Painting a Memory

A painting requires a little mystery, 

some vagueness, some fantasy. 

When you always make your meaning perfectly 

plain you end up boring people. (Edgar Degas) 

Or you could end up boring yourself.

I recently had the urge to paint "some fantasy" as a way to remember a wonderful trip we had with friends to Isla Mujeres in Mexico.

the colors of the island were my favs, bright and eye popping

And the most unusual thing we kept seeing were the wild iguanas.... they were always sunning themselves and looked liked a cross between an alligator and a dragon.

we photographed this fellow on our way to the grocery

The iguanas just screamed to be painted.  They seemed to represent a bit of our vacation and a lot of fantasy.  Choosing a large, 48" high and 24" wide, gallery-wrapped canvas, I treated myself to working on it little by little dragging out the fun and letting the creative muse have her way.

My photo was pretty poor and with such a large canvas I felt better drawing it out on paper to judge proportions.  I also noted there was a lot of "undecorated" space that might need some help. 

Can you guess what inspired the colors?  This guy could only live on a Mexican island.

I found it difficult to imagine how that critter crawled up the concrete wall so I was concerned about getting his feet and claws positioned properly.  Then I gave up...this was for fantasy not a scientific illustration.

The patterns I invented on portions of the tail remind me of the wonderful Mexican tiles we had all over our apartment where we stayed.

I couldn't decide if he was a friendly soul or not but I stopped short of giving him a grin.

Iguana Be Me

48 x 24, gallery wrapped canvas, acrylic

And now we rest.  Until....

I couldn't resist!  he needed more of a scene so I added these pods...makes the wall look a bit more interesting.
Since I have an idea where this fellow is going to hang, let's mark him SOLD!

COLOR FILLED FANTASY,

Cindy

Art Heals - So Does the Act of Painting

"Have you ever executed something like this?"

the Committee Chair inquired.  No, I had to confess.

This would be a first.

But this I know: Art plays a role in healing.

So with the blessing of the Oncology Manager and the Art Committee Chairwoman of the Seby B. Jones Cancer Treatment Center in Boone, NC, I set out to organize what I proposed as a "community painting".  It would engage anyone who wanted to paint a portion of a line drawn composition and the end result (hopefully)would be suitable for hanging in the oncology infusion room.  Healing Ceilings was a past project I loved and my hope was to provide similar healing energies and painted prayers in this one painting. (This article even shows one of my contributions.)

I chose my open houses during Tour de Art to invite guests in to paint.  Here's the way the story unfolded throughout the summer:

Parts of this paper schematic were transferred to the board, 36 x 24 (above)

and a painting station with instructions set up (below).

friends, singles, couples and families...all came.  Very few deemed themselves artists

but all had a personal reason they wanted to provide a bit of cheer for

cancer patients and caregivers.  It was my pleasure to hear these

stories while meeting lots of new folks.

Little by little the piece took on a life of its own.

"Guests artists" were encouraged to be creative, make changes, add their touch.

Sometimes I would turn around and just laugh over how the latest

additions had enhanced the energy of the piece.

Most everyone remembered to sign their name on the back...

unprompted, some left messages of experience, hope and love.

I met men and women from several states.  I knew no one's political, religious or educational background.  We simply possessed the common purpose of wanting to share some healing love with someone who was experiencing a treatment with which we were all, in some way, familiar.  

A side benefit was the opportunity for me to encourage many who had never painted to make a big splash on their first attempt: a piece of public art!  woo - hoo....that's rare.  Community collaborations are always inspiring in surprising ways and this was no different.

I delivered the painting (titled "It's a New Day,") recently and was appreciative of the recipients' enthusiasm.  It is likely that no one who views the art will actually know any of us who made our mark on it.  But it is our collective wish that while they spend some time viewing it (and thus not thinking of meds and painful reactions) they will soak up the spirit contained within it...it is truly infused with healing vibes and loving mojo, packed with positive thoughts and prayers for a brighter day.

Just how special is that?

