The Journey from here

This winter I took a course with Steven Aimone (https://www.aimoneartservices.com/) . He helped me think more clearly about what I’m doing. I had thought about what I do as abstraction but now I realize that nonrepresentational art is a better description. I’m not abstracting from the world around me. I’m making my invisible interior being, visible. This course was not about technique or materials but about better understanding what we are doing and doing it better. In the past paintings told a story or described something. Modern or contemporary nonrepresentational paintings describe inner unseen worlds and experiences.

There is a history of non representational painting, the Surrealist art movement. This movement included not only the likes of Magritte but also Paul-Émile Borduas, Marcelle Ferron, Jean-Paul Riopelle , Les Automatistes. Knowing how what I am doing fits into history provides context.

In the past I’ve been accessing my non conscious brain by using tools I can’t easily control (rags, plastic, paper.) The problem with that is over time I’d get better at controlling them and then I’d try something else. I’ve learned that I need to trust my non conscious brain. (No planning, no thinking). This is really hard to do! My logical, planning brain seriously wants to take over. In this course I have learned to actively tap into my feelings during the painting process as well as maintain my connection with the work. I’ve learned to apply the paint with energy then step back momentarily to take in the change and to sense where more work is needed.

I’ve learned to pay attention to the words I use to describe my process and my work while noticing what descriptions produce satisfying results. It seems obvious now. Fascinating what an impact that has. And yes, the goal is satisfying work, not ‘good’ or ‘bad’. I’ve learned to acknowledge the good in the work in progress and change the rest, slowly. Slow down and feel what the I am yearning for. It has been a productive 8 weeks. Time to paint. Thanks for following along my journey.

As 2023 ends, I wish you Happy Holidays.

Studio news

I had been waiting over a year for the second half of David Hornung’s colour course. Of course the second day of the course I tested positive for covid. Lucky for me I was only sick for a couple for days. A good teacher changes the way you think. I’m finding after taking David ‘s course that I see colour differently. My work is taking a shift this year which is exciting. I’m really looking forward to working with a ‘new to me’ teacher Steven Aimone. The course is described as “an advanced directed individual study. Designed to replicate as nearly as possible a graduate/post graduate school fine art growth and student experience.” I expect this format will work well for me. I’m looking for guidance/coaching rather than techniques.

At the end of November I had my first ever open studio. I invited another artist Julie Rosvall, @julierosvall, to share my studio. Two neighbours, Maria Doering @mariadoering and Violet Rosengarten @violet_rosengarten, also opened their studios at the same time. Never having done this before I just didn’t know what to expect. Would anyone show up? Truthfully, we lost track. It was nonstop over three hours. Wonderful to meet new people, see artist friends and neighbours. It was fun to see some kids play on a couple of my works in progress. You can see what remains of the kids contribution on the painting at the top of this post. (The kids did the light blue pieces in the lower left and upper right.) I work in layers so to have kids play on it gives me more to respond to. If you have any questions about how I do what I do, the tools or materials, ask away. I have no secrets.

The last week or so I’ve been getting panels ready for the new course I’m taking in January and learning how to use a mitre box to make support frames for the Aluminum Composite Panels (ACP). I’d rather be painting lol. The frame supports the panel and allows the painting to float about an inch off the wall (or they can be framed the traditional way).

I can’t tell you how much I appreciate you following along my journey.

Wishing you the very best for the new year for you and your loved ones.

Cathy

That is so cool!

A friend, looking at a painting I’m working on, said “Cathy, there you are! I can see you in your work. That is so cool! Look at those photos of the Nova Scotia coast then look at what you are painting!” Sometimes it takes some distance from your work to see what you are doing. Painting intuitively, abstractly is like that. I didn’t set out to paint a painting of that coast. I wasn’t aware of what I was doing though I do feel inspired by the landscape where I live. She saw the connection that I didn’t see. I paint intuitively and when it works this is what happens. This why I paint the way I do. It is so cool to see those subliminal connections.

