Speaking of Art Blog

Deep Freeze, pastel, 12x12"

This is my latest pastel depicting a scene I experienced while standing on the shoreline of Lake Michigan one bitterly cold day back in 2014.  It was so cold that it felt like I was breathing in tiny ice crystals.  There was a gorgeous hazy horizontal rainbow spanning across the horizon at sunset.  I was mesmerized.  But the cold quickly creeping inside my bundled clothing only allowed me to stay focused for about 10 minutes as I clicked a few pics, then I hurried back to my car.

I don’t create very many landscape paintings these days.  They don’t really excite me.  I’m more interested in trying to capture the personality of an owl or lizard or butterfly.  But there was something about this scene that piqued my interest enough for me to work on this painting.  First, it’s winter here in northern Indiana and last month brought some bone chilling cold days, reminding me of that day back in 2014.  Secondly, I really love all the complex textures in the foreground and I wanted to face the challenge and see if I could pull it off.  I’m very happy with how it turned out.

Thirdly, and probably the main reason I chose to render this particularly difficult scene is because I needed to dive into a piece of detailed work that would demand my full concentration.  Right now, with all the division and chaos going on in the US, I needed a creative escape, something that would totally absorb me emotionally and mentally.  For my own mental health, I cannot continuously stay focused on the forces outside my studio.  That would make my creative spirit literally freeze up and blow away.  Yes, I want to stay informed, but I need to find balance too….and remain sane.

We artists are a strange lot.  We go to our easel/studio alone and create something new, and in the process we bare our souls in our work.  Then we turn around and share it with the outside world.  But there’s a fragility inherent in that process.  If we are feeling despair, we are not feeling inspired at the same time.  Pardon the cold weather pun, but despair and inspiration are polar opposites.  Therefore, we MUST guard our creative time.  It’s not a nice little extra.  It’s a necessity and it’s not selfish either, it's self preservation.

Last week I attended an annual instructors’ party at the Chesterton Art Center where I teach pastel painting.  One activity we were encouraged to try was to create a one-word mini poster using old-fashioned print making materials.  I chose the word INSPIRE. While I teach, one of my goals is to inspire my students to not only learn new skills, but also to express their creativity.  But I must not forget about myself either.  I need to guard my inspirational spirit.  That involves setting aside time to turn off the noises from the outside world and go to my studio and get lost in creating something new and beautiful.  Lord knows, our world needs to see artists’ unabashed beautifully inspired creations right now that shine some light we are all craving in the middle of so much dark ugliness, even if that creation makes the observer want to go put another sweater on because of the chilling cold feeling they get while studying a numbing winter scene like my newest painting. 

Pastel artist Lyn Asselta penned a poem last week that explains it all so beautifully.  Her words are simple and truthful.  Thank you, Lyn.

"An artist has to continually pull from a deep, personal well of inspiration,
finding confidence and creativity
even in the midst of all the noise and distraction in the world.
Don't let the world dissuade you.
Shut out all that isn't necessary and listen to the voice that propels you."
--Lyn Asselta

   Winter Flicker

   pastel

   11x14 (in)

So what am I inspired by to create my artwork?  The list includes lots of things that inspire most artists: a gorgeous sunset over Lake Michigan, or a beautiful flower growing in a summer garden, or a majestic mountain scene while I’m on vacation.

But I guess one of the most unusual things that recently inspired me was the Chicago area blizzard that hit us last week.  It was one for the record books, to be sure.  Within 24 hours we received over 24 inches of snow that was then hurled around and drifted, driven by very strong winds.  Schools were called off, businesses closed, and everyone was housebound for two days in the whole Chicago/northern Indiana area.

I had been thinking about starting a pastel painting of a striking bird, a Flicker, in a winter scene that I photographed two weeks ago on our back deck.  It is such a beautiful bird and the stark white snow and muted colors in the background only served to accentuate its beauty.  But I had shelved the idea because other duties had taken a higher priority in my daily task list. 

Then the storm hit.  Well, since I couldn’t leave my house to go tutor or teach my pastel class, I decided to dig into my painting.  I slowed down to a near halt when I was working on the background.  It needed to be muted yet imply that there was snow behind the bird.  I needed a live reference.  So I opened the blinds in my studio and there was my reference, absolutely perfect!  I was off and running again.