Sacred Partners 2014

Sacred Partners

July 18th 2014

Progress has been slow but what I have is satisfying. I seem to have hit an information overload wall. There are so many images, ideas and bits of information in regards to environmental issues all crowding my mind in not enough order to make visual. 

Each time I find a source, book or speaker that resonates it leads me to five more! 

Just when I feel I am starting to see some imagery through the cloud 

a breeze comes along and stirs up the fog in my mind.

 Feeling overwhelmed by the magnitude of what is transpiring I struggle with the feeling of hopelessness - but then I find somebody like Charles Eisenstein speak and feel a little sense of order and purpose. The fog settles a bit. I add more books to my list and move a few steps forward. Charles Eisenstein "The Ascent of Humanity" George Monbiot "Ferel"

Not complete but closer.

 

 

Well - off to try and make my way through the fog of my thoughts.

"Sacred Partners" July 2014

"Sacred Partners"

Environmental Statement Series

First stage: Create the Support

2014 "Sacred Partners"
Honoring Environmental Beacons

Having a full time job makes it very difficult to keep up with a blog. I have considered taking it down....but then I look at some of the things that I have posted and decide to plug away - even the gaps record.

I am putting together a body of work on a subject I think about a lot. Our natural world and how we are connected to it. I am forever drawn to the idea of connection and how we fit in.

 

Sketchbook detail.

"Mobius Water Infinity"

I love painting landscapes and I am very attracted to any stunning geographic area but, doing landscape after landscape at times feels incomplete, as if I am only recording one small portion of something that holds a deeper message. It gnaws at me that there is more than a static vision. I want to create imagery that helps people appreciate our world and reconnects us to our place of origin. I want to slice open the numbness we have all come to understand as living and help reveal a more clear understanding of our connection to our planet. Not because it is the modern thing to do but because it is the joyful and fully alive thing to do. Not because I care more for the animal world than I do the human world but because we ARE the animal world. If we cannot correct our path of destruction of our home then we have no hope of creating better human life. In my mind they go hand in hand and, mother earth, as in the beginning comes first. A diverse planet is a healthy planet where all the parts are players in a constant battle of balance. We are now at a point where we have reached a critical mass big enough to tip that balance. My question - Is our collective mass intelligent enough to tip it in the right, corrective direction or will our numbness of life push it over the edge and foolishly bring us right along with it? I often contemplate how ironic it would be if the burning of too much fossil fuel will have us become fossils as well. 

Sketchbook Detail - Nanuk

Sketchbook Detail

It feels to me as if we are in critical time, at a crossroads. I want to believe that we are going to see some sort of light and make the better choice, to change habits that make life better for every living thing. We are part of a natural system that has worked well without us for eternity. I want to raise awareness. To help people reconnect to what we seem to have lost touch with.

Helplessness equals hopelessness and I am not hopeless. I can help spread the word, grow food, support local farmers and vendors, consume less, understand the impact of what I buy, show honor and have respect for what we have been provided. There are people all over the globe who are starting to stand up for better ways, better ideas, a better planet and a better - sustainable way of life. I want to add my voice. But most of all, I wish to record my reverence and respect for our struggling planet. I wish to honor my connection. I wish to love what I came from. I wish to embrace that connection. I wish to live a fully alive life.

Sketchbook Detail

Sketchbook Detail

As I wrote this post I realized that "Icon" is not really the right word to match my intent - "Beacon" - fits much better. 

This imagery will represent the "Beacon System" that is in play. 

My work will offer prayers that we see the light. 

Our collective future depends on it.

Sketchbook explorations. 

"Stranded at Sea" 

24 x 60 Acrylic, Mediums and Silk on Birch Panel
The smaller bear painting at the top is a birch panel superimposed
on to the larger panel. The fabric is actual silk, suspended
over the smaller panel like a floating shroud.

Sketchbook explorations.

The notes on the right are about icons, beacons and beacon networks, mobius symbols, infinity, monoliths, illumination, polaris, alpha and omega, and, mana.

"Sacred Partners" - Nanuk

12 x 14 Acrylics, Mediums, Paper Clay on Birch Panel
This work is a birch panel floating within another panel, moat like. The moon phases and bear are both relief made of paper clay and acrylic. All the surfaces are highly textural.