Rachel Davis’s Imagine course

My 3 biggest take aways.

Abstract painting is as much about what is happening in your head as putting paint on canvas. So when Rachel announced she was starting a course, I was first in line, literally, lol. Rachel is a clinical psychologist with experience coaching artists and an amazing artist herself and a lovely person. Who better to learn from.

My 3 biggest take aways.

1) The simple idea of leaving the studio when the work is going well. It seems counterintuitive but it’s so powerful. When it’s going well I can feel it in my bones. If I keep going, the feeling is fleeting. If I stop, the feeling stays with me. When I return fresh and rested, it is much easier to pick up that feeling and get going in a good direction.

2) The value of meditation for training my brain to notice, in particular the 10% Happier app. I almost can’t believe I wrote those words. Me? Meditate?

3) Using the ACT (Acceptance Commitment Therapy) Matrix, I clarified what it is I want in my art, what’s stopping me, and how I can move forward.

All of this sharpens my ability to notice. This was the first iteration of the course, it will be interesting to see where Rachel takes this. You can find Rachel at www.racheldavisstudio.com and on instagram @racheldavisart.bayarea

Discovering Tata

I love finding a new place to explore. Yesterday Leya Evelyn and I delivered our work to The Ice House Gallery in Tatamagouche and generally explored a little. It was pretty quiet on this Monday morning but what a lovely location. We had been hoping to enjoy some lunch in one of the restaurants but that was not to be. A local overheard us discussing where to eat lunch and suggested getting a sandwich at the Butcher Shop, a good choice. The show opens at The Ice House Gallery in the Grace Jollymore Joyce Arts Center on Nov 6. With the Covid restrictions, there won’t be a reception but the artists will be in the gallery 1-2:30 Nov 6 (opening day). ( Next time I will shoot in the horizontal format, I’m new at this!)

Sign up now, for a preview

Sign up for my emails below for a preview (when I know which pieces will be in the show, mid Oct).

Why Abstraction.

Realism, for me, gets in the way. I haven’t the patience (because I’m not interested) in rendering realistic images. To quote Rumi, “There is a voice that doesn't use words. Listen.”  There are images that don’t use representational forms. Look. (Feel.) 

When you look at a realistic painting you immediately see “things”, a tree, a chair, a person. Psychologically, that's comforting. You immediately know ‘what it is’. When you look at an abstract painting, that's missing and for some people, that stops them from going further. But in abstraction, you're freed from the constraints of ‘things’. It is a bit of a leap to get past that need for something you recognize. If you can make the leap, it's rewarding. When you look at a painting, stop to look.  How does it make you feel? Listen to your body. It's OK not to like it! (this is the same for any painting whether it's a realistic or an abstract one)

For me, it’s about having the courage to leave the safety of the familiar (representational objects), stepping into the unknown and creating and responding to what happens in that space, losing control, allowing ‘mistakes’ to remain, or not. (Mistakes are the cracks that let in the light, the life.) There are techniques, materials, and tools to master and design, value, and colour to consider but the most difficult aspect is capturing that elusive spirit of the piece. Great paintings take on a life of their own as you work on them. They emerge. The subconscious, intuition educated with years of experience, leads you to complete them if you have the courage to follow. It’s hard to do and it’s a hell of a ride. Realistic images just don’t have that juice for me. They can be more comfortable to look at but abstract images, if you take the time to really look, feel and experience them, are amazing.

Yippee, I got into David Hornung’s colour course.

Welcome to my studio where I come to play each day. Covid has been challenging for everyone but a bright side for artists has been uninterrupted days in the studio. Where the world has moved online it has opened up all sorts of opportunities to attend workshops all over the world without leaving home. I’m pretty excited this week. I got into David Hornung’s course, Design and Color. If you are not familiar with his name, he wrote a very popular book about colour. (Color, A workshop for artists and designers.) and has been teaching for many years. Time to paint.