ART HEALS,

Cindy

p.s.  My title claims that the act of painting also heals, well...you shoulda been there!  It is amazing what we can do when we are doing it for someone else!

Painting Up Sticks

Sometimes I work so hard on a painting

that my poor brain needs a break...but my hands

want to keep moving.  Times like that I tend to default to an

easy paint project that keeps my brushes moving while my 

brain goes on autopilot.  Here's a task for just that time.

For some reason painted sticks are all the rage now.  Just check out Pinterest (if you can open).  Or try a google search.  I am always coming home from a hike with interesting sticks (and stones) in my pockets so I decided that the next time I needed a low-impact job I would paint some sticks.

plain old sticks...but I did

learn that the wider the diameter, the easier to work with

some of the bark will flip off easily, some will need urging; 

where it won't budge just ease the transition with sandpaper

start going wild....I began really carefully attending to edges but soon

found that it really didn't matter.  I used acrylic paint but found my

leftover or sample wall paints really easy to put on; again, the skinny

sticks were a bit hard to add much decoration to

My grands are still a tad young to be trying this but I think it might be fun to do with kids, you could even do a hiking stick to use later on.  Other ideas are to "plant" in a potted plant for color, put in the garden as a marker or pile up in a glass jar just because.  I did it mostly for mental relaxation but here is what I ended up with:

poised in a kenyan they almost look like dancers

simple colors that might end up in my flower bed

these are my favorite

curtain call for the afternoon

So this gives me just one more reason to gather sticks, and I'm hunting some fatter ones so I can go crazy with designs.  Most likely these will end up in the garden as temporary decor while waiting for the flowers to bloom.  And the fact that they probably won't last will give me another reason to experiment again next spring.  

Whether you do this to make an orchid support, to entertain some young ones or just to occupy your hands: have fun.  There's no way to go wrong!

STICKING WITH COLOR,

Cindy

Foraging a Garden

I take comfort in the numerous different styles

of Picasso, that he constantly found a new way to paint.

And I love that he said : 

Art is the elimination of the unnecessary.

I'm not a Picasso.  But if he can change his style and paint as the muse moves then why can't the rest of us?  I confess that I get restless painting in the same genre over and over again and often choose to play with a piece before I tackle it realistically.  Sometimes I like the "play" better than the "intentional." 

I have a supply of 12 x 16 black supports designated for "experiments." Color just seems to pop off the page when placed on black so I am having fun doing some simple pieces as I get familiar with my subject matter.  I can't wait to paint this foraging basket on an old chair in a more realistic manner but first I wanted to play as a way to get familiar with the lines and shapes of my subject.

chalk sketch of chair and basket

While this will result in a very simplistic painting, it actually involves a lot of pre-thinking.  To keep it simple I need to slow down and think about each color.  Using pre-mixed acrylics means I need to eliminate the unnecessary even before I touch a brush to the canvas.

step 2, the centerpiece

I start with the main focal point and eliminate everything else.  Where the chalk lines are will be a black outline, something I am trying hard to maintain.  There is no blending or shading of color; each segment is one color, forcing me to think about the shape of that color (something very useful in other applications).

  

Garden Forage, 16 x 12, acrylic

available

Here it is.  Part of the challenge with a colored support is to utilize that color in the composition.  Just like I did with the Angel Tree I wanted the black to play a major role in the subject matter.  I think it is very clear what we are looking at, no?

This is a great exercise.  It forces me to slow down and take the composition apart piece by piece and color-shape by color-shape.  It is almost meditative in its execution and a wonderful way to become very familiar with the subject at hand.  With an inexpensive support and fairly cheap paint I can play to my hearts content while learning more of the lessons that will show up in more complicated pieces.

Happily foraging,

Cindy

No Longer in the Fast Lane

One of the pleasures - and problems- of being an artist is that you often see things that would make great paintings and then they are gone.  Either they no longer exist or you never return to that locale.
Most often it is an inability to slow down and take notes or photos or even just memorize the scene for later work.