Sketchbook explorations.

The notes are lists of of possible imagery and issues in regards to the listed subject. Right now I am exploring the challenges facing the honey bee. The model to the left are possible parts as I work. My overarching goal is to create imagery that has a certain spiritual expression. Something deeper than the individual parts.

More to come.

 

2013

Vacation next week. I am so looking forward to being able to get into the studio. This school year has been so fast paced it has been hard to carve out some creative time. I have been doing some work in my sketchbook trying to get some environmental ideas to gel into some imagery. I have a direction that I am pretty happy with so that's exciting. I will be posting some rough sketches next week.

It is unfortunate that my adult Acrylics class did not run this winter due to a lack of adequate information distribution. Live and learn. I hope anyone who is interested will be looking for it next fall. I am thinking about running a summer class for CEU credits too. More to come on that later.

One more day and a night collecting student artwork at the Portland Museum of art. Love February break. Here is the work of my student that I will be sending this year.



deb

Acrylics Workshop

This blog post will be a supplement for my Adult Ed. Acrylics Workshop. If there is anything else you would like to know just ask in class and I can write a response in the comment section. If you want to be notified of any updated posts you will need to "follow" this blog.

GOLDEN MIXING KIT

This set includes 8 fluid colors, color mixing guide and application guide. The link is to Dick Blick art supply. As of this post they are out of stock but will be available Feb 13. I also found them at Jerry's Artarama for $20.00.

GOLDEN ACRYLIC MEDIUMS SET
I found this set for $16.00 at Daniel Smith on line. It's a great price and and good selection of mediums. For those who love heavy thick impasto the extra heavy gel would be yummy for this application. The set comes with a product sample card.

PRINCETON BEST SYNTHETIC BRISTLE BRUSHES
These are my favorite brushes. I told one student that I thought they were a blend of natural and synthetic but they are actually a synthetic bristle designed to act like a bristle only better. They maintain shape when holding heavy paint. As far as size and shape goes that is so much an artists choice. I guess I would go for at least one flat and one round for now. As for size, the more choice you have the better but you might start with numbers between 4 and 12 for now. I have some "Blick Studio Synthetic" brushes that behave very well. They have a set of four at a good price. I also like "Silverwhite" brushes. I tend to use these for more fluid applications like washes and glazes. I will tell you that there is nothing that can take the place of a good brush!


OTHER RESOURCES
My acrylic sample boards on flickr.
My web site.
My acrylics video collection on youtube.
My youtube channel.
My Etsy online shop.
My facebook fan page. 
Golden's youtube channel. 
Golden's web site. This is a fabulous resource!
This is a great Tri-Art fluid acrylic video about color saturation and lush viscous mixes with gel medium.
The Tri-Art web site. This is the Canadian acrylic manufacturer.
Tri-Art non stick palette at Dick Blick. Very Cool!!


When we cover glazing you will really benefit from reading this entry by Canadian Artist Robert Genn. If you LOVE learning Genn's bi-weekly news letters are an awesome resource. THIS is the Glazing Keys entry by Genn.

First Painting of 2012

Here is my first painting of 2012. This is a 9x12 Soft pastel on Wallis paper with a water color under painting. This is the first one of two that I plan to do. The other one is after the same rain storm that ravaged my spring roses last spring. The next one will be the leaves after the storm.

Here's to a productive new year!

What's on the easel?

One of my favorite artists is Stephen Quiller. I really love the way he uses transparency, translucency and opacity all in one painting. He also considers himself a "water media" artist and clearly describes the qualities of each medium. His knowledge of the personalities of each medium is so keen that he can pick the right one for the look he is going for. His color schemes are somewhat objective but subjective as well. The colors glow and interplay with each other in such beautiful ways.



Casein is one of his mediums. I love the flat velvety color that it produces. Quiller uses it with transparent acrylic under washes to create stunning results! I have tried some play with casein but feel really inept at this point. This series will be my next attempt to gain some knowledge of this beautiful paint. The series of three yellow scapes are my setup pieces for some play with Casein.

I have also started some different pastel pieces. I did not get in to the PPOM International show last summer. I am determined to create a piece that will make the grade! These pieces are on my favorite paper, Wallis, and have a watercolor underpainting. I use this process often. I enjoy the loose start and lcoking in the basics first.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!