I am starting up an Art Blog with the aim of collecting my thoughts and feelings about my past and current artistic journey; to share and explain my motivations, inspirations, aspirations and perspirations for anyone interested.
My artist friend Sue has kindly provided me with a list of questions to kick this blog off. So here we go:
Is your autobiography woven into your artwork? If so, how?
The short answer is ‘yes’. I can’t but help be present in some way in everything I have created. I work imaginatively a lot of the time and draw on memories of people and places, feelings and wishes which help give context and layout in my compositions. I think of myself as a figurative image maker, seeking to create some visual poetry with whatever materials interest me in the moment and whatever best suits the subject matter. For example, I have periodically painted ocean water with oil paints rather than pastel or watercolour as I can layer the transparent details as best I can without bleed or smudge. In fact, acrylic paints would perhaps be even better suited than oil, but I’ll leave that for another day’s discussion.
I’m looking at the ‘Meet Me at the Well’ book as I write this and thinking to explain the cover illustration. Where did the image come from? It is an imaginative collection of memories from mountain hiking, watching Tibetan/ Nepalese movies and a yearning to honour the sunrise with a prayer and sound. We have a Tibetan singing bowl at home, and I enjoy helping it ‘sing’. My wife, Penny, has a soft green shawl and a green sari and I imagined the figure to have strongly bunched hair, and she wears felted slippers. The sky and mountains appeared first, and then she popped up in the process. I did have Penny’s written verse as my context and theme, and it awoke mountain memories for me. I wish I could hike up to those heights again, but I can’t do it anymore for lack of breath!
It was important to create a distinctive visual atmosphere of simplicity and devotion by having the figure holding a bowl and paying attention to the rising sun.
A picture can speak a thousand words, they say, and I am pleased with this one. The sense of release and inner warmth is a happy one when something like this is ‘discovered’ in its journey—in its process of creation.
Until next time, happy painting.
Anthony