Such was the case when I often whizzed by an open field fenced by a line of old trucks.  I was never able to slow in time to pull off and photograph the composition but I would spend the rest of the trip thinking about them and the symbols they brought to mind.  Finally I made an intentional trip out to the field with camera in hand.

Time passed, deadlines came and went, and still the photo did not materialize on a canvas.  Until one cold and dreary day I decided it was time to tackle the scene.  With abandon and a palate full of color I began:

Sometimes I cant wait to see what will emerge so I start off in acrylics...they dry rapidly and a playful attitude really emerges when I know that I will be painting on top of it all over again.

on the easel

At various times I thought of these trucks as retired men getting together, sharing their experiences or bragging about the good old days.  At other times I saw them as objects of desire, now past their prime and cast aside.  Maybe they were even jewels in the rough catching the sun and showing their colors now hidden by rust.

I tend to get metaphoric when I abandon all rules of realistic tonal qualities and perspective.  To paraphrase Cyndi Lauper: a  girl just wants to have fun (now and then).  So I did.

ROMEOs 12 x 36, oil

(Retired Old Men Eating Out) Available

Creatively Color Full,

Cindy

Flying Free: Biking in Fantasy Colors

Not long ago I told you this was (to be) a painting of my sister flying down a hill on her bicycle.
We had a dangerous childhood: we actually never wore (never mind heard of) a bike helmet!!  To this day we admit to loving the wind flying free through our hair while biking.  She confessed recently that it had to be one of her favorite "guilty pleasures" as well as the way she cleared her mind and restored her soul.  Since I clear my mind by swooshing and mooshing around in color I decided to paint a tribute to both activities.  Above was the start done with acrylics and a credit card.

 Here are two details and the finished piece.  Fantasy of course but a very true story!  Where do you go to clear your mind and restore your inner peace?  Is your mini-vacay in one color or many?

This is crooked and the color may be a tad off, but it is a 12 x 12 piece done on cradled board and framed in a black shadow box with an edge inside.  If you would like to see a better photograph just email me and I can get one to you.

Colorfully Yours,
Cindy

"The Bath" Day #28

I have not done a nude in a long time, trust me, it is not like riding a bike: you do forget!  and never having done one with Mr. Lefty I was in for some frustration.  But I decided to finish it no matter what and, better later than never, here it is.

"The Bath"

10 x 5, antique music mounted on masonite

mixed media

This figure started as a sketch, got transferred to the board, began in pastel, moved to colored pencil and finished in acrylic.  I just could not get any "slip" on this mounted paper and thus the left hand would not slide properly....you had to be there I guess.  Anyway, I drug my arm through it, noted that her legs were too long (to match the photo anyway) and then wondered why I chose the pose.  All in a day's work.

Random notes:  They say every painting is a self portrait (especially figures and portraits) so since I have looong legs and small feet I decided to leave them as they were.  ALSO, I remembered the lovely renderings by Degas of women in their bath and with the quick suggestion of a tub of sorts decided to name this after the series done by Edgar de Gas.

I was hoping this detail would do a better job of showing the colors.

The lightest area is really a pink, the mid tone is closer to lavender-blue and of course, the dark shows well as violet.  Often between the camera and the computer the colors do not reproduce well.

Two more days left of the challenge!  Again, if you wish to peek in on the work of others in the 30 in 30 just go to: www.lesliesaeta.blogspot.com.  And if you have a bathroom to hang this in you can let me know.

Cindy

#25 Uncapped the Paint

I think the muse was not finished with the fountain in Eola Park yet...because when I discovered I could get some of the tops off the acrylic paints it was the park I rushed in to paint.  With palette knife!

 You may not recognize this if you are not an artist...it is a palette knife and comes in many shapes and sizes and is used in place of a brush.  Why I thought it would be easier to work with than a brush is beyond me...it is sort of like icing a cake with the paint being the frosting; only you are going to use several colors of frosting and attempt to get a recognizable subject onto the canvas.

