10/27/10

a painting start to finish

TITLE: With You, I am Warm. Prints available in my etsy shop.

lately i've found that documenting my painting process reminds me that it's never easy. it's been a really helpful thing for me to remember whenever i'm stuck with a piece. because whenever i paint, i always end up at that place where i feel like i can't do it and that i'll never create anything new. but i've learned if i just stop trying and connect with what i'm feeling, i'll push through and uncover the beauty.


if you're a regular reader of this blog, you know i don't start out with a plan, just a feeling. and that's what i try to paint. 

so for this painting, my intention was to express the joy and ease i felt playing in my backyard between the ash trees as a child. i wanted my owl to resemble the carved wood statue i had growing up. and i had this vision of endless blue-green with cadmium red tulips.

 
so that's what i started to paint. but i wasn't happy with the way those red tulips floated in midair.


 i tried painting white stems on them, but that turned into me spreading the white out all across the canvas. and here i was trying to give the owl dark, round eyes like the carved wood statue, but that all resulted in this weird spiked owl.

i knew it was weird as i painted it, but i operate with the philosophy that you have to just go with what's inside of you and trying to get out. so, i kept on painting what i felt.


but i knew i didn't like what i was seeing in that face. and so i covered it up. and this was the part where i felt like i had no idea what i was doing.


so i painted over all the parts i really disliked, leaving what i did like and filling back in the blue-green i so desired to see on canvas.


i didn't know what to do next. whenever i get this feeling, i ask myself, "am i still having fun?" and i realized i was totally set on the end result of having a beautiful painting rather than enjoying my process. 

so i took a break. and when i came back, i got out my stencils and played.


i don't know if you can see the difference here, but to me, there's such a different energy! i gave up my attachment to making something perfect and beautiful and i just started playing with paint! whenever that happens, something beautiful seems to arise.


and that's when i started to find my owl. i got out my pastels and started drawing. i went ahead and just put this big bold red stroke down for no reason. and i found that lovely scalloped blue edge along the top-and i went with it!
i was so busy painting and being totally into it all that i stopped documenting my process. you can tell the eyes and wings are different here too.


once i was in love with my owl, i knew it and the background needed to come together by repeating some of the existing colors and patterns. 

so i added some more origami paper in the sky to match the circle in the belly and more blue stencils to the sky. i also repeated the yellow from the background in a bold collar under her chin and added charcoal lines to mirror those above the owl's eyes.

TITLE: With You, I am Warm. Prints available in my etsy shop.

to keep all of the pastel in place, i apply a coat of spray on fixative. once it's dried, i add my top coat-a vintage decoupage that really brings out the colors and gives the painting a real sense of warmth and beauty.

28 comments:

  1. Wow..thanks for sharing the process...The outcome is wonderful...Your Owls are devine...!

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  2. love seeing your process, really fun, and it really is just like that for me too!! xo

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  3. I love seeing paintings in progress. I love how freely you paint over things that you don't like. I am not good at doing that at all. But seeing how wonderful it turns out, I need to just "erase" the things that I don't like and try again.

    Thank you for sharing your process.

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  4. Love your owl and I like seeing the process. Whnever I paint, it always ends up much differently from what it looked like in the beginning--adding different layers of colors until it feels right!!

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  5. wow- what a very interesting post today! i love getting to see how art is created, and how much experimentation and change goes on during the process!

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  6. Well that was great! I really LOVED seeing your process!! SO inspiring. My son and I both agree your paintings have wonderful depth and richness. My son is 13, he loves art. He's one of those part jock part art boys. Very rare. :) Anyway thanks for sharing!!

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  7. Oh wow, I love seeing your process...it's so interesting how much it changes...I wish I could work this freely...it turned out beautifully and I love that you pushed through, cause your right I guess most of us hit that wall in almost every piece don't we, ha ha...your owls are a delight and it's an honour to see one in progress, thanks for sharing Juliette. XO.

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  8. Hello Juliette (^_^)

    Wow, such an interesting post you have here! Thanks for sharing your working process, and with a marvelous end result too! I do love the textures you put in and definitely your expressive brushstrokes. :)

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  9. I really love reading about your process Juliette. I have those "I can't" moments with each piece I make too, and you're right, connecting with the love of the process is the way forward. I could really see the energy shift between when you stepped away and when you came back. You're work is beautiful and I can't wait to buy an original from you one day.

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  10. I love hearing about the creative process of artists but to see it unfold visually is wonderful - thank you for including us!

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  11. I sooo admire how you trust that feeling and keep going until you have in paint what you feel in your heart...very courageous. I so LOVE your art! :)

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  12. what a fabulous post....i love watching your process and i love how you work through it to get to such an amazing end result.

    i always go back to what i learned in a class i took from kelly rae....she mentioned how many times a painting will come to an "ugly phase" and we just need to believe and work through it.

    the warmth of this sweet painting speaks so loudly!!!

    oxoxox
    you are such a talent
    k

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  13. So great to see your painting evolve and change and be wonderfully finished. SO beautiful. xx

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  14. Thank you for sharing your painting process....it takes courage to erase what you start, especially when you have an ending in mind. When you let go of the end result - beautiful things happen! Love your owls and your colors.

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  15. This is so cool!!! Wow I'm impressed & I am obsessed with Owls :-)

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  16. Loved seeing your process....interesting how a piece evolves!

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  17. So many transformations. This post was fascinating.

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  18. I thought the first layer (white owl) looked pretty good until I scrolled slowly down to the finished owl. Absolutely stunning.

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  19. This is amazing and so generous of you to share the process.
    Your art is sooooooooo delightful!
    Hugs

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    1. Thank you so much for your kindness! I’m happy to hear you enjoyed seeing the process 

      Best wishes!

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  20. Wicked cool - I've just started making art and I love seeing the different phases that lead to an end creation. Your end product is so much richer now that I can see a little bit of how you got there. Thanks for being so open!

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    1. that's so nice to hear...thanks, katheen! have fun with creating your art!!!

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  21. this is gorgeous! thank you for sharing your process; i loved following along. :)

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  22. have a peek at this site see it here click to read more replica bags china additional reading go to these guys

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Feel free to say hello and ask questions. I would be delighted to hear from you! xo -juliette

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