Artist's Block

Don't you just hate blocks of any kind? I especially hate artist's block. What this means is that just when the New Year is a fresh start and calls for inspiration - I am stuck!

Gary Larson, was a very prolific creative genius who before his retirement produced 23 books of collected cartoons, with combined sales of more than 45 million copies. When I saw this cartoon it spoke directly to me in more ways than one. First of all, I have to get on with producing my collected works of art, and secondly, it reminded me of my desire at one point to paint cows.

"Why paint cows?" you say. Perhaps because they remind me of some people I know - but no - I love their soft eyes, their varied colours, their placid nature, their international habitats and their soft "moos".  Their babies are also charming. I have in fact a herd of photographs of cows doing various things in various parts of the world. Talk about inspiration! I no longer feel "cowed."

To the 45 million followers of this blog ---- HAPPY NEW YEAR

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Art Reflections: Boston

On a recent trip to Boston, I encountered some wonderful architecture. The city itself is really a work of art and a wonderful place to visit.  I recently posted about "Inspiration" related to the paintings of the members of the Aphasia Institute. In Boston I was inspired again by two very different art-related sites.

Artists for Humanity originated in Boston and is making inroads in other areas. Here is their mission:

To bridge economic, racial and social divisions by providing under-served youth with the keys to self-sufficiency through paid employments in the arts.

" Since 1991, Artists For Humanity has empowered and employed Boston teens in an intensive program of arts, creativity and enterprise. AFH partners youth with professional artists/designers to design, create and sell art products. With fully equipped, staffed studios in Painting/Murals, Sculpture/Industrial Design, Screen-Printing, Graphic Design, Motion Graphics, Photography, Web Design and Video, youth and mentors collaborate on creative projects, many specifically commissioned by clients. In the process, young artists develop entrepreneurial skills, and introduce audiences to their voice, vision and virtuosity. Artists For Humanity apprentices have produced fine art and creative products for Boston's largest firms and organizations."

 I visited their brand new shop in the Faneuil Hall and purchased a great tote for carrying art materials.

What a joyful group they are!

How industrious!

And talented!

Visit their website at http://www.afhboston.org/
Visit their blog at http://www.afhboston.blogspot.com


On a more serious note - I also visited and was very affected by the beauty of the Holocaust Memorial.

 "The design utilizes uniquely powerful symbols of the Holocaust. The Memorial features six luminous glass towers, each 54 feet high. The towers are lit internally to gleam at night. They are set on a black granite path, each one over a dark chamber which carries the name of one of the principal Nazi death camps. Smoke rises from charred embers at the bottom of these chambers. Six million numbers are etched in glass in an orderly pattern, suggesting the infamous tattooed numbers and ghostly ledgers of the Nazi bureaucracy. Evocative and rich in metaphor, the six towers recall the six main death camps, the six million Jews who died, or a menorah of memorial candles."  

The pictures I took there don't really do it justice.

Two very different and unique experiences in Boston and two very close together on the "Freedom Trail" near Faneuil Hall.

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More on Inspiration

 In previous blogs I have talked about the issue of ‘artist’s block’ and possible sources of inspiration, but sometimes inspiration comes not from visiting an art gallery but from an unexpected place.

I am a volunteer at the Aphasia Institute in Toronto. ‘Aphasia’ is an acquired disorder caused by damage to the brain from either a stroke, brain tumour or brain injury. This condition affects more than 100,000 Canadians today. Aphasia can deprive the affected person of the ability to speak, read, write or understand the speech of others. Language skills are affected, not competence, but all too often those with aphasia are discounted as incompetent because people lack the necessary skills to help them be understood.

The Aphasia Institute is a community-based centre of excellence that helps people express themselves to the world around them. It also assists people with aphasia and their families to find new ways to re-join life’s conversation and thereby reduce isolation.

There are a variety of ongoing programs - all designed to encourage community involvement and social exchange.  I am currently a volunteer facilitator for a conversation group. However, as an artist, I am very inspired by the group of members that participate in the art program. Most have never painted before, some have had to learn to use their non-dominant hand as a result of stroke, and all have aphasia in varying degrees.

Making art is such a wonderful way to communicate when the right words may escape you!  I admire the energy and fearlessness of these budding artists as they are finding new pathways to enjoy life. As you can see from the paintings, their talent is also to be admired. When I see these painters at work, I am ashamed to even think of ‘artist’s block’.

Thank you to the painters below for sharing their work with all of us. For more information about the Aphasia Institute go to www.aphasia.ca

Bill Scott

Tita Tubil

Lorraine Kelso

Bruce White

June Ann Ho-A-Kam

Se- Truong

Take Thee to a Gallery

Still in the throws of summer doldrums, I decided to take my own advice and visit a gallery for inspiration. The McMichael Gallery in Klienberg,  http://www.mcmichael.com/,  in addition to it's regular collection of Candian art, currently has two very interesting exhibitions. Marc-Aurele Fortin was a painter from Quebec from 1888 to 1970. He painted luminous, colourful landscapes of Quebec city, Charlevoix and Montreal in watercolour, oil, pastel and casein. He produced and estimated 8000 to 100,000 works, many of which were lost to fire, poor storage and unscrupulous dealers. Very inspiring!

The other artist of interest is Ivan Eyre, a living artist from Saskatchewan who has been producing art for 50 years. He is a painter and sculptor.There is an indoor exhibit and also nine of his very large and imposing sculptures in the new " Sculpture Garden".

Artist's Block

I am in the painting doldrums lately - a total lack of creative ideas and inspiration. Sometimes it's good to become a blob for awhile and not try  to force the return of the "muse". Other suggestions I have heard include:


* Pull out all your old resources and review them with a fresh eye.
* Take out some old paintings, that with some judicious cropping and editing may get  you started again.
* Look in the dictionary for inspiration
* Think of what makes you angry, happy, or sad and just start to paint.
* Put on some music, and let it inspire you.
* Think of a favorite poem, novel or film and try to indicate it's appeal for you in paint.
* For fun and mabye a kickstart go online to the abstract art title generator at  http://noemata.net/pa/titlegen/
* Visit a gallery and just soak it in which I recently did at the special exhibition of Abstract Expressionism   from New York at the Art Gallery of Ontario



  See Jackson Pollock, Mark Rothko and others from May 5 to August 7, 2011


*Of course the best advice is just to pick up a brush and put paint to paper - something usually happens - see below - (no Pollock, me!)



Unblocked


Now that I'm unblocked, I hope to see you at the summer show of the Willowdale Group of artits:




MAGICAL WORLD OF COLOUR



The Paper Mill Gallery – Todmorden Mills


June 29th – July 10th


See WWW. WGA.ca for details


 



Inspiration

What inspires us to paint a subject? There are a thousand answers for a thousand artists and a thousand paintings.
I had an inspiration several years ago when I saw an elderly man in France. He was walking downhill between houses on a village road. He had on a coat that had fit him at one point, but now he was very thin. He had an old slouchy hat. He had a small poodle on a leash which looked as old as he was. He appeared to have come out of a cafe. It was very poignant. What was his story? Was he alone and lonely? Was he going home to his wife? Was the dog, his best and only pal? The idea was to do a painting that captured the mood of the scene and all it's questions for the viewer. Since then I have done the "Old Man and Dog" in about six paintings in many guises and environments. I think he will be with me forever.
My current "old man" is a "dandy", and the "old lady" in the painting is after him - thus the title "The Pursuit of Happiness". I had seen him a couple of times, always looking smart, with his knee socks and hat. He was still jaunty in spite of obvious arthritis, which forced him to walk with bent knees. He looks attainable in the painting, but finally turns away. Perhaps his mind is elsewhere. What would happen if the old lady caught him?

                                              The Pursuit of Happiness