Eola Park Part II

8" x 10" acrylic on canvas

$30.00 plus shipping

It began as a very high key painting (meaning the darkest darks were relatively light) but I kept feeling at loose ends without some grounding deep colors...I think I am discovering that I really enjoy the lower keyed work where the lush darkcolors guide you around the composition.  It was not full sun when I did the photo so I will try another and see if the colors emerge better.  This 30 in 30 challenge makes for tight deadlines and the light outside doesn't hang around to help me out.  Oh, and yes, for this month I will include the 8 x 10 canvas in my $30.00 special.  It is a standard size so it should be a cinch to find a ready-made frame for it.

Here are a couple more shots of the work in progress.  It was wonderful to be back in touch with the paint and I didn't even mind the fact that when finished I was wearing quite a bit of it!

my set up as I begin to work...I took my composition from several different photos of the park

detail of the fountain; palette knife usually results in quite a bit of texture and I even found an old toothbrush to add a few more spatters for the water spray....I want you to feel like you may get wet if you stand too close!

to purchase: contact art@cindymichaud.com or check my etsy store here

Chickened Out...

This is it for the chickens...at least for a little while! I have learned several things concentrating on these birds, one of which is that all chickens are not alike.  And I'm not just referring to the variety of breeds; I'm talking about personality.  Really.  I guess I never thought about it but these two legged animals each have a character all their own.  If you don't believe me just try painting them or raising a few.  (Notice here we have a cheerful chick, a busy hen, a mother hen, a bossy hen....and so on.)

Anyway, I enjoy putting a number of related images together in what I refer to as a "painted collage."
Here's my tribute to those hard working hens who keep us in eggs.

 

24" x 24" acrylic on board

 

 

This style of painting gives me the opportunity to play with my backgrounds and surfaces...and while I want the figures to move forward and backward with some depth, I don't have to position them in relation to a horizon line or worry over shadows always cast in the same direction.  Another reason I have fun with this is that I can vary the sizes of my subjects and then, with color, move the viewer around and through the work.  While the layout and composition are a challenge, this time I did not have to paint out any completed subjects. 

 

I'll share a few details for closer viewing.

 

Buying a painted collage is like getting many paintings all in one.  Now it is off to the framer's with this one.  Thanks for sharing my chicken period with me...it's not "over and out," but I have hit the "pause" button!

Cindy

p.s. I am now posting my plein air work for sale in my etsy shop on-line at:
https://www.etsy.com/shop/cindymichaudart   I will blog about the work from time to time but encourage you to check out this site if you are ever interested in a piece.  And, of course, I am in the process of updating all my larger pieces on my website at http://www.cindymichaud.com  Thanks.

 

 



On the road...again!

This will be the year of plein air painting for me....that is, if I wish to continue painting and travel at the same time.  So I sucked in this past week and made some attempts at the Tomoka State Park in Ormond Beach. FL.  It is a gorgeous park and we had cool, crisp weather.  My first attempt (seated on the dock) was feeble at best...I started over 3x!  My group calls them "wipers," meaning we wipe them off and start again.  But I did finish attempt number three and lived to do a more decent one on day #2 with only one beginning.  Here's the story in photos:

Day #1, finishing the third attempt along the dock where we later rented a canoe

 

5" x 10" acrylic on board

 

Back at our campsite I wanted to touch up a few places, I think this photo makes me look like a really rugged painter...ha!

The next day we found a very quiet place where my feet were practically in the river...I think I was more relaxed knowing no one was going to be peeking over my shoulder, Bob snoozed with a book in the shade nearby

Final effort

6" x 12" acrylic on board

 

 

Two final thoughts: #1, acrylic is much too difficult to handle outdoors, it dries almost before you can get your brush in it, as much as I like not carrying solvents with me I think I will return to oils plein air.  #2 - I know several of you are worrying about the orange cord grasses and the turquoise brush; hmmmm, I take licence outdoors, it is more a feeling-color than a replicated-color.  I get a little tired painting muddy greens and browns in the dead of winter....enjoy.