Transitions

Sometimes when I'm pondering life I go down to my studio and paint while I ponder. It's essentially doodling with color. I try this or that and see what happens. When I do this I discover things by accident that I hope to use in future paintings or works. As an example - the textured parts in the middle rosy colored sections would be great for hair on an art doll. I can do that on purpose now. I began this painting oriented like this. It changed a lot from the beginning color doodles. I brought it up and showed my husband. He has always been hugely supportive of me as an artist, and loves to go to museums and such. But he's also pretty honest, and pointed out that the center of the painting "looks like a guy with a big schnozz." Alrighty, then. ;-) What he saw is that the painting has gone to the point where there is a figural ground tension - kind of like those pictures where you have some line drawings and some people see two vases and other people see a face?
I turned the painting upside down and here I can see that it takes on a landscape feel. Not sure where I'm going to go with this next. While I was painting this I was thinking about transitions. They happen every day. If you have a child with autism the word "transitions" comes up very often, especially in school meetings. And then there are the larger transitions - not going from one class to another but moving from time of life to another. While I was painting this I was reminding myself that I've gone through many transitions in life and it's eventually good. And sometimes VERY GOOD.


An art friend, Denise Aumick, sent along a link to me to some luscious quilts at the Studio Art Quilt Associates site. Oh, how I love them. I love quilts. I own some of Denise's pieces and visitors to my house ALWAYS ask me about them. The one that's labeled "Itchy Neck Trimmings" speaks to me because I've used to cut tags out of my son's shirts. I love the humor in it, but the design is outstanding.

1 comment:

Denise Aumick said...

I love the upside down orientation, Dixie. It's imagery suggests rising up from below, overcoming, ect.


"Do not let what you cannot do
keep you from doing what you can do."

John Wooden