Saturday, April 18, 2015

Time for healing

I've had artists block for a few years and have not really been able to paint anything personal and meaningful.  While I enjoy watercolor and photography, I still didn't feel the muse return.  Fickle.  I spoke with Peter's mentor at his photography show a couple of weeks ago and told her what I felt what I really needed was a way to, somehow, get past my anger and frustrations that I thought might be blocking me.  She has an amazing way of talking you through what you're feeling inside and what you think would help you push through and suggested Healing Arts.  

I had a 26" x 30" inch canvas begging to be used.  I decided to limit myself and work with just a few colors, two brushes, painting knives, sponges, gesso, sand, and some other items I threw into a canvas bag.  

Facing a blank canvas is difficult most times, but especially so when you have no plan and don't know where to start, which way to turn, what to do.  Anger, frustration, sadness, depression, coming to the surface.  Grabbing a tube of paint, I threw the paint down, took a damp sponge, and started pounding the canvas, pushing everything out.  I put my life onto the canvas, my joy and happiness, my anger, frustration and sadness, pushing my internal wounds to the surface.  

The process was beautiful, calming, and cathartic.  And a beginning.  

Below, I offer "Pushing Through", acrylic on canvas.  s.l.anderson 2015



Life beats down and crushes the soul and art reminds you that you have one. ~Stella Adler

Enjoy the night, my lovelies.
sla
      

Tuesday, January 27, 2015

Water

We were looking at a map of Downtown San Antonio and noticed a small park we never realized was there.  Located along the San Antonio River between Brackenridge Park and the Pearl, we found a little park with a rather unoriginal descriptive name - Flood Control Tunnel Inlet Park.  This park is located at the start of the San Antonio River Flood Diversion Tunnel.  The tunnel is designed to carry 100-year floodwaters 150-feet beneath downtown San Antonio and release it downstream.  

As I try to find my creative voice, vision, or whatever, SQUIRREL!!! 

As I muddle through releasing my inner artist, I took a page from my husbands portfolio and spent a little time playing with my Sony alpha and whatever lens it came with.  Below, are my offerings for 01/27/15, the beautiful water features of the Flood Control Tunnel Inlet Park.  


ISO 100
22mm
f/25
1/10 sec

ISO 100
22mm
f/4
1/800 sec


Water is the driving force of all nature.

Enjoy the night, my lovelies. 
sla

Monday, January 26, 2015

A Collaboration of Sorts

Peter has amazing artistic style, so different than mine, if I really have a style.  If I were to classify my own, it would be ADD.  A little bit of this, a little bit of that, oh yeah, I like this too.  I'm still trying to figure mine out.

oooo squirrel! 

Every now and then, he creates something I need to add my own personal touch to.  I fell in love with one of his most recent photographs and asked him for a small print on watercolor paper to paint over, I had a picture in my mind of how I wanted it to look.  While this didn't turn out exactly like I envisioned, I'm still pleased with the end result.  Besides, I can ask for a few more prints to play with.  

Below, my offerings for 01/26/15.  Print on 90-lb watercolor paper, enhanced with Winsor & Newton Cotman Watercolors.  

A Collaboration    

Original image with additional images manipulated in Photoshop.  






I think it is in collaboration that the nature of art is revealed.

Enjoy the night, my lovelies.
sla

Sunday, January 25, 2015

Sunday Afternoon on the Riverwalk

You can be born in and live in the same city for most of your life and still find undiscovered gems within its heart.  Peter took an impressive photo a few months ago that looked somewhat like an Aztec pyramid.  Certainly this couldn't be in San Antonio, much less along the Riverwalk.  

The San Antonio River Ecosystem Restoration is an ongoing project and is drawing San Antonio natives back into the heart.  The latest restoration project is south of the King William Historic District, near the Blue Star Arts Complex;  this is the Eagleland Project.  There are abandoned grain silos along this part of the river that look like small pyramids in photos.  


Today was one of the few beautiful days we've had this January.  Peter and I spent late morning and early afternoon on the Riverwalk taking photos.  I was looking for the grain silos and was surprised at how small they are up close and personal.

Below, I offer the outcome of today's adventure.  

Photo taken with my Sony alpha, cropped to emphasize the pyramid shape, and manipulated in Photoshop to enhance the effect.




The original photo is included for reference.  




There are little gems all around us that can hold glimmers of inspiration.


Enjoy the rest of the night, my lovelies, Monday morning comes all too soon.
~sla


Monday, January 12, 2015

And life happens

This was a difficult day on many fronts.  Life wound unexpected and cool tendrils into my Monday.  But I made it through the day, my time for creativity, the only casualty.  I finished this little piece late last night and use it as my daily creative contribution.

Koi watercolors on 140lb cold press paper, manipulations in Photoshop.




  


I've learned over and over that life happens on its own terms, not mine.

Enjoy the night, my lovelies.
sla

Sunday, January 11, 2015

Sunday Night and still spacey

I decided to take another look at the watercolor attempt from 01/09/15 with fresh eyes and figured it really didn't look all that bad.  Splatter on a few stars and call it done.  Considering how unhappy I was with the original effort, I'm okay with the final look.  On a whim, I also manipulated the pic in Photoshop.  

Koi watercolors on 140lb cold press.  






Looking at these stars suddenly dwarfed my own troubles and all the gravities of terrestrial life. I thought of their unfathomable distance, and the slow inevitable drift of their movements out of the unknown past into the unknown future.
— H. G. Wells, The Time Machine, 1895


Enjoy the rest of the night, my lovelies, Monday comes too soon.
sla

Saturday, January 10, 2015

Saturday Night

Koi watercolors on 140lb cold press paper.



Still continuing with the space theme.  I don't think any of these small paintings could be replicated, each of them is unique.  I purchased a set of metallic watercolor paints to play with, these were used for the star-like spatters.  

Feeling down tonight.  But that's on me, as the happiness must come from within.  


The sky is the ultimate art gallery just above us.  
attributed to Ralph Waldo Emerson ~

sla