New Painting, New Teacher

Introducing: “Flight of Fancy (2)” – 12″ x 16″ – acrylic on canvas

What a process! The last couple of days were as much about the spiritual process as they were about the painting process.

I’m very grateful to this painting for all it had to teach me during this period during which I’m refining my business plans and vision.  I’m also grateful that my first painting in this series, “My Prayer For You“, was created with such ease and grace because that gave me the strength and confidence to experience what I did through this one.

It all started with the intention to create a few small pieces for an out-of-town gallery that will carry my work this summer.  The owner had mentioned that the pieces that do well are those geared towards their extensive tourist market looking for Newfoundland memorabilia.  Painting towards market demands certainly isn’t my usual approach, but I was open to exploring it as earning a sustainable income from my art is very much on my mind these days.

I started with watery layers of colour sprinkled with sea salt (appropriate for life here on this island in the Atlantic ocean). The salt can create beautiful effects – like on “Mirage” (on left), the gallery owner’s favourite piece in my collection.

But that didn’t work.  It created a mess.  That’s not usually an issue because I usually build up layers, but because of all the caked-up salt, I put the whole thing under the tap and scrubbed the canvas clean before the paint dried.

That was my first sign that I should let go of others’ expectations (and some of my own too – such pressure!).

So I started again – letting the first watery layers work their magic and dry.

I love the mystery and co-creative energy in this technique. While contemplating the results, I saw all sorts of creatures come to life, including 2 birds and a dolphin.

I then used zinc white (transparent) to outline those figures and look for more, like fish, whale tales, and birds.  This is something I still find challenging, although it’s the basic technique I learned in Vienna.  Oh well.  It didn’t matter – I was starting to let go of what I wanted it to be to explore what it could be.  That’s when I decided to cover all the transparent white with opaque white designs. I then glazed over those and went back in with teal and crimson accents.

By the end of that first day, however, I was at a loss again. I felt discouraged. In my prayers that night, I gave it up to Spirit and asked what else that painting might have to teach me. Total surrender.

I woke up 8 hours later with a message coming in loud and clear: “Cover everything but your 3 main characters in white dots”.  I was open to a meditative exercise and so gladly delved into dot-making. By the end, I felt totally relaxed. The dolphin looked truncated though, and so I covered it too.

The more I let go, the more Spirit guided me.

The minute I put it on the wall to photograph that step in the process, the minute I got the next instruction.  One step at a time, when ready.  All I had to do was trust.

Gold dots in the secondary features. Red and black dots to add swirls. Paint around those with black and teal to add contrast.  Go in with your 3-D paint to add even more layers and swirls.  Add the final jewels in ruby crystal gel.

This painting had very little to do with the final result. It’s not about judging whether it’s good or bad or appropriate for a gallery geared towards tourists.  This painting is all about being in the moment, listening to guidance, trusting, and loving what is.

It’s about allowing and accepting.

Once again, I’m so grateful to be reminded that my studio is my sanctuary – the place where I create for myself first and foremost. If that in turn serves someone else, wonderful! How that fits into a business model, I’m not quite sure yet.  Having said that, this was such a useful spiritual and business exercise as I continue to ponder some of the questions I was asked during my first consultation at the Newfoundland and Labrador Organization of Women Entrepreneur (NLOWE).

I’m not putting limits on what and who I create for, of course. But sometimes, it’s necessary to let all that go for the lessons to be learned within the creative process itself. Art is very much a part of my spiritual practice – it’s my teacher, my mirror.

I chose the name because of the birds and the fact that it’s highly decorated (on a literal level), but also because of the meaning of this idiom: “a soaring mental journey above or beyond the normal everyday world”.  That pretty well describes my experience.

“Flight of Fancy (2)” – 12″ x 16″ – acrylic on canvas – SOLD

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