Some paintings have been a slow evolution, ending differently than originally intended, but most only get small improvements along the way, ending as first envisioned. Most originate suddenly. In a flash, I know the flavor of the image and roughly how it will look. Work is started as soon as possible because it’s unknown how much time I have before the flow of inspiration for that picture is cut off. The single most important event in the genesis of an art work is what I call the ‘sign off’, that moment when something inside me clicks to confirm in the most certain way imaginable that this one should and will happen. Without that, it’s all for naught. I’ve tried doing art without it and only frustration and waste results.
What got me on this subject was the one that came to me last night, out of the blue as usual. The look and feel of the image came most forcefully, along with style clarity on the two most important parts of the picture. The rest of the painting is entirely up to me, it seems, because none of that was provided. The most striking aspect of this painting is the style, which is unlike my typical work to date but which I found very appealing. I began building the canvas last night and today I did research on the story the image tells.
Religious themes have never appealed to me because I can not relate to the way they’re carried out. But a few years ago I realized that the standard approaches to conveying them aren’t the only way to tell the story. For my heart, they’re unrelatable because the people look so strange with their contorted poses and odd expressions. It doesn’t have to be that way.
“Goodbye!” She’s leaving her heavenly home. A parting look into the eyes of those who love her!
Nor do they have to conform to a photographic notion of how things actually happen in order to tell an accurate story. Not in my world.
The first time I attempted this (the painting has not been finished) was in a portrayal of a young woman whose time had come to leave the comfort of her heavenly home and do battle, so to speak, on earth. We grow up elsewhere in a family setting and the time comes when further development requires this step, meaning that the adult spirit when ready must enter a mortal body and be stripped of the memory of that former home, and work out certain crucial matters upon which what follows will be built. It’s a short span where critical matters are decided by each individual as evidenced by their thoughts and actions. Some fall completely apart. Some excell. The stakes are high and the rewards are significant.
The idea came to me one day when I’d had a person try to persuade me to give up realistic depictions in favor of splotches of color that will dress up an interior space without distraction. She told me that if I wanted to make money as an artist, that would be what would sell. But that’s not what or why I paint! She did like one painting out of all that I had on the wall. This one is the best example I have of a painting that ended up entirely different than it started. For months and months I gathered any picture I could find of kelp forests, which are beautiful places. I didn’t have a clear notion about what the storyline would be, I just liked the visual. Breaking with the original signed off concept I then added a storyline by including fish and a shark and a boat which was not inspired but made sense. I didn’t like the danger that the shark represented. I wanted the kelp forest to be a “friendly” place so I added the girl and removed the shark. Then I reasoned that the circles concept would not work in an ocean environment because the water would be too choppy. So I got with a friend who scuba dives and she provided me with pictures of Clear Lake. I painted out the entire kelp forest to replace it with a shark free, danger free, fresh water lake whose surface the girl could touch from beneath and cause the circles.
The person who had attempted to guide me toward certain success and wealth as an artist said she liked this one because it was “whimsical”.
I remember thinking, “Whimsical? I’ll show you whimsical!” An idea popped into my head at that moment. I already had a canvas stretched and behind the piano I had a round glass table top that was the perfect template for Earth. Within minutes, I was at work.
“Goodbye”, depicting the moments before she excitedly leaves her heavenly home with gratitude, love, and appreciation. Like a college freshman first time out.
“Circles”, the ‘whimsical’ painting
I imagined a young woman, ready to leave home. She’s confident, she’s excited, and she’s ready. Before she begins that assignment, she has a heartfelt moment with her parents to express her thankfulness for them for everything. One last glance, a sweet goodbye, and then she goes.
Though I have yet to get the girl painted the way I envisioned her and the depiction of how people get to the planet is strictly symbolic, this painting works very well for me. I think it’s correct in terms of accuracy in concept. People do leave their heavenly home to get here.
Come on! Follow closer. Walk WITH me
Later I wanted my own picture of the Savior but didn’t like any of the depictions enough to put them on my wall. So I did my own. One day while I was puzzling over what would work best for me, this idea popped into my head and I loved it. He’s inviting me to follow him more closely.
I like religious themed art that actually work, meaning it helps me stay true.
When art ideas show up, I get right to work on them. They’re precious because with them, I’m still an artist. With them, the fun continues and the joy of being a ‘creative’ exists.
