Working with those Elementals...

'Dance of Fire and Water'

Well here she is, actually finished.
I have to say she's looking a lot smoother now and the fish are just how I pictured them when I began, not just blobs of orange!
Sometimes when you are creating art, there is this awful stage which you just have to push through. (The 'Wall' which everyone hits).
The voices in your head are telling you that this is dire, that you have messed everything up (again), that you are rubbish and should try digging graves instead ;o)
These are the times that you have to be the bravest.
Luckily, paint is very forgiving, you can cover most things up and no one will ever know just how bad it was before.
But...I wanted to show my early stages, for just those reasons.
So that those of us, struggling with our paintings can take heart in the fact that all paintings start off really really horrid.
They don't just appear on the canvas looking pretty and perfect.
They are all ugly ducklings. (I actually think ducklings are adorable).

This one is for the Elementals.
I wanted to paint two forces of nature playing together.
The mermaid represents Water, so is cool and blue.
The fishes represent Fire and are warm, red-orange.
I wanted them to dance the Eternal Elemental Dance within the water.

I have to say, that they were great fun to paint.
I now need to come up with an idea for the other Elemental beings...
After all, I wouldn't want them to feel left out :o)

See you again soon, maybe with some more awful beginnings...
(Painted in Oils, size A3)

Well it is still January

Happy New Year!
I know I'm late, I'm always late, what can I say?
Better late than never?
Anyway, to me it still feels all midwintery as we have left the decorations up, for a while more, it's too dark here in the mountains of Snowdonia, we need the lights of the faeries to keep our spirits up.
