Sunday morning.
It’s been a strange week spent trying to get some chores done around the studio and our home but not actually achieving as much as I had hoped. Most of my time has been spent thinking about some concepts that I am trying to move forward with in my work. A lot of this has to do with using different materials in a way that seems organic and not forced– one of the differences between art and craft.
Sometimes I will form an idea that seems like the perfect direction to head but once I extend my thinking through it I find that the result that I imagine is so much less that I had originally foresaw. I begin to see the idea becoming too crafty and just that thought puts a serious damper on my enthusiasm for the concept.
So I continue to roll things around in my mind, trying to find that elusive edge which I can grab on to and run with. This is a bigger part of what I do than one might imagine. It’s never just a matter of physically placing yourself in the studio and mechanically moving materials through a process to produce paintings. The mental aspect is the hardest part of the process, hard to describe and even harder to master.
It was put best by iconic painter L.S. Lowry when asked what he was doing when he wasn’t painting. His response: “Thinking about painting.”
So I am here this morning, thinking about painting. But I am my own master, my own boss, which makes a nice intro to this week’s selection for some Sunday Morning Music. It’s a song from nuevo flamenco guitarist Jesse Cook and friends called La Rumba D’el Jefe— The Boss’ Rumba. So, give a listen, maybe move your feet a little bit and have a great Sunday. Me? I’ll be thinking…
Redtree Times 
Your musings remind me of Theo Jansen. There’s a new exhibit of his Strandbeest that’s just opened at the Peabody Essex in Salem, MA. I wrote about him again, since I figured there were still some people who didn’t know his work, and judging from the comments, it was a good call.
In any event, this is what today’s post (and your previous one about your dream) reminded me of — Jansen talking about his process of Strandbeest creation.
” It didn’t have very strong joints. It couldn’t even walk or stand, but one night I had a vision about the principle of its feet.
So, based on the simple PCV tubes that I still use, I built a computer model and tried to calculate the best way to create a walking movement. This process went on for some months, day and night, before I found the right proportion between the lengths of the tubes.”
Onward!
I can only imagine the kind of thinking Jansen went through! His creations always thrill me and inspire a desire to create something more without knowing what that more is.
On Sun, Sep 27, 2015 at 8:28 AM, Redtree Times wrote:
>
Great post! I like the art, the music and the musings. I moved away from illustration and back to fine art because I was doing too much thinking and not producing. I like to let the paintings show me the way. I’m much happier and more productive!
Thanks, Tracy. I very much agree about letting the painting show the way and not thinking too much. But periodically I come to a place where I am instinctively feeling there should be a step forward and it just isn’t showing itself to me. So I spend some time trying to think about, look at and experiment with different things, all the time hoping something will point in a direction that will make me happier and more productive.
Pushing the envelope and challenging yourself is always good! I love to experiment, it keeps us fresh. Best wishes!