This festive and colorful contemporary still life was truly an exploration in fun.  Feeling some ambivalence with creating an arrangement I came up with this gathering of objects.  All of them items I have worked with numerous times – so there was a bit of “ugh” going on inside me. About the only instinct that seemed to present itself in terms of inspiration, was a) desire to paint b) a desire to work again with patterns.

The pieces you may have seen before if you’re familiar with any of my work.  Inside myself I can doubt the use of the same bowls, pitchers, fabric etc. deeming it a boring. There’s as part of me that wants to always be working with something “new”.  Some how that seems easier. Maybe it requires less of me in terms of creativity.  (That’s something to look at.)  Of course I recall as I am feeling this way that it was very common for the master painters to work with the same items over and over again.  A sense of relief does exist in letting go of any expectation to create with new things all the time.  And there’s a bit more challenge creatively to explore new ways of interpreting or viewing items I am very familiar with.  I think there’s a life lesson in that sentence.  

When it comes down to it, to paint is important in terms of a practice as the other option is to walk away and do something else but then my heart hurts.   As a choice that doesn’t serve the practice of painting or my growth as an artist.  Inside I know there’s always much to be learned in simply  picking up the brush and engaging with the same objects, if need be, and that wonderful canvas. 

Categories: Poetry, Still Life, Still LifeTags: art for sale, blue and white, bold, brilliant, colorful, contemporary, contemporary art, emerging artists, engaging, expressionism, fauvism, green, inspired, original art, paintings on canvas, still life, still life paintings, stripes, vertical, vibrant, white pitcher, women artists, yellow