Have I made it_where I wanted to be when I grow up?

Another Art Journal 52 2014 prompt "When I grow up." Since I am long in tooth I wonder if I arrived. My dream, my hope, one of my important reasons for living, that which has sustained me is my art and my faith. ART! Making things, drawing, painting, printing, going to art museums, art shows, reading books about artists and how they work. Yes that is art. Sharing ideas and talking to other artists, continuing to experiment, standing in awe when a work is completed by my own hands to my expectations and beyond, loving it when viewers respond. That is art.  Trying new things like the art journal, foraging into mixed media and experimenting with ideas, adding words, using techniques from other disciplines all in one place. Now how cool is all that. It inspires me and others. That is art. 

Brushes, tubes of paint, an apron and palette. There is a canvas on the
easel. Painting is one of my favorite art media. Follow the link to Carbonmade at the top
of the page to see a few portfolios of other work. Check past blog posts
too.  

I wanted to be an artist as soon as I knew what an artist was I knew that was me. Art is a way of life. An artist is a problem solver and that is a characteristic that translates into many other aspects of life. Art can be a path to the divine producing a  meditation-like place in the mind. I go into a magic zone when I am working on my art. Time seems to stand still and all things seem possible. My mantra has been to paint beautiful things or to paint all things beautifully! The Art Journal 52 prompts are to inspire ideas or a direction for work and that is sustaining my connection to the world of art.

I would like to hear from you. Please leave comments below. Watch for posts of more pages soon.

A Found Poetry Prompt for Journal 52

Found poetry? What is that? A new experience for me, for sure! Another prompt for a Journal 52 2014 page. To begin, a suggestion was to search for words in printed material or go through the stash of cut out words you collected looking for interesting fonts, colors, or meanings. Another suggestion was to take a printed page, select words that attract your attention and work together to express a coherent thought, then block out the remaining words. I used a combination of these ideas for my poem

"A Change of Focus."

A Change of Focus

Expect good things you can value

How do I find my passion?

Why fret?

Obessing about SOUL SEARCHING?

More serious about it—see our lives as a kind of game.

Certain rules of the game track your progress.

To win makes life stimulating!

You are approaching a time in life when you can

Not only choose the games you wish to play

You’ll finally have the time and freedom

To experiment and play with hobbies and new occupations

Your way meets a wonderful GIFT

Perfect

Perfect

***

That poem was a very new experience. It was fun and like all of the prompts was stimulating and stretched my imagination. The page background of the work was done painting using acrylic paint. My colors are meant to give a happy uplifting feeling. The poem is just to share a thought.  

I have many more pages completed for Journal 52 2004 and ready to share. My goal for posting here at Paintspatters Project more often has been reached. Now to keep up the pace. Please leave comments. For an n artist it is always good to find out how others view the art work. Until next post have fulfilling adventures.

Way Out of Comfort Zone

This prompt from Journal 52 2014 has pushed me a bit further from my normal execution of subject matter. The prompt: "Inspired by Abstract Art."

This abstract piece has a noticeable X to the composition. Much of my work has this. There are also hidden images, also in many of my pieces. I pushed or pulled some flowers and butterflies into recognizable shapes. That was to satisfy my little voice saying it is only a beginning!

The abstract is where my work begins My initial ideas are put on the board in a very abstract manner. Then those of  you who know my work  or as you look back at older posts will see samples of finished products. I always say I keep slowly resolving my images or tuning them in until my eye and sensibility are satisfied. For myself abstract work has not been complete. Like a lot of my work there are areas I might follow into other compositions. The mama painting can be allowed to birth her children which nurtured and coaxed become  stand-alone individuals in time. A fitting thought for a MOTHER'S DAY! That just came to me. Enjoy. Feel free to leave comments. Happy Mother's Day to all you mothers out there.