Hi you fabulous Willowing and artsy followers! I just can't stand dwelling on negative happenings so I must try to get a tiny amount of relief in my studio. I have not had much time to work on my Goddess but I will show you my progress so far...
I had glued a bunch of collage papers and fabrics on to her dress but it wasn't right. So I ripped and scraped most of it off and then tried to smooth it over with heavy gel medium. I covered up the mess a little with my silver sage color but I am not sure where I am headed with the dress at this point.
The texture is not smooth any longer like I wanted it to be and I still need to make adjustments to the color of the dress and work on the background too. I still have a ways to go and I'm thinking that Klimt is NOT my style! LOL!
I do love her hair and her halo. It looks much prettier in person and the colors are so much nicer too. I took this photo last night under one weak light. I am very happy with the color scheme - it goes perfectly in my living room.
I really don't want to work this large again any time soon. It was just too much too soon in the class I think. I've now depleted my paint supplies and have become tired of the energy and time necessary to work this big canvas. A 20x24 would have been so much better for this project.
So it's looking like I will have a little time tonight to spend in the studio and spin some tunes. Oh how I have missed it this week!!! I just wish I could dig my way to the packed boxes of cd's in the garage - I have over 500! - but I haven't the slightest idea where they are. The nice stereo is out there somewhere too. Soon I will be making that a priority!
Thank you all for your continued support as I trudge through my scary and hectic life right now.
I love you all! Jessica
Hello my artsy friends. Just a quick post to say I have experienced some life setbacks and will not be posting my Willowing art for a few days.
My Father has been hospitalized with a serious condition that is almost identical to the condition that killed my husband. My Mom and him need my support right now and I need your prayers as I relive this nightmare.
Unfortunately, I was in a serious auto accident on the way to the hospital to meet with my Dad's doctors and my beautiful Jeep Grand Cherokee my husband bought me is totaled. I am hurt but not seriously. I was not at fault and her insurance co. will pay for everything. She ran a stop sign at a high rate of speed and T-boned me. I have a lot of witnesses including two police officers that were walking along the sidewalk! I lost control of the car and was airborne. It was the scariest thing ever.
As I am disabled, my Jeep SUV is fit for me special and was my only way to be independent. It is a hard blow to me and double with my father's illness. If I can convince them to try to fix it it will take 2 months and there is no rental car in this small town that I can drive. I do have my big truck to get around town but I can only drive it short distances with my disability.
So I will not be getting around much and I will be praying my dad can pull through this liver failure and tumor of his pancreas. We don't know yet if cancer is involved. He has responded well to the stint they put in the liver so far and function is slowly improving.
Please remember us in your prayers and I'm a huge believer in the power of positive thinking. Please send some my way!
Thank you all - you are all very special to me!
Forever in art, Jessica <3
Ha, you knew this post was coming! LOL! Oh my, I am SO outside my comfort zone with my Goddess. I've been stressing too much over her I know. Maybe I didn't think it through enough. There are several reasons I am intimidated by this canvas. I've never worked this large and I'm not used to doing my eyes this way. Getting her skin toned and smooth has been a major undertaking! I would have liked to take Tam's fabulous faces class first so I could be more comfortable with the learning curve.
Well, it's too late now. I'm in it for the duration! Now I've added even more stress by wanting to hang my finished Goddess in my living room. As of today, she might make it to the second bedroom.
So, I took a deep breath (or five) and got up the courage to post her in the Willowing M3 class last night. The comments I received this morning were so lovely and kind - Thank you! I know that I've got a long ways to go...
Very late last night I started working on her hair. I will be adding metallic highlights to boost the color. I'm feeling that she is a water goddess even tho I started out in my journal intending to do an earth goddess. She gives me a calm, serene feeling - something I need so very much!
Today I will be connecting with my Goddess and putting my feelings into her name and description as well as preparing some different embellishments as I've changed the color scheme a little.
As I was working yesterday, I kept thinking of "A Day Without Rain", the title of my favorite Enya album. So I put it on and it was perfect! I am always dreaming of a day without rain or at least without cold, driving rain, so I will spin it again today. I am thinking about that as a title for my painting but I'm a little confused as to how a water goddess would perpetuate a day without rain. Maybe it is about relaxing, serenity and self control? All things this high strung girl needs! LOL!
What are your thoughts?
Forever in art, Jessica
Hellooooo! I hope this post finds you feeling good about yourself and life. I am sitting here being lazy while recovering from my harrowing struggle with my storage unit this last weekend. I put off dealing with it for so long that now I'm stuck trying to sort and move stuff in the wind and rain. That's what procrastination will get you! This is a new year and it was time for me to tackle some of the bigger projects that have been hanging over my head. And now that I took that big girl pill, I am rewarding myself with time in the studio and Tam's new class!
I am getting amped up with my first Willowing M3 project. Wow, Tam does not disappoint! I just LOVE her long videos, gorgeous pdfs and encouraging spirit. Our first project that I mentioned before is the Goddess. We will take inspiration from the master G. Klimt and "The Kiss".
Rather than going too far out on my own, I decided to make it easier on myself and used Tam's guidelines for her. The large size of the canvas (24 x 30) has me a bit intimidated so I wanted to keep her simple and straight forward. I made a few small changes to Tam's design just to give it my touch and I will be using a different color scheme of course.
Klimt is all about gold but I'm going to tone it down a bit with bronze, pewter, pale gold and green. The accents will be in espresso brown rather than black. This is a huge mixed media project and I'm very unsure of myself. Well here goes - I'm jumping in with both feet!
Here are a few of the collage paper elements I will be collaging onto her dress along with glittery paints and fabrics. It was time consuming gathering the papers and cutting out the little bits and I'm still not sure if I will use any or all of these. I just hope it will not turn into a big mess!
I should have titled this post "Outside my comfort zone" but I'll probably use it for the next one! I feel like I'm creating blind as this project is not something I would have normally done. I need to try and focus, immerse myself in it.
So... I've started the journey, let's see where it leads...!
Oh yes, I did work on my smaller canvas I shared with you last week but I'm not finished with her yet.
Music in the studio this week was: Gwen Stefani's Love, Angel, Music, Baby. Enya's And Winter Came. Enya's Amarantine.
Here's to staying the course with your new goals and having the courage to venture out into uncharted territory!
Forever in art, Jessica
Thank you everyone for your wonderful comments! It is so encouraging to have your positive feedback! It's no secret that I've been having some challenges with my health and riding that ol' emotional rollercoaster and I want you to know how much it means to me that you are following my bumblings in my tiny studio. It has become such a joy for me to have this little studio, this haven to create in and I love sharing it with you!
I've been working on a little mixed media canvas and it's been slow going. Not sure why. I think it's 'cuz I really want to be working on my big Goddess canvas that will be our first lesson in Tam's (Willowing) new class, "Mythical Magical Makings"!
Here is sneak peek of the little canvas...
I've got a ways to go. Working in acrylic only is a bit more challenging than the watercolor!
O.K., back to "Mythical Magical Makings"! Kick-off will be January 17th. The first two weeks envolve creating a large mixed media painting of a Goddess with the inspiration of Klimt. Of course, rebel that I am, I'm already planning a few changes so that I can hang her in my living room! The canvas size was to be 24 x 36 which I found a bit daunting (to say the least). So I chose a 24 x 30 instead. After all, I have a smaller cottage and I want it to work well with my decor. Now I just have to find my easel and I'll be ready to roll.
Also in my studio art kick-off, Traci Bautista is running a daily challenge on her blog, "Art Journaling Daily". I've included a button on my sidebar if you'd like to check it out. I always find Traci's journal prompts to be fun and freeing - anything goes!
In the coming weeks I will be sharing my journey through "Mystical Magical Makings" (M3) with you along with some colorful, freeing and open journaling inspired by Traci B.
Music in the studio this week so far is: Blondie's Greatest Hits. Oooh, ooh, ooh, ahhhh... I have a feeling that Lady Gaga is next for the spin!
Let's kick-off 2011 in a artful blast of creativity!
Forever in art, Jessica
Hello creative spirits!
This is my first post of the new year and I would like to start out by sharing a new fairy face doodle...
She took me quite a while to do. Some of the detail didn't show up that well but the time was spent none the less. I think she is one of my favorites. I really enjoy doing these mostly in front of the t.v. and will stay up to the wee hours of the morning when I'm in the groove.
The doodle fairies and mermaids are very therapeutic for me and I am transported to my fantasy artland when I'm working on them. You can go to previous posts to see my lists of mediums used on her.
So here's to wishing you all creative joy in your journeys to your fantasy artland this new year!
Music in the studio this week was: Laws of Illusion by Sarah Mc L., Legends, various current artists do Fleetwood Mac.
Forever in art, Jessica <3
