Art Journal Thursday: Don't Wait

One of the key themes of my life is the struggle with patiently waiting. Or impatiently waiting for that matter. After I got the composition down, the phrase, "Don't wait until Spring to grow," just keep playing in my head. With the flowers, it seemed appropriate. I didn't question it, I just followed my gut. It wasn't until I started writing this blog that the theme emerged. I guess I am still waiting on something...but I don't know what it is. I guess I'll just have to keep working in my art journal until it becomes clearer or another theme rears its ugly head.

Used a palette knife to spread three different colors over to create the background.

As you know, I keep trying different things. But one thing that I do return to time and again is my palette knife. I like the randomness of spreading the paint; it can be very satisfying to wipe the paint on the page without a clear idea of where it will land. If you don't like it's resting place, you can always add another layer of paint.

The flowers were cut from complementary scrapbooking papers.

 

 

I used the top of a pen to dipped in paint to create these circles.



I created stems and twigs and then used the ripped paper as a hill to ground the flowers.

Using Tim Holtz plastic letters as a template, I painted the words and then added depth by using a brush marker.

Art Journal Thursday: For I am Going Away

Books are a great source of inspiration. Whether it is the world the author has created or the words that have been artfully crafted together. Books open our eyes to possibilities.

That's why I like to use them in my art journal. I find phrases and use them out of context to create new meaning. That's how this page came together.

The title phrase, "...for I am going away", reminded me of my own journey. Leaving the comfort of a nest that I had built for more than 40 years.

A fitting phrase from an entirely different book.

I found an image and traced it using tracing paper. Then I hand painted it.

I used a dry brush for the background and a piece of a cardstock border as a stencil.

I drew the cloud freehand from a book page and added a little ivory to integrate it.

The inspiration phrase from a vintage children's book.

I'd love to hear how you have used books in your work.

Art Journal Thursday: Waiting

Waiting is hard.

Waiting is boring.

Waiting can make the heart sick. It wears away...so much.

That was the inspiration for this journal page. A few years ago, I went to Père Lachaise Cemetery in Paris and marveled at the artistry of the memorials. A number of them had started to decay. To fade away.

I recently found one of my photos and it resonated with me. Waiting. Waiting. More waiting. All the while having pieces of yourself fall away. It was a clear picture of what it is like to feel the pain of abuse. I decided to use it as the cornerstone of the page.

Image transfer using matte medium and a laser printer copy of my photo.

But when I was done, it seemed too dark. There is light. There is help. There is compassion, even if there isn't complete healing. So I incorporated the beginning of Psalm 40 into the page. This will help me to remember that help is not far off.

A little of my own poetry (in white) and Psalm 40 in black.

A white marker over the light permanent green and Payne's Gray glaze.

Art Journal Thursday: Healing

My one of my fondest desires.

 

Healing, no matter how large or small the wound, is something we all desire. We live in a fallen world; a world that delivers pain from glancing blows to fatal trauma. Small lies, the end of a relationship, social injustice--the list goes on and on. It is unavoidable. Once the wound is there, healing is the thing we desire desperately. That's what this page is about.

A random phrase from a book. This is one of my favorite creative prompts.

Don't get me wrong, I know that there is joy in the world. I have seen it. Joy in my husband taking my hand. Joy in laughing with my oldest daughter. Joy in lying in bed reading with my youngest girl. Joy in the soft, brown eyes of my white Schnauzer. And yes, joy in talking about who's going to bite it in the next  episode of "The Walking Dead".

I used a stamp with Tsukineko Brilliance Pigment Inkpad in Moonlight White. 

But, there is a lot of stuff out in the world that hurts. And hurts for a long time. The fondest wish of my heart is not that the pain didn't come, but that the wound would close and scar over. I am okay with my scars. In fact, I would be happy to show them to you. But an open wound, well, sucks. So I desire healing, even if it means having to do the work of cleaning the wound out in order for it to close.

The background is a printed piece of blank newsprint.

Technique note:

I created the background by using a canvas board as a printing plate. Texture was created by making bumps with acrylic paint and letting it dry. I then added layers of acrylic paint in differing colors to the board. I sprayed the paint with rubbing alcohol and then laid a scrap piece of newsprint (saved from a Hobby Lobby glass purchase) on the plate. I used a brayer to make sure the paper was in contact with the plate. Then I rapidly removed it and laid it aside to dry. One of the nice byproducts of this is that the bumps started to dissolve and created added color in random patterns.

Art Journal Thursday: Abstract to Transformation

 

I have been experimenting with abstracts. Earlier this week I attended an encaustic class and decided to play with my acrylics in a similar way. While it was a lot of fun, I found that I had inadvertently created the shape of a butterfly. I noticed it when I turned the piece on its side. So I decided to finish the shape.

Funny how the unconscious mind creates recognizable shapes while the conscious mind is trying to create chaos.

The butterfly appeared and the abstract just flew away.

I used paper towels to take away the Payne's Gray paint to give some dimension. 

I love the contrasting colors.

I laid down an old book page to dispel the empty page anxiety.

 

I chose this verse because of the transformative qualities. This life is all about refinement, about being moved and changed.

 

If you can't read my writing, the verse is 2 Corinthians 3:18

And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.