Where art meets meaning, and your space meets you
Short one this week as blogging from my phone as my laptop died and I cannot decide whether to buy an I pad or laptop.
Meanwhile I’m back in the swing of painting and making as I settle into my new 9 to 5 role. It’s amazing what a rested mind will do for art and creativity.
Continue reading “Mixed Three Mixed Media Techniques”I was thinking back on the course I did at CSM this week. Those thoughts helped my plans to integrate paint skins into more of my pieces.
I tried to review at least three of the big famous artworks that use skin, but I got distracted by the work of Frank Bowling. Tate. Arts seem to think he does it, and I need to investigate further. Perhaps it’s that he uses canvas-like skin. I still need to read more of that very long paper.
Continue reading “Putting Skin in My Art Game”This week I had time off from my 9 to 5 and immersed myself in making while fighting a head cold. But determined to stock up for my Etsy shop and develop the idea of a decor solution for people working from home. Realised that being a lowly crafter, artist and maker has advantages for pushing the art envelope further to improve how businesses work.
Continue reading “Two Ways & One Why on Art for Home Offices: Modern Master, AI or Lowly Crafter?”It was surprising to realise how much of my art is influenced by the mid-century decor, 60’s culture and Mondrain.
This year’s memorable Christmas activity was watching the Netflix Wednesday series back to back. Watching it on so many levels was amazing as it helped me recall the 1960s version of the Adams family, which I enjoyed revisiting over the holidays. As a dance enthusiast, I was keen to find my favourite clip of Wednesday Adam’s original dance done by actor Lisa Loring.
Seeing the clip was joyful. It reminded me of watching it the first time with my younger sister and being closer to Lisa Loring’s age. At the time, my sister danced a lot like her, and whenever I see clips of Lisa Loring’s Wednesday dance, it brings back happy memories of being that young in the 60s. I’m sure that’s one of the reasons why the current 2022 production of Wednesday on Netflix is doing so well. You see. The new version of the viral Wednesday dance might be boosted because it is enjoying the nostalgic visits from the Baby Boomers and Generation X, who remember the original dance scenes being so poignant for them at the time. I wonder if they have thought of that.
Interestingly, my friend Janet said she had been watching the Wednesday show with her 13-year-old daughter and younger son, She said it brought the family lots of joy. It made us smile as it shows how the Netflix series has mass appeal. Janet and I further discussed (wearing our education experts’ hats on) how the subtext of the 2022 and the original 1964 versions of these shows seem to share a positive narrative about neurodiversity and the tolerance, acceptance and management of difference. I didn’t watch the ’90s version so cannot comment further on that.
Most importantly for my art practice, the research I did and revisiting of the old Adam’s family clips have helped, this week. The images below show how I was influenced to create monochromatic elements and embrace the mid-century look I had created. The crisp white of Wednesday’s dress collar and its oblique triangle shapes is particularly meaningful and is expressed in my paintings this week (on reflection).
However, further analysis of the underpinnings of my painting makes me think of another of my 1960’s cultural influencers—the artist Mondrain.
If you were to research contemporary abstract art, you get blogs and google results showing what contemporary abstract art is.
However, I’ve been practising my experimentation with contemporary abstract art. I’ve long been influenced by the artist Mondrian. I like his crisp lines, clear shapes and simple play with colours. Some of my earlier works were too much on the simple side, akin to Mondrain’s primary-coloured iconic squares and grids. When I was 15 and doing my Art A level I recall my art teacher remarking how some of my work was like Mondrain. Below is a snap of some textile designs I created possibly influenced by Mondrian’s works. But at 15 I was probably more influenced by others that were influenced. It wasn’t until my art teacher saw my work that he introduced the artists to me. See below
Recently, I’ve started a series of abstract shapes on a strong colour-drenched background with contrasting curvy forms and deep consideration of using analogous or complementary colours.
I love the combination of sharp and curvey shapes I created. These works show more of the training and reflections I have done recently. I’m looking forward to completing this series and listing them in the shop in the new year by 3rd January 2023. Being able to reflect on my 1960s cultural influences for my paintings is helping to give meaning and express the significance of my work. I never thought I was a mid-century enthusiast, but it seems to be leaking out. My age means that the 1960s, and 1970s did inform my aesthetic principles, perhaps more than I was prepared to admit. But I am happy to do so now. I guess my retrospective journey has led to some fantastical pieces.
Thank you for following my blog thus far. I wish you a happy new year and all the best for 2023. I look forward to interacting with you further down the road.
It was sad that Queen Elizabeth II died on Thursday, last week. I didn’t realise. I was at a work party. Then, on my way home, I saw all the adverts on the bus shelter portray TFL’s tribute/ perhaps public announcement. This is because all digital posters were saying the same thing. They all said Queen Elizabeth II 1926 to 2022 on a grey background. It was not too unlike the image below. That was my first indication that something had changed. I was very surprised.
Today I have been watching her coffin leave Balmoral and travel to Edinburgh. The road from Balmoral to the East is a road I had also travelled when I lived in Aberdeen as an MSc student at the University of Aberdeen. When the BBC TV presenters were calling out the towns like Banchory and Stonehaven as well as Donatoar Castle while the beautiful helicopter camera view of the journey televised its hearse tracking, it brought back my good memories of the Scottish countryside. It also felt quite moving.
Today it felt fitting to create some etchings and quick paint sketchings and draft paintings in royal purple. These are unfinished works. Below are images using purple. I sometimes shy away from purple, but since Queen Elizabeth II’s death, I’ve seen the Empire State Building shine her image amidst purple lights. Purple is currently a big theme.
Queen Elizabeth’s coffin is due to arrive in London via Northolt Airport (not far from where I live). I remember going to Northolt airport 25 years ago to watch Diana’s coffin arrive from Paris, and I (with some friends) watched it travel down the tunnel for the A40. In fact, I’m inclined to go to the A40 on Tuesday to pay my respects to Queen Elizabeth as the hearse makes its way into central London. If I get any pictures, I will post them here. The ritual of watching dignitaries and their coffins travel by road via TV reminds me of when I watched Nelson’s Mandella televised coffin travelling to its burial site in 2013. It is amazing what TV can allow you to do nowadays.
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