August 23rd, 2008 10:03pm
admin
I just finished working on a new painting for about 3 hours. I started out with no “roadmap”, just putting paint on the canvas. This is probably the most difficult time in a painting’s “life”. It’s the time when the artist has no idea where he is going, what direction the work is taking.
The most important point at this time of the creative process is not to judge. Give yourself a break. Stop thinking and saying “I’m terrible”, or “I can’t paint”, (although deep down these are your feelings). Just “work the paint”. Put paint on the canvas, get it down, explore shapes and colors without expectations (easy to say). The operative word here is trust, trust your ability and “work the paint”.
Then let it simmer on the “stove” for a day or so. You’ll be a lot less critical of yourself, and you’ll see your work in a different light, a more forgiving one. Then the work begins, but, by “working the paint”, you will have begun the most difficult part of the journey, and you’ll be well on your way.
Of course, never forget the most important thing is the process of painting. Always remember Rosenberg’s statement (see earlier blog). He hit the nail on the head, and this is where the joy is.
August 4th, 2008 10:11pm
admin
I have found that when I get “stuck” in a cul de sac (to use a dear friend’s words), one technique to get you unstuck is time. Step out of the work for a while (even an hour or two), leave it. Sitting there, just looking at the canvas, puts the “idea machine” in a loop and one finds it difficult choosing the next “road”. However, leaving the studio, doing something else for a while, and then coming back often works. The artist gets off the cul de sac. Try it.
August 2nd, 2008 09:43pm
admin
I sit here trying to figure out where to go from here with my painting. I have no “roadmap” to follow, just my instincts. Anyone who has created “art” from nothing will understand the difficulty an artist faces when he reaches this point. Just questions, no answers. I’ve found waiting works, bring the painting into a different enviroment. Look at it long enough and I’ll discover a “road” to take, it may not be the right “road”, but, at least, I get moving again. This is the important thing.
If I repeat this process again and again, I’ll expect to succeed.
May 31st, 2008 04:31pm
admin
The secret of appreciating abstract art: Ask not what I’m supposed to be, but rather, what could I be.
February 26th, 2008 04:05am
jomac
How many times have you thought this to yourself. It’s the phrase that every artist creating original, honest art thinks to themselves many, many times. Doubt, fear, and uncertainty are all part of the artist’s palette. So many times the emotion borders on despair. The artist looks at an empty canvas, brushes in hand, saying to himself or herself, where do I go from here? The canvas answers back with an empty stare.
It’s times like these that are so challenging. It takes a lot of belief in the self to get through these periods. You’ll find out what kind of artist (and person) you are. And there really is no secret on surviving these insecure times.
The secret is to keep working and moving forward. You just have to persist with your artistic vision. I’ll say it once again, keep working and move forward. Fail. Do you think deKooning, Pollock and Rothko created a “masterpiece” everytime they picked up a brush and put marks on a canvas? You’ll get through those “I can”t paint” thoughts, and find that wonderful part of you that exists in your art.
February 18th, 2008 04:48am
jomac
People really have no idea how hard it is to create good, honest (and this is an important word), original work. Putting something into existence visually exciting, that impacts the viewer emotionally is a great challenge. This is especially true with abstract art.
Where do you start? What colors do you use? What shapes do you use? Where do you put them? What emotion are you feeling? Where do you get the original “idea” for the paintings conception? These are challenging questions, to say the least.
There is an old statement regarding watercolor painting. It goes something like this….”How long does it take to make a good watercolor?” The answer is 20 years and 20 minutes. It takes 20 years to learn how to do it in 20 minutes. The same thought can be applied regarding the creation of abstract art. There are so many choices that will determine the quality of the work. Your “choices” get better the more you make (experience).
My advice, therefore, to artists is get started. Put paint on the canvas. Make decisions. choose your palette and see what pleases you. It is a struggle. You may strike out many times, but every once in a while, you’ll hit a home run. You just have to have the courage to fail, and the determination (or need) to keep moving forward.
February 13th, 2008 03:03am
jomac
one of the best quotes I’ve ever heard about the process of creating art was said by the art critic Harold Rosenberg…………
”At a certain moment the canvas began to appear to one American painter after another as an arena in which to act – rather than a space in which to reproduce, redesign, analyze or ‘express’ an object, actual or imagined. What was to go on the canvas was not a picture but an event”. (Harold Rosenberg)
Just think about this quote for a while, it may change the whole way you approach your art.
February 12th, 2008 05:10am
jomac
This is the first painting in a series I’m calling “ERASURES”. It’s done in acrylic on canvas and was motivated by a work that the artist Robert Rauschenberg created in 1953. There’s a terrific video of how he created the work on YouTube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tpCWh3IFtDQ
I created a painting a few years ago that was influenced by the artist Sean Scully’s “wall of Light” series. I never quite finished it and left it in my studio for several years. I would look at it from time to time, and eventually it struck me. Why not “erase” it. I used what I call “willem deKooning’s palette” and “erased” the original painting leaving a remembrance of the orignal.
Here is the painting.
February 8th, 2008 03:11pm
jomac
When I look through the various art magazines that are published in the United States and the around the world, invariably I will come across a section entitled “Emerging Artists”. This really bothers me at times, especially when I see that the article is about someone who is over 50 (or so). It’s as if they just started to create art. What about the other decades of creative work? I guess they were “submerged” during these times. I’ll feel better about these articles on “emerging artists” when I begin to see articles about “submerging artists”. I’m talking about creative souls who have done wonderful work over a long period of time in relative obscurity.
February 5th, 2008 03:48pm
jomac
welcome to my blog. You’ll find this site unlike most blog sites. As a professional artist who has taught painting and drawing for over 40 years, I have decided that it’s time to share with the world this wealth of experience. You’ll have the opportunity to read my observations on art, artists and the creative process. Perhaps i can demystify the process of abstract painting a bit, and provide unique insights. Anyway, this is one of my goals.
For those of you who have an interest in art, or are artists, I will be happy to take your comments and look at your work. Contact me by leaving comments.
