Landstills

As an artist it's so important to avoid preconceived ideas. You have got to challenge yourself constantly to produce something new, try new ways of approaching your paintings, new media, new sizes of work , new colour pallette, new anything.

With that in mind , I have been trying to work with different sizes of board. That was so hard for me. And very interesting that it was so hard. I do get used to the same sized board....mainly because I repaint the boards I have over and over, so I am going to get used to a particular size.

With this series I thought I would return to look at the small 15 cm pieces I create as a sketchbook really and try more conciously to work them up into larger pieces. I have made some 12 inch sq.  And 2 inch deep boxes and would like to get my work to flow on this size .

Overall it was hard ( I don't mind that it was hard, I always know that I don't want easy and I always say to myself that number one of a series may be rubbish but number 10 might be worth waiting for !

These were the words that came to mind as I painted.....
Between the hills and the clouds
When I look at this landscape of mine, it looks so different... ( what I mean here is that if you look at or take a photograph of the same area of the landscape throughout the day, it chances so dramatically within half hour ....snapshots of the landscape...landstills....

' Between the landscape and the sky,' acrylic, 12 inches sq.

' Gently distilled,' acrylic,12 inches sq. ( this one was a rework of one from a few weeks a go that never made it .....)

' Bringing the sky down,' acrylic , 12 inches sq.

Words....I like the ambiguity....they all seem so serious.....I think doing them small, I am trying to include everything when I can't, I need to zoom in....are cool colours more serious ?....

' Between the trees,' acrylic, 12 inches sq.

' Landstill ,' acrylic,12 inches sq.

' I like the random marks that are part of the process,' acrylic, 12 inches sq.

Random words....landstills...snapshots of the landscape....I like the random marks that are part of the process..distilled landscapes...cool...texture...quiet contemplation...too much clutter...brought the sky down...flat skies...the landscape element needs to be distilled.....

' Include everything, ' acrylic, 12 inches sq.

' A snapshot of my landscape, ' acrylic, 12 inches sq.

Put them up in the Art lounge ( back room ) so living with them now.....they fit in and compliment the quiet landscapes on the other walls.....love the room now....my, ' Summer exhibition, ' in the Art lounge.....calm, quiet, reflective, still....I love how art has an energy almost of it's own, how it can create an atmosphere in a space.....Mmm....so lucky to be able to do this....maybe I should paint some of my landscapes on the cushions ( Caroline Lingwood comes to mind .... Research....) And the whole display is crying out for some poetry....research again....