Jewel-like or eggshell finish, and edges

I have recently discovered a wonderful way to finish my paintings, which lend them this beautiful jewel-like or and eggshell quality, depending on the very final steps.

The first one is definitely more sexy, similar to Ferrari car finish, only thicker and more luscious. The other goes a couple of steps further, and the result is a soft satiny finish, yet as transparent, and it seems more appropriate for some of my nature related art, requiring a more organic look.

As far as edges go, I let the painting guide my decision. Not all paintings look good with natural wood edges, in spite of the panel birch wood color being beautiful. At times, I can simply see that the whole will look more appealing if painted. I also do not like to attract much attention to the edges, are the painting needs to be the focus. For this reason, I never use any type of finish that could distract the viewer, such as paper pattern collaged on or textured paint.

Finally, I have opted out of using frames all together as I feel that it is an unnecessary element. I like how the imagination can expand beyond the sharp edges of the painting and a frame would create a stop to that. That said, at time I have considered using a floater frame and that is something that may help me enhance my work in the future. For now, simple and beautiful is best.

Painterly yours,

Aude

Quote of the day:

"The purpose of art is washing the dust of daily life off our souls."

~ Pablo Picasso

An AHA moment and everything changes!

When you are a creative mind, it is usually good to push through difficulties in order to progress. I supposed that's what having "grit" is about. There might be moments when you feel like giving it all up because it's simply hard. There are good days and bad days, and when the bad ones are around we face what Steven Pressfield calls resistance in his book The War of Art. It is like a part of you, yet it could care less about you, trying to coax you to stop in order to stop the suffering. After all, it's all about living in the most pleasurable way, seems like. Or at least, that's what our primal mind thinks: if it's hard, don't do it. Most creatives go through this at some point and the key is to keep doing what you're doing, not stop. However, there are times when one might want to listen deeply and pay attention. That's what I did.

Rcently, I was struggling with my abstract work. There was a disconnection from it, I felt lost, and unsure of what to create, not enjoying my creative time. I tried a different style, more textural, simplified, etc. It wasn't working. It was becoming stressful to the point of dreaming, one night, of being inside a sinking boat and going down with it.

Yet, in that dream, the boat popped back up and I didn't die! I took the time to reflect on my work and realized that I was not enjoying this abstract style because I missed sketching and doing more figurative work. I missed it terribly, in fact. I had this vision of painting some simple flowers on a small panel, in a spontaneous way. I did some quick sketching and my painting evolved as I went. It was fun! I painted another 8x8 in. panel with a flower arrangement I made, and loved it. In fact, a friend of mine said at once she wanted to buy it. Wow. I did a third panel, more natural history-like, and had a blast, even though it was challenging in its ways. Texting it to another friend to get her opinion, she said too she wanted to buy it. Double wow.

And so, I am shifting my work. I have listened to what it is that I needed. It's not that I'm not plowing through difficulties as I should, as those 3 panels had their problems to solve, but I have listened to what my heart was telling me and now it's singing again. 

Those 3 panels are what you're looking at above, and I will have many more. My intention is to open a shop on Etsy and paint a real variety of subjects. I am not stopping my abstract work but pausing for the moment. There is no such thing as utter joy when you are doing what you love. I am now!

Blissfully yours,

Aude

Sunny Day

Mixed media on board - 10 x 10 in.

Joan Miró said "Courage consists sometimes of staying close to nature, which could not care less about our disasters." 

I find it incredibly true, in the sense that nautre is here, always present, and that it can take courage to disengage ourselves from the daily dramas, regardless of how terrible they can be, and find solace in nature and what it is to us.

The target is a symbol that I favor, forcing me to remain aware and sharp. Mindful, if you wish. It allows me to create work that is lively, connected to nature, daring to be here, present. 

My hope is that none of my work leaves people indifferent. I'd like to allow people's imagination to wander and wonder, to let the mind dream a little, take us out of the realm of daily news, technology, business and everything that makes us feel overly busy and stressed.