Studio Reflections
Slow down, pause, breathe in the moment
How often do you find yourself completely awe-struck by the landscape around you? Maybe it’s the sparkles in the trees as sunlight streams through the leaves. Or the evening clouds painted pink and orange from Sun’s final rays. Brief moments in time that make you pause and feel completely connected and alive. Desperate to hold onto the moment, to capture the beauty, we snap a photo. And between the endless emails and tiresome meetings, we turn to it to looking for that same rush of aliveness. That tiny window into a moment so outside ourselves, so big. But the photo is a poor translation. And though we see the moment, we can no longer feel it. "A landscape painting is essentially emotional in origin. It exists as a record of an effect in nature whose splendour has moved a human heart, and according as it is well or ill done it moves the hearts of others." ~ Walter J. Phillips This year I decided, rather impulsively, to commit to the 100 Day Project. For those who aren’t familiar with this challenge, the premise is simple: choose a creative project and work on it daily for - you guessed it! - 100 days.
I knew I wanted to do something that would allow me to really dig into my landscape painting. I also knew that I wanted to practice creating art that communicated the power of place. Art that, when you looked at it, gave you the same rush of aliveness as if you were there, in the moment. I wanted to accomplish what photos often don't: I wanted to create mini-moments that nudged people to pause, breathe and feel. I spent a day going through all my photos - trip photos, photos I took while on walks, photos from my backyard - and chose 25 of my favourites to use as reference material. I decided to complete 25 4” x 4” paintings. Small enough to sit on a desk. A gentle reminder for the workday: there’s more to your life beyond the never-ending tasks and emails. And so #100days25landscapes was born. If you’re interested in following along on the journey, I’m sharing more about it on Instagram. Use #100days25landscapes to see the project in its entirety. If you’re interested in commissioning a special piece of your own, check out this page.
0 Comments
When you’re considering an art purchase, your eyes may be drawn to big statement pieces. But don’t overlook the power of small!
Here are some tips on how to make the most of these miniature masterpieces... |
|