This gallery contains 1 photo.
ointed, a little! Can I help it? No! Can I come up with something else? You bet! As I was thinking of what other project I could do that could be woven, I decided to use an abstract acrylic painting I did of tr Many times when planning a project something happens, it doesn’t work […]
This gallery contains 2 photos.
Did you ever see something that triggered your creativity, and you had no idea what you would do with it? That happened to me yesterday afternoon while walking through my friend Barbara’s garden! We were walking through the garden, admiring all the beautiful blooming plants, I was being offered clippings of her succulents when I […]
Good Morning Everyone! We have another cool morning here in Oceanside, California, and I am loving it! Inspiration comes more easily for us all when we aren’t surrounded with heavy, humid, hot air!
Yesterday I said I’d do a sketch with charcoal, but I admittedly didn’t do that. I used Shades of Gray PITT pens. They come in a Pac of six with three being cool gray, and three being a warm gray. I love grays, and always have fun with them. These pens are a great addition to our supplies. Everything is a great addition to my art supplies! My motto is, “You never have too many supplies!” Oh, and “You never know!” (Mixed Media artist coming out!)
Each day I put out a challenge however, I’m only giving suggestions. We are all inspired by different things, at different times, and the thing that triggers me, might not trigger you. So by all means, do your own thing, don’t be limited by my ideas! After all, I’m only trying to keep going and get better at my craft! Some of you are very precise in your renderings of a subject, some ” wonky ” like myself. There isn’t any right or wrong . Each of you has your own way and that’s what makes us all so special! If I can inspire you to do the same, it’s a double win for all of us!
The sketch I’m putting up for you today is one of a pod I found on a walk with my son Dennis, and grandson Nolan. Dennis noticed me eying this pod, and on the second pass said to me, “Mom, pick it up, I know you want to! You keep eying it!” I didn’t want want my son to witness me grabbing yet another treasure off the ground, but he understands, being a musician, and gathering inspiration from nature, his surroundings, and experiences!
Inspiration is all around for artists, whether they are writers, painters, photographers, or musicians. We inspire one another with ideas, our creative energy, places we visit, a walk, it’s all good, and it’s all valuable.
For Thursday, I’m going to look for a picture that inspires me to either paint, draw, collage, or in some other way use my creativity. I invite you to post your pictures of intention on FaceBook or talk about them in the comments here on my blog. I also need your input to give me inspiration to keep going! Get your intention out there, that will hold your feet to the fire! So, look for something that inspires you to sketch, or paint for Friday!
There are many things in this world that are green, but I wanted to sketch and paint something not normally green. It wasn’t cool for me to sketch the things I suggested, especially since I wanted to be a little more outside the box! My feeling is I missed the mark on this one, because the more I tried to think of something, the fewer ideas I came up with. It was starting to feel more like a chore, and less like the fun it’s supposed to be!
Today my sketch was of our cat Kramer. A rough sketch I must admit. After I sketched him on paper , I used acrylic ink on him for his “Green with Envy” color! Here’s what I have learned over the weeks since I’ve been sketching regularly. I mix media, literally! I’m always working with different kinds of materials. Sometimes fabric, sometimes acrylic, watercolor, pencil, charcoal, and yes even metal! The sky is the limit for me. I always purchase mixed media journals, and finally I realized that’s not cutting it! I really need to purchase watercolor journals, and here is why….If I use anything wet, such as acrylic, or watercolor, even glue, the paper buckles and looses its integrity, sometimes even tearing. I guess I’m rougher on my materials than I realized! Watercolor paper is much hardier, and will take the beating I give it! I just started a new “Mixed Media” journal and it dawned on me, there are a hundred pages, and I am not liking the paper. Now, that in itself isn’t the problem. I could give it away to one of the grandkids.
Prior to ever using a journal, I decorate the cover and make it look “artisie fartsie!” (This is a technical term I use often.) So now I’ve spent time embellishing the cover just the way I wanted it, and I really don’t like the paper inside the journal….What to do? I could coat each piece with medium before I sketch. Does anyone have any suggestions, because I really don’t think I have an answer?
Do any of you decorate your visual journals, if so send me a picture, I’d love to see what the rest of you do.
Tomorrow I’m going to do a charcoal sketch, maybe even use watercolor crayons for shading instead of charcoal. Join in on the fun, I’d love to see what inspires you. remember to post on FaceBook, or email the pictures to me at Karensamenow@me.com
‘
This is such a beautiful morning, I’m so inspired by the artwork I’ve been seeing, by the slightly cooler weather, the rainy Sunday afternoon, and by the creative energy my friends so generously share! I spent Saturday with two of my grandkids! My granddaughter Sage, was telling me she found a big bag of broken, used crayons at school ready to be trashed. Sage went to the teacher , and asked if she could have them. Happy to rid themselves of another bag of trash, they gave her permission. She was the happiest of campers! I asked Sage what she was intending for the crayons, and she responded,”art work!” Used crayons to work into art, ” Now thats my girl!”
While we were on a family vacation the end of July, one of the projects I planned for the kids was to melt crayons on a canvas. If you ever try this fun project, make sure to buy good crayons, I didn’t! Since I had two kids to work with, and I thought I needed many crayons, I bought eight packs from the dollar store, they don’t melt very well, and it took me two and a half days! Finally I gave in, and pulled out the heat gun. Yes, even on vacation, I take my heat gun, ’cause, ” you never know!” The crayons finally melted, Sage chose flowers to add to her work of art, and she was happily showing everyone what she had created!
Since our Monday challenge is to sketch something repurposed, I do this regularly, I’ve been trying to think of something just a little different to show you. We probably repurpose things without even realizing it. Things such as using a wine bottle for a flower vase, or an empty jelly jar as a juice glass. I frequently cut pockets off an old pair of jeans to reuse on a journal cover, or cut up a piece of fabric to use in a journal, or even in a painting. What can you come up with? Every time I think I’m really clever, one of my artist friends, shows me something I never would have thought of. It takes a little thinking outside the box, but we can all do it!
How cool is it to make musical instruments out of fallen trees, or old spoons? I have instruments such as these all over the house. Drums are fun and pretty easy to make, although the one I sketched was a little more complex. My son Chris brought me a hand made Rain Stick over the weekend, and these are the items I chose to sketch. They really do work, and are fun to have around the house for parties, or even for the grandkids to play with when visiting!
What can you come up with? It doesn’t have to be this complex, or it can be more so. There are times when we have all the time in the world to create, and at times very little if any, so do what you can. The idea is each day if we can do a little something, pretty soon the gates open up, and creativity just flows abundantly.
How about if tomorrow the challenge is to draw and/or, paint something “green!” Anything green, a kid green with envy, a green dog, an avocado, the sky is the limit! Check back to see what I created, and post yours on FB!
When I look at the wonder of nature, I am in awe! Each, and every thing I come across is a treasure to me. Birds, butterflies, trees (I love trees), flowers, I love them all. My yard has transitioned from very, very green, and lush to drought tolerant. Some of it forced, most of it by choice! I love to look at what others have designed, and implemented into their landscapes, and every once in a while, I’ll find someone who has been way too creative for a novice. It shows that they have put a great deal of thought into how they put together a front yard, or a design element in the garden. I see things all the time that remind me to be more open minded and think outside the box! Funny thing is, I always think I am outside the box, and just about the time Im feeling particularly clever, I’ll see something someone else has thought of, and wonder why I didn’t think of that!
This time I painted leaves! This is outside the box, right? It’s something I’ve wanted to do for a long time, and hadn’t tried. Now, I admit a project like this needs to be thought through. Most of these kind of projects take a little more time than we realize. I pressed the leaves over night, painted medium on them to preserve their flexibility, and stenciled, painted, and sprayed with a fixative! They are a little rough, and as the leaf project resurfaces again and again, I’m sure that they will look better each time. The ideas are endless, with so many different shaped leaves to work with! It could be fun to gather unusual leaves, or leaves great for painting, press them, and allow them to wait for just the right moment. This is coming to you from a person who saves just about everything, just in case! That’s what I call a “Mixed Media artist,” some would call it hoarder!” Surely those people aren’t artists? When I do throw something out, it’s picked up by our local trash company, and hauled away! Well, that’s when I need it the most. Always, I needed that, and wonder why on earth I threw it out?
Todays challenge is to paint, sketch, collage, or anything else you can think of, living from the yard. Leaves while they aren’t technically living, they were still flexible, and I did coat them with medium to preserve them! I chose leaves, but you may want to use something else!
I continue to encourage all of you to join in as much as you can, post comments, and enjoy my blog.
Old as Dirt and Proud of it! 
You must be logged in to post a comment.