Wednesday, September 3

September 3



4 comments:

  1. Patti Edmon Artist9/5/08, 9:47 AM

    I can FEEL these pages. Amazing, as always... I can't draw but I think I might be brave enough to start an art journal... yours is so inspiring. Any words of advice on how to start? I can collage/embellish the outside of a journal, but have trouble on the inside - boy, if that isn't a mental block!
    take care:)
    patti

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  2. Karin Bartimole9/5/08, 10:17 AM

    Welcome Marilyn - thank you so much for visiting and leaving me a message. Brenda is loving your class and the varied processes you are teaching. I get to hear about each week's new layers!

    Hi Patti,
    The blank pages of a new pristine journal are intimidating to me! So, for me, the use of an old book like this one, and working right on top of already printed on pages, has made it much easier to start each day!
    I begin by taking today's newspaper and finding words or phrases that fit my mood - an event happening currently in my life, etc. So that gives me my spring board. (I don't always end up using them, but it's part of my warm up process!) I do a bit of meditating in my studio - just tuning in to myself, quietly. Sometimes an image will come, others just a color. Then I'll pick through my varied collage materials, and start placing things around the pages.
    Getting some color down is another way to just dive in. Some pages I do a wash of color with watered down acrylics, some I rub in pastels (check out "pan pastels" they are like make up for your art!) and sometimes I will gesso the page first, and sand it after it dries, to get a super smooth and durable surface. But mostly, I play! And I practice trust - every single page goes through an ugly duckling stage, where I could think, "ugh, this is awful" if I allowed myself time to slow down and do that to myself! I don't - I keep on layering, building and trusting in the process - that the voice will make itself heard the way it needs to be. And I accept that sometimes it needs to be "ugly".
    I hope that helps. Getting started is the biggest hurdle - but I encourage you to go deeper - into the pages and beyond the cover :) and keep me posted!
    best to you both,
    Karin

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  3. Patti Edmon Artist9/5/08, 6:50 PM

    wow, what great advice! those tips for getting started are gold. I really do like making backgrounds, I guess I never thought of it as the same process, just different end result. I guess the drawing barrier isn't valid any longer:) I posted today about a neat Quotable card I found about the fear of failure, or letting something even think about being ugly - and how it can mess with one's artistic head.
    Thanks for all your great ideas and support!
    patti

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  4. Christoff Creations9/16/08, 2:42 PM

    Karin...I love your work, I can feel the emotions you put into it.
    Peace
    Holly

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