A PAINTER'S PROGRESS

The Mind, Body, Spirit Workshop, April 23rd and 24th was a wonderful success. Two students came from Oregon, one from Florida and several from various parts of California including Tuolumne. The workshop was based in part on the book: The Tao of Watercolor by Jeanne Carbonetti, a longtime favorite of mind. At left you can see several students at work...I mean at play! We focused on allowing the fluid medium of watercolor what it does best: flow.

 

Many students tell me they want to get "loose", to move away from tight detailed work. A common misconception is that painting loose means painting fast, or that it requires a certain deft flip of the wrist, that once learned, will result in loose painterly work. I tell them painting loose is not a technique, it's a state of mind. In the workshop we focused on using both the right and left brain to synthesize play and work, and to reach for a place that encompasses both and transcends both: the single purpose to know oneself in the present moment. That is our spirit. 

 

When our focus is to know ourselves, then our intention is to become better painters, not to make great or saleable paintings. Getting in touch with our true spirit allows us to paint with a deliberateness. We wait for the inner voice to guide us to the next stroke; we do not mindlessly paw the paper in an attempt to fix or perfect. This is especially important when working with the medium of watercolor. It is helpful, before beginning to paint, to get oneself into the space of the painter's world, a symbolic space, and move away from the real space of practical existence. It is a singular endeavor, a process that allows you to work (and play) from the heart. 

 

 

We had a great group for the March 25, 26 & 27th 3-day non-objective Abstract Workshop. This was not a workshop where we threw in everything but the kitchen sink and called it an "abstract". We did not throw buckets of paint onto a large canvas and have the audacity to call it a work of art! On the contrary, we studied before we painted. We analyzed what makes a good shape: longer than it is tall or taller than it is wide; diagonal thrust; interlocking; incidents at its edges. 

 

We explored the 8 principles of design: Alternation, Balance, Contrast/Conflict, Dominance, Gradation, Harmony, Repetition/Variation, and Unity. We then applied these principles to the 7 artistic elements—an artist's raw tools:  Line, Direction, Color, Shape, Size, Texture and Value. In a non-objective abstraction, an artist has only these principles and elements to use to create a piece. These are the fundamentals. 

 

I believe that knowledge of the fundamentals is essential to successful artistic self-expression. As Edgar Whitney said, "You can ignore these 13 principles and elements, but they will not ignore you". To try to "sing one's song" without a solid foundation in the basics, is a recipe for weak meandering paintings that will not hold together as strong works of art. A thorough knowledge the fundamentals allows for effortless expression in any art form. 

 

I studied jazz piano for quite a few years. My goal was to be able to express myself through improvisation. I would not have been able to do that without first studying music theory and learning chord progressions, voicings, upper structures, scales and all the rest. Until these fundamentals became second nature, I could not express myself in a way that truly captured what I wanted to say in a free and confident way. It's the same with painting. It is true that one has to know the rules before one can break them.

 

There was a lot to think about while creating the paintings, but the workshop was not all hard work. After applying the fundamentals to design our paintings, we used bits of collage and crayon to enhance the work and add detail. We were more than painters; we became designers, shape makers and symbol collectors! The students loved the workshop. Below are a few of the students' finished pieces: