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| Blooming Collaboratively, 30x30in, Acrylic on Canvas |
Have you ever craved something, but didn’t know how to start? That’s painting for me. I’ve had the desire for two years now, to paint big, bold, bright paintings. Paintings that expressed something more than the reality around me. Something that would come from intuition and a place deep inside. I’ve dabbled in painting but on a small scale, and without getting to where I wanted to go.
I finally found a way to tap into that inner creative energy that’s been wanting to run free in Flora Bowley‘s Bloom True painting class last week at the Do What You Love retreat. A couple of days ago, I shared the process we learned over the three days to get to one finished painting. Today I’m sharing images of the three paintings I worked on in the class, in celebration of Paint Party Friday.
Painting #1 (above) I’ve titled “Blooming Collaboratively” because it is not wholly mine. Flora teaches a lot about non-attachment and using what “is.” She helped us work through our attachment issues by having us paint on each other’s canvases at the beginning of the first day. An even bigger lesson came mid-morning the second day, when we had to give one of the two paintings we were working on to the person on our left. Yep, a day and a half of painting on this canvas, and now it’s not ours. Big, big lesson in non-attachment.
This painting is partly done by Carissa, who was painting to my left. In the painting I received, I noticed the three bright orange and yellow dots. I had just been sketching flowers on the trees as part of our morning exercise, so the flowers just came, along with the circles. All of the painting you see in the middle of the flowers and circles is the original painting I received. I went from there with the background and details.
It’s interesting, I really like how this painting turned out, but I’m not attached to it. I don’t feel like I can really call it “mine.” It came so easily, it felt like cheating. Somewhere deep inside me there must be some self-inflicted rules I’m harboring that relate to this feeling, that need to get sorted out.
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| Leafing Out, 30x30in, Acrylic on Canvas |
Painting #2: I wrote about the process to create this painting, start to finish, earlier this week. You can read that post here. I am more attached to this painting, because of the struggles I went through and what I learned on it, but I’m not sure I like it. I like the colors and the shapes, the brushstrokes, the individual elements. I struggled with the composition.
What I’ve realized is that composition in painting is very different than composition in photography. In my photography, composition comes naturally to me. My favorite type of photography is what I call “real life still life,” finding an existing scene and composing a photograph with the elements that are already there. Composition, in that case, is about eliminating what shouldn’t be in the frame so that my vision is clear. Painting is different. I’m creating the elements, adding them, subtracting them, combining them. There are just so many possibilities! I’ll have to work through this more, to find a compositional style in painting that comes intuitively.
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| Unlocked (unfinished), 30x30in, Acrylic on Canvas |
Painting #3: This is the canvas we started from scratch on the third (and last) day. Using all of what we had learned so far, it was time to integrate and work independently. Boy, was it fun!! This one came very easily so far, but it’s not complete. Others have commented, “It looks complete to me!” I know in my heart that it is not. I see a few things that I want to do, when I next get my hands on it. The visual elements represent how I feel about painting after this class too, as if there is something that has been unlocked inside of me. Something I’ve been trying to get at, but didn’t know how.
It was great to get the opportunity to do this third canvas, start to (almost) finish. Flora’s classes are usually two days and so this third canvas is not part of the normal plan. It really helped me to integrate what I’ve learned and see what would come out in a work that was on my own. I find it so interesting, how some of the elements are the same in all three – the circles, organic curving shapes of flowers, leaves and vines, the colors of the last two – mostly cool with some warm popping through. Here I’ve hardly painted and a bit of style is emerging. I love it! Right up my alley as I’m passionate about everyone finding their unique vision of the world, regardless of the art form.
There you have it! Three paintings – bigger, bolder and quicker than I’ve ever painted. I’m filled with so much joy and excitement about painting, a whole new world has opened up. I am completely and totally smitten. Now, these canvases have been removed from the wood frames and are rolled up, ready to be shipped to Oregon in July when I move back home from Italy.
After writing this, I’m itching to paint again and am resolving to make the time to get to it before we move. Happy Paint Party Friday everyone!
Stunning! OMGah! What a beautiful technique to have under your belt!
Wonderful! SO amazing to meet you in person and your work is gorgeous. Love the way you described it all. xx
Hi Kat,
I'm so glad you have shared your retreat experience with us, it has inspired me to do something I have wanted to do for a long time! Lead my own retreat! I have a background in fine art having also worked in community development. For sometime now I've been looking for an opportunity to share what I know about art and letting go! I have taken the plunge and spoken about my desire with a couple of other women, my yoga teacher and a person in her second year of a massage course, the result being we're going to look at the possibilities of a retreat in the beautiful Derbyshire Peak District!
Thank you Kat for the inspiration to just take a leap of faith!
Sue x
Great paintings Kat. Unlocked reminds me of that series on "framed" photos you did.
Brilliant! I'm so pleased that you found what you were looking for in terms of a way to express yourself intuitively in bright colours and without being tied to a subject! Can't wait to see what comes next… xx
Hi
I am visiting from Paint Party Friday.
Participating for the first time has allowed me to visit blogs that are new to me and it is incredible the artwork that is being created. The way you express yourself is remarkable.
Wishes
Lynne
All such beautiful pieces, so loving the style of these and such great colours. Annette x
I love these canvases, especially "Unlocked". The retreat sounds like a wonderful time!
I LOVe all three! And i enjoyed reading you, too. 🙂
Goprgeous, bright, cheerful and free. How could you ask for more?
All three are wonderful but I am drawn to the colors in LEAFING OUT most! HAPPY PPF!
Great pieces. I love all three. Excellent work. Have a great weekend.
Sounds like an amazing retreat. Leafing out is my favorite, though all three paintings are really wonderful.
Very cool.
These are all wonderful pieces! I especially loved the third one. It did have elements of the first two in it plus something more…
What a tremendous retreat that had to have been! I can feel your excitement reading this post. Such a fascinating process! It was awesome hearing about it. 🙂
Kat, these are three amazing and very interesting paintings. Very different all of them and then again there is a thread that pulls them together. That colorful keyhole in #3 really caught my eye. I will come back this afternoon and read more – I'm meeting my friend in 30 minutes for a hike. "See" you later.
it was really interesting to read about the attachment lesson and given that when i read it i subconciously shuddered at the idea of giving my work to someone else to add to, i'm guessing i could do with participating in that class! i also love how you differentiate between the pre-existing composition of photos and the not yet existing composition of a painting-i always see what i want my photos to contain although dont have the expertise to achieve the shots 9 times out of 10 but i love the fear and excitement that a blank page/canvas can evoke-the possibilities!
i love all 3 paintings but no.3 is my favourite-i love the old fashioned keyhole symbolism.
Thanks for sharing your experience at the retreat. It's so interesting to read but I'd be so intimidated to go to something like that – I'm not at all confident in my abilities. I'd be afraid of ruining someone else's beginning…. I also noticed the trend you had of the organic lines and circles – is there a series coming?
Just lovely work – I particularly like the intricate patterning in each of your shapes. Can't wait to see what's next.
Great pictures, I love the second one espcially! Valerie
Wow..I never get tired of seeing this style of painting..these are all so beautiful.I can get lost in the under-painting for hours!
how fun each piece is~
Wheee! Love your intuitive paintings! (I'm so glad you've shared more with PPF) I so need to loosen up more and just let go …
(I'm happy you're going to make more time to paint before your move – can't wait to see!)
xo
Kristin
Wow, that sounds like some workshop! Love all of them, finished or wholly yours or not. Really tho composition is much the same in photos or painting; background, foreground, center of interest; don't put the most important things smack dab in the center, ect. ;-)Happy PPF
Kat,
WOW!!!
I share your desire to paint but the challenge of how to start and consistently work at it was hard for me to overcome too. That's one of the reasons we created PPF to help us with to paint regularly. (Well me – Kristin is much better with that.)
I love all of these. How weird to share painting, but the results are great! I love all three but probably the second one most because of the colour choices. Your keyhole on "Unlocked" though tugs at my emotions.
Beautiful work.
I follow your photography,,,,and now I see that artful eye of yours is coming in handy for your new venture….these look GREAT!!
Great post, informative, well written and interesting pictures to go with it. O enjoyed the progression and very much liked the last one, I really like the layering effect on all of them, the underneath paintings showing through. Look forward to seeing how you develop.
thanks for sharing your work and your thought processes. lovely.
Good use of colors. Saludos
wow, so awesome you multi-talented woman!
I really love that second one, the one you aren't sure you like, LOL. It has great flow and wonderful color.
Love it!
Sandra Evertson
Great job! What fun and how freeing! Awesome! :):)
Oh so exciting that you spent 3 days with Flora at the DWYL retreat. You did such wonderful work. Thank you for describing the process.
Thanks for the encouragement in your comment reply to me. Maybe I'll start small and find a local class or workshop and 'graduate' to something more all encompassing. This sounds like such a great experience…..
Such an amazing experience of your retreat. Love the texture and color used of your art piece. Beautiful! 😉
Looks like you had a wonderful time in the class! Your paintings are beautiful!
I always LOVE hearing the process- what an amazing time you must have had! I love all three but especially the last- it looks finished to me- can't wait to see what your plans for it are!
Happy PPF (a day late ;))
Stephanie
What an amazing retreat! I love these paintings…so fun and cheerful! Thanks so much for sharing this amazing experience 🙂
I'm so interested to read about this; I started to paint a few years ago and then abandoned it for photography, but the yearning is still there. I totally agree about composition being quite different in each case; I find photographic composition easy, because I just have to go and look for it, but composing a painting is a whole different ballgame. It's the same with still life photography – when I have to set it up myself I find it really difficult.
I love the paintings you've done and enjoyed reading about your experience of doing it. I'm so envious of your creative holiday – haven't got the cash for this sort of thing right now, but when I do I'll be straight there!
awesome paintings! love your big bold style!
I hope you are still painting with your paints…who will now be a second sister to your camera. This is the position I am in…first a painter, second a person who loves to take photographs and wants to improve. There aren't enough hours in the day to fulfill all of one's wishes..but it is fun trying.