Flow Chart of a Creative Project

One Sunday in church my brain drifted a bit onto the

plain walls.  "What we need here," I thought, "is some color

and warmth."  Before I knew it I heard myself volunteering 

to provide such in the form of a banner.  And furthermore, I suggested,

why didn't we get cloth scraps from church members from

which to build that banner...?

Oh dear...what sounded like a wonderfully creative challenge took on new meaning as I finally had to admit to myself: Cindy, you have no idea what you are about to do, no idea.  I'm a painter, not a fiber artist, heck, my sewing machine is 40 plus years old....

My enthusiasm begin to wane as the scraps came in.  Not my colors...

As an Austin Kleon fan I remembered a page he had in his "Steal Like an Artist" book:

this is a flow chart of a creative project

naturally I started at "this is the best idea EVER"

Shoot, I was already between "this is harder than I thought" and "this is gonna take some work."

My original idea was to make something beautiful from a lot of random parts, the metaphor being that together we are better, the theme being "We are one in the spirit." But little did I suspect that making all the random parts come together would be such a challenge...rather like some committees I have chaired.  So I had to lower my standard from "beautiful" to "interesting."  (Also like some groups I have worked with!)

auditioning letter styles

Precision is not my strong suit (same deficit as patience) and thus I was as wonky a sew-er as I was a cutter.  And while a couple of folk graciously offered their help I was unable to even articulate what we, or I, needed to do next.  So I bumbled along on the floor of my spare bedroom.

I've now bypassed "this sucks and is boring" and am headed smack towards "dark night of the soul."  We are leaving town and I want to depart knowing the worst is over - so I visit a quilt store looking for advice on bringing my ancient machine up to current standards as well as some "glue" or "fusing" to forge ahead.

oh boy, can I make it work?  With the numerous fabrics all different weights and weaves I've had to "strengthen" some which is a very mind numbing process.  I sorta like where this is headed and if I can get this inner border on I think I can return to it with a little optimism.

Meanwhile, all the scraps that did not make the initial design are begging to be included, they need a role and I am hoping to give them one.  I fully expect another dip in Kleon's flowchart as I approach the phase where I actually have to make three huge pieces come together with machine quilting that is functional as well as adds to the design.  And since this will be a first for me, I may lose my religion before I get to the "will be good to finish because I'll learn something" phase.  But I am determined to make it all the way to "it's done, it sucks (maybe not) and not as bad as I thought."  Hopefully I can pull off "interesting" if not "beautiful."

Stay tuned...more to come!

Plodding Along,

Cindy

Holy Communion Lutheran Church - Foscoe, NC

A friend passes this little stone church everyday and asked me if I would paint it.  Here's how I approached the challenge:

I began with acrylics since I love to get color on fast and furious with no fear of perfection.  Next I analyze the composition and formulate ideas for further refinement.  This stage ends up looking either like "paint by number" or a child's cartoon.

Now I mix up my oils and adjust the subject matter, in this case the portal to the church and the stone.  I'm not worried about the background at this point other than for color harmony.

These photos were taken over several days so the lighting differs slightly altering your the color.  But notice that I already thought it might be finished so I popped it in a frame. I also took a photo for a closer look.  What I don't like about this piece is the busy foreground left.  The choppy colors are pretty by themselves but I think they distract from the church.  I also see that the dark areas of the landline on the right are waaaay too dark.  Both of these observations are things to be careful of when painting from a photograph...it may be correct as far as the camera recorded it but it just doesn't make sense when trying to transition into art.

Holy Communion Lutheran Church, Clark's Creek Rd., Foscoe, NC

11 x 14, oil, 

"Cool lights = warm shadows."  This old rule came to me as I was trying to find some balance. So I warmed up the tree shadows/leaves on the foreground left.  Now there is less distraction from the focus of the church door.  Note the improved perspective of middle ground right.  Seems further away now, right?

Thus it sits for a bit as I contemplate "doneness."  I have no idea (yet) if this meets my friend's vision....and I'm thinking I want to try this same composition in a looser, vaguer approach. I can already see that the bright light to the church left needs toning down.  And...

Now you know why it takes two artists to finish a painting: one to apply the color and the other to yell "stop!"

COLOR FULLY REVISING,
Cindy

Believable Scenes or Hokey Poses

When is REAL LIFE Trite??

Many times I have gasped at a sunset only to remark to a cohort "if we painted it as it is no one would believe it."  Sad but true.  Sometimes the amazing color that nature presents us is so fleeting that to put it down on paper would feel unreal or unnatural.  Sigh.

The same thing happens in figurative work.  Sometimes the scene on the street is so touching that it feels hokey when painted.  How many more silhouetted handholders can I take with an ocean sunset backdrop?  How many more child hands painted in large calloused ones? I know, I know, people love this stuff....but in the pursuit for new some of these scenes have been painted just one too many times.

So it is with trepidation that I even show you a painting I am working on currently.  Probably trite, probably hokey, and most likely poorly executed.  But....there I was in Rome painting (for real) and my companion, Kelly Medford, and I ducked into a little church, mostly for the shade it offered but there was something she wanted me to see.  As we were walking down the aisle I turned around and caught a glance of a mother and a young boy.  They were perfectly framed by the light coming from the main window above the front altar.  My instincts were to turn back around, I felt I was invading their "moment."  

But the artist got the better part of me and as I glanced back to see the scene I knew it was a composition I would want to remember.  I quietly got out my phone and turned once again to get a photo trying all the while NOT to appear I was taking a photo.  No time to even see if I got a good one.  Kelly and I resumed our tour and left the nave by a side door.  I don't even remember if I shared the photo with Kelly. 

 It felt like a very private moment.

Several years later I was going through my photo files and came upon the scene again.  This time I wanted to try to paint it and lo and behold I noticed a third figure in the background where she was standing in a posture of adulation.

This piece is nearly impossible for an amateur to photograph as it is done on a very smooth and very shiny clayboard.  It would usually frustrate me because it has no tooth to grab the paint but I wanted to glaze in layers for the depth keeping the surface relatively smooth.  In the painting the background is much darker but my camera wants to justify everything and I cant seem to adjust for that.

It is almost finished and if I can ever manage to get a decent photo I will post it.  But in the category of eating my words I wanted you to know that THIS is, was, a real scene, not a posed one, and for me was a powerful one with a lot of meat to it.  It is never as fab as the one in my mind....but maybe with a tad more work I can do it justice.

So the next time you see a hot pink sunset with orange stripes don't assume the painter is color-crazy - he may have really been there.  Just feel free to ask!

Always Amazed,

Cindy