an energy is created around us and we move and interact within it. Socially, humans interpret the world differently, but within the same context of being artistically natured. Nature itself is art, and as nature evolves, so do we and how we respond to it. Art is so varied, as we all are, but within that variety we share much of the same urges and desires to express ourselves....and art is a natural form of that expression. I may not love, agree with, or find certain forms of art appealing, and some may even be offensive to my personal sensibilities, but as an artist, I can appreciate them for being created and adding to the beautiful collective conscience we all share. It's the sharing that's the key in my opinion. As art is shared, opinions are formed, they develop into beliefs, and the beliefs are then acted upon. It's a lovely system to be a part of, simplistically complicated, but aren't we all?"

I woke up this morning thinking again about that question, reading over my answer, and realizing I was quite content with it. I wouldn't take anything away, but I will share an addition, or should I say, a passion of mine, related to it. 

Over the past 9 years I have had the beautiful experience of watching art transform me into the person I am today. When I had to give up teaching, I felt my world had collapsed on itself, and it took me a long time to crawl out from under that belief. Art was something I enjoyed, so I turned to it in hopes that I could find some sanity while my body began to heal. Little did I know that it would become a way of life for me. I had no clue that it would awaken the spirit of creativity within me, I simply thought I would spend some time painting or drawing to take my mind off of the medical nightmares I was living through. And, I am grateful to God that he chose to use art to help heal all those parts of me that were so dark, and there were many. 


Living in the light is the way I would prefer to label my days now, and art has been a channel for that light to shine in me and through me. My passion, my dream, is to be able to use that creativity to touch others, to show them that no matter where they are on their journey, that art can be used to make that journey more beautiful. I can't bring myself to simply be an artist for profit. So, in the context of can art change the world: Yes, one person at a time. And when one shares their creativity, their inspiration with another, it lights a fire that can't be extinguished. I hope in my lifetime my actions cause the world to be ablaze with it. 


Here are few new pieces I have been working on. I love, love, love it when art tells a story. Shakespeare wrote the play, "Much Ado About Nothing" which I found beautiful and hilarious. I chose that text as my background in this mixed media piece, "Beatrice Pulled A Fast One," because her sharp wit was so fresh and entertaining throughout the play. 

Because I am of course, obsessed  with doll parts, LOL, I worked with some unconventional doll forms in photography. I would have loved to share this with a class of students and had them write about these "Fruit Beings" and their adventures. 

(All Images copyright of the artist)