Saturday, 18 August 2012
Re-Connecting with Art: A Mini Journal & Some Paintings
Hey guys, hope you're having a fab weekend so far =D firstly thank you to everyone who left supportive comments and ideas on my last post, there were some really good mojo-prompting suggestions going on & I'm really grateful to have such awesome bloggin' friends & readers =)
So I just thought I would do a post to show what I ended up doing, firstly I tried some different styles of painting - kinds that would help me feel 'free' in what I was doing to try and reawake the mojo. The first one above ended up quite abstract, and the one below was a texture experiment done by carving semi-dry paint with a palette knife:
They were quite freeing, however I realised the problem was I still didn't feel connected to what I was doing. As my lovely online pal Rita pointed out to me on the last post to external eyes I must still look quite creative in my slumps, and to some degree that's true - for instance the ideas never stop, even if I don't actually do much with my hands. The trouble was I was feeling completely disassociated from what I was creating...and so ended up just not wanting to do it. Without that connection, there is no fulfilment. So I had a think & approached it a little differently. I thought about all the things that give me fulfilment just to look at or think about - my favourite colours, my favourite textures, favourite places and I put them all together in one place:
This mini journal is the result. I used supplies I had been hoarding (we all do it, don't we?!) and everything I enjoy using and it is by far the best thing I've done to feel connected again.
I used favourite stickers, stamps & paints, London Underground map, things already made by my hand, hoarded vintage ephemera and basically anything that I already had a connection to.
I didn't worry about creating great art, I slapped it all together in a way that made me happy and it did...not only while creating it, but also it's like my own personally designed eye candy to look back on and flip through. YAY! So that's my best tip, to be added to the great ones given in the last post - if you ever need to feel re-connected to your art - start by using what you already have a connection to =)
That's all for now, much love Jennibellie xx
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Dear Jennibellie, I found your blog on a random web search, and have been intrigued by you ever since. I know what it's like to be abandoned by your muse for a while. I went through Hurricane Katrina, spent all night on my kitchen floor huddled under mattresses with our closet doors nailed over the windows, and then left New Orleans the day after, seeing all the terrible damage along the way. I was unable to create for a couple of years afterward. I think you might be a little down because you were sick awhile back, but never fear, a good muse is never gone for long. You are working toward getting her back, and she'll come to visit before you know it. I love your art, too!
ReplyDeleteTo Mary Hicks and Jennibellie...y'all are starting a tear-storm here. I'm so glad the two of you are finding your creative streaks again. (I left New Orleans nearly 30 years ago, Mary...but my mother and brother were still there. She lost almost everything, fortunately a lot of books and her pics were on the second floor; but my brother lost it all. He still lives there, has relocated to the Jefferson area, mom is here in Texas with me.) It's often the case, sadly, that tragedy or even a fit of depression is the root of some of our most creative times. I don't really want to find that out personally, thank you, so I'll keep watching our Jennibellie for inspiration! <3
ReplyDeleteYAY! I hated to think of you without mojo...but you've done it again with this fabulous journal. Just for fun and just for you.
ReplyDeleteGad to hear you're back on track! The journal is fabulous!!
ReplyDeleteJenny this is such awesome work. And to try be free is fab. I love your mini book too. marvelous and beautiful work.
ReplyDeleteHave a nice Sunday and lovely greet
Marja
(marjascreativity)
Wonderful! You and your creations!! Christie
ReplyDeleteYour work always Wows me. I love both pictures and the difference. I also love the idea of using the things you love. I am posting an art journal page right now. I have so much fun when I take the time to do a page. It is a grateful page. I love just using what I have and slapping it down. I am still at 1. and not expecting great art (a 10 as you would say) I love that you shared that. It really frees a person up. Hugs, Linda
ReplyDeleteI think we all go through what you've experienced. When the motivation comes back to us, it's even more rewarding, and we come back more creative than ever! I think it's just a growing spell!
ReplyDeleteWhat a wonderful way to call to your muse. Using those things you are connected to and love really start to spark the heart. Look at the beauty that comes from it too! Well, and the next time your mojo disappears (which it will I am sure from time to time) you will know where to jump to first. :) xxoo
ReplyDeleteI love the mini journal. Sometimes it seems that art making is just about stamina, hanging in there until you get back into the groove of your mojo. When you're in the middle of a slump it seems that feeling will never return, but it always does.
ReplyDeleteJennie I have just found you on Utube and also your blog - what an amazing artist you are; you are so gifted and yet so grounded. I am so excited, even at my age, to find someone so full of enthusiasm and imagination that will inspire me to create art in my journal again. I must gather up all my bits of ephemera, that I have saved for years, I knew they would come in useful at some point, and use them to start creating! Thank you so much for sharing your brilliant ideas, what a generous heart you have. Viv
ReplyDeleteI can SO relate to this.
ReplyDeleteI have been watching your videos for awhile now and found the group. Just being in the group is so inspiring. I can't tell you how much your videos have taught me and I am an old broad but never want to stop learning. I think we have to embrace each day and just be. Maybe you just needed a rest. I find it amazing you find so much time to give things freely. I thank you for that. There is nothing wrong with just watching tv and regrouping. Love the journal. I find I hoard things and don't want to use them. I want to gather them together and just look at them. I have to force myself to use them.
ReplyDeleteJenni,
ReplyDeleteWhen I want to feel connected I do a similar process, revisiting old journals (which are always packed with emotion) and drawing ideas from that and from past art. Also I have tried using just color and making color fields, either with brushes or using my fingers (because IMO all good art is messy). And I completely love the feeling of release when the art is made and I can look at it and be completely amazed that *I* did that. Me. And for the sole purpose of making me happy, not because someone else asked for it.