Now, that's a mandala

The buddhist monks make mandalas out of sand to celebrate the Buddha and to acknowledge that everything we do is ephemeral.

Well worth watching:



It makes me proud to be a buddhist.

A painting a day

Here's my painting for yesterday, in my One Painting A day till October 29, when I attend the next workshop with Steve Aimone.

Since I'm pretty much starting from scratch in that painting game, I figured I'd learn a thing or two if I made a painting every day. I was so right. I've learned heaps already.

I like yellow, can you tell? I'm going to keep using that color, it keeps me happy. And since I was making circles for Ingrid's Round robin book yesterday, I'm going to make circles today.

Or at least that's the plan, depending on what else the Muse has in mind.

Circles Round Robin

I am doing a Round Robin with some mighty talented ladies, and of course, the first pages I get to make are for wonderful Ingrid Dijkers. I spent a lot of time last year studying her tunnel books, they just blew me away. You can see them on her website: www.ingriddijkers.com.

Her theme for this Round Robin is "Circles".
For some reason, Circle crops popped into my mind and off I went:

The text reads: If you eat Circle crop foods, and on the next page, ... will you see Martians?
So here is the next page:

The painting is based on an aboriginal design. I guess after 16 years in Australia, I really developed a taste for that style.

I did a cutout as well, to give it depth. You pull on the black button, to reveal the depth within. Or something like that. lol

We were to decorate the front and back of the page, so I used a circle stencil, what else!

And we had to explain the method we used, so I made a little card:

With psychedelic bangles... (No comments!)

Ingrid also made a fantastic page for me. My book is the "Imaginary journey with Nick Bantock", which you can see  here.
Here is the page she made for my book, on her blog.

I'm really happy with my book. Two years before it comes back to me, as 20 artists will be working in it over that time!!!!

New to Facebook

I have just joined Facebook. Katherine Aimone told me it was a great thing to do to find fellow artists and abstract painters.

I'm finding the learning curve is huge, and the whole setup is not very intuitive to MY way of thinking. But already, I've been in touch and exchanged messages with people I never dreamed of talking to, like Anne LeToux at Bulles Dorees, or Steven Aimone who commented on one of my paintings, and his wife Katherine who accepted to be friends. Yeah! Life is good.

Today is another day I'm not painting. I'm making another Remains of the Day book, 4x4, black and white, as a present for a friend. Random Act of Kindness. Love it!

What I do when I'm not painting

I've taken a few days off painting so I can attend to some Round Robin journals I have to decorate.

This first  one is a Marie round robin. The theme was Marie's inbox in her gmail account. I chose to copy a spam message I had received, one of those where you will get 60% of the 6500000000000000000 Million dollars if you just.... etc from Mr Bazgonla Bonzo.
His scheme was about the poor Queen's necklace, to help her avoid the scandal. I reproduced the necklace, with tons of bling and little crystals, white bows, etc.

The next one is a mini cloth and paper book I made on the system taught by Mary Ann Moss of Remains of the Day. Best online class I ever took. I saw a model from Susie Lafont where the book was 2.5: X 4. This is what I made the book too, it's just adorable.

I also made a bigger one, based on a Marie Antoinette theme. This one is 5x8. It's more manageable. Here are the front and back.

And some of the pages.

They are just a ton of fun. You get rid of a lot of small pieces of paper and fabrics, lace. It's all good.

My favorite abstract so far

This is my favorite painting so far. This one has quite a history. I already had a second-hand canvas that had a 60's type very modern painting on it (not mine). It was brown, with oranges and blue, you get the picture. I covered the whole thing with white gesso, but I couldn't get that blue out.

So I covered the whole think in dark blue, and did an automatic painting in black. One thing let to another, I covered most of the dark blue with paler shades and... let her rip, as Steve Aimone told us to do.

I really like this one.

My latest paintings - June 2010

Here are more of the abstract paintings I've been working on.

This first one is based on the Julie Prichard Layer Love class 2. It worked really beautifully, then I had this huge central area, very light and lovely and.... I couldn't think of what to do with it. The bright yellow area is actually a map. It's 38x30, and it has a lot of texture on canvas. It proved to me that it could be done. And that I could do it. 

The next one is 48x30 again, an exercise with lots of color and just paint textures.

And finally, a pure color exercise. This is canvas as well.

A little gem

I participated in the Art and Soul Fat Book for the Hampton retreat. We were to make 4x4 pages. There were 18 participants. I received my little gem a few days ago, and I am completely enthralled. I didn't think 4x4 would be a format that I would like, and it was a challenge to work on something that small.

But the end result is spectacular and everyone did an awesome job..

Round robin books

In the middle of my "painting a day' project, I've also been making Round Robin journals.
The first one is for Lisa, in the Round Robin on my Sketchbook Yahoo group. Her theme is 'things with wings".  The caption is: Grrrls who want to fly.
Having a bit of fun with the theme, I guess.
The butterfly wings on the left page are actually a belt closure. I had to ask the neighbor to grind the hooks so that the metal would lay flat. Yeah for E2000 glue!

The lady on the right is levitating (I think) with a bit of help from a couple of bugs. I thought that was funny! It's just me. I hope Lisa likes it too.

The little tag above is the library card that Lisa used to identify the participants. I decorated mine.


The next book I worked in is also for the Sketchbook Round Robin. I guess I just have not posted for a while. This one is for Janet's book, and her theme is the Feminine Goddess. It is already a beautiful book. Other participants had already covered some of the ideas that I had, so I had to come up with something else. I hit on the idea of Sheherazade.

On the left page, we have the Sultan, and on the right page, the lady herself. She's actually covered with a lace veil, but it was easier to take the picture without it. lol
I used some earrings that I had to decorate her, and I put an arabic portal decoration around her. I'm going to add calendar pages counting off the 1001 nights.

Lots of new work

Ok, let's get something straight, right at the outset. I AM a maniac. When I discover something new, I jump right in and explore it from all sides and aspects.

So today, I'm posting paintings that I've made since yesterday afternoon. (It's frightening)
I started this one yesterday. It was all going well, but in the afternoon, I had the crazy idea to cover the whole thing with a background color, and it turned into a mess. So I abandoned and revisited it this morning. The wash of white paint helps a little bit. I did learn a few things, so it's good. 

Next today, I made another one, but for some reason, it never worked as smoothly as the one yesterday. Copying myself just doens't work.

So I switched to a smaller format, to continue my exercises from Van Vliet book. This is an exercise about monotones, blending directly on the painting.

I remade this one yesterday and forgot to take a picture, so here it is. If you've been following my posts, it's the colorful 'cityscape' with gold and glues. I like it much better that way!

This one is really just a loosening  up exercise, with a background made with the left over paints from the monochrome exercise. Very lively, I like it.

This one is painted over a cloud exercise that didn't succeed. My Jackson Pollock period. I think it looks awesome, but that's my taste.

Since I was at it, I also reworked this one. It had turned into an ugly background, so there was really nothing to lose. I sorta wish I hadn't added the gold, but here it is.

And the last one:

I really like this one. It's very soft. No, it's not gold, just raw yellow. It's supposed to look like beach flotsam. Whatever. I have another one I made, but it's drying, couldn't take a picture of it.

I should rest tomorrow. But then I have all these images swirling in my head in the middle of the night, and I usually end up with at least one that demands to be made.
I'm sure I'll slow down eventually, once I get it out of my system. I'd better. I'm already painting over older paintings, or mishaps, but I'm going to run out of room! :-))

Two for today in the 30 for 30 challenge

...and it's only midday on my island...

This first one started as an automatic drawing, as I learned last week in the Steve Aimone workshop. Then I just played with it. It will probably evolve into something else through the day. It's on paper, 48x48.

The next one is the transformation or evolution of yesterday's red horizontal landscape, which was really doing nothing for me. It went through several stages this morning. I like it as it is, so I'm calling it finished.I just wish it were bigger, it's only 13x19. But so it is.

3 more abstract paintings for today

I started the day with a large, 48x48 automatic painting. It's  now gone through various iterations.
I feel there is a design starting to come out.

The next two are smaller canvases, I'm playing with the sense of structure in the middle, and adding texture.

ON this gold and blue one, there is a lot of gel medium making up the texture, then the white paint was applied with a spackle knife, a technique I really enjoy.

Abstract painting, contained

Today's exercise from Rolina Van Vliet. It is more constrained than yesterday's. Maybe because I did it at the end of the day. It is, of course, completely my interpretation of the book exercise. I do not hold the author responsible for any of these results. ;-))

I'm happy with it. It's good practice of color juxtaposition. I want to do the next one in black, white and grey. Stay tuned.

**** a few hours later***

Well, for some reason, it was not black, white and grey, but gold, white and some non-descript color. I guess painting is like that. It has a mind of its own. I'm not sure where I got the idea. I'm pretty sure it's not original. I don't think I followed an exercise in the abstract book, I'll have to check back if someone did something similar during the course like week. Nothing original here, just fun!

Abstract paintings

I have been following an abstract painting book, and my first painting this morning is below. Of course, it's nothing like the example, and hers was full of boxes and compartments. Funnily enough, if you know me, I just can't fit into compartments. So mine resulted more into an explosion of colors, even though I started on a black background. Wear your sunglasses. It's supposed to be an exploration of colors, so I think I really succeeded here.

I next did an automatic painting, on a paper I had covered with gel medium, on the recommendation of my friend Jill, who also attended the Steve Aimone workshop. The paper didn't desintegrate, so that works for me. I then turned the automatic drawing into a rendition of a flower outside my window, blowing in the wind. Probably still too literal.

I went to the Post Office to send off 2 journals I've completed in 2 different RRs I'm in. I mentioned to the attendant that I'd been at a painting workshop last week. She asked if it was the same one another customer had been to. I said yes. She said, it must have been something, the other customer was just so high and excited. Yep: that's the same workshop!!!!

I then did more work on my 'Nick Bantock" painting. I'm getting quite happy with it.

It's getting quite dark and intense, like some of Nick's paintings, and I like it. I have to decide now if I'm going to go the whole Bantock distance and add collages: stamps, exotic figures or animals. TBA.

Round Robins, Steve Aimone, Nick Bantock and multi-tasking

It has been a busy day! You be the judge...

First I had to get on with some commitments I have with various Round Robin journals. I completed a double-page spread in Lori's book for the Round Robin on my Yahoo group, the Sketchbook Project. Her theme is: 'The texture of time". I found the book extremely challenging as the pages were pre-painted a glimmery purple.
But onward we go, facing the challenges we meet, with resolution and creativity. I glued some extremely old pages I have from a French book. It's a Moliere comedy, and time is a comedy isn't it? An illusion at best.Here is the double spread, complete with old lace, several transfers, and a super scotch tape, since I know Lori loves tape.

And here are some close ups. I added some tassels to give it the taste of old France in the xviith century. I'd like to add some words, but I'm afraid my handwriting will mess it up. I have till tomorrow's post to decide.

Next, I worked in Janet's book in our Marie Antoinette exchange. Her theme is 'Anything Marie" which is really broad. I tried to render the opulence and the richness that I associate with Marie Antoinette era.

On the left, I have shopping labels, and on the right, I have Marie's corset, all decorated with lace and dooh dahs. Here's the girl who has everything, so she can't choose what to wear. As a background, I used some really beautiful vintage wallpaper I received in an exchange. What fun!








Then onward to my first automatic drawing of the day! Here goes.

 I then worked on a new painting from an exercise I found in Rolina Van Vliet book on Abstract Painting. I'm not anywhere near her suggestions, but it was still good practice. The paper is now dripping wet, particularly the bottom part, and it's drying.

 And finally, I went and rescued a painting I did a while back that was a giant mess. I had already covered most of it in white, so I got a chance to work on it today. It will be a Nick Bantock style painting when it grows up. Or when it dries up, whichever comes first.

It has a lot of texture, and I am now struggling to incorporate it with what I've learned at the Steve Aimone's workshop last week on the Spiritual Language of Art. I had created this painting in 'another life' and now I have to relearn to use fluid acrylics. This one is a large painting (for me) on canvas, 22x30. It will keep evolving.

Stay tuned.

So all in all, I think I'm doing pretty well for the 30 for 30 challenge. I bought myself a few days of rest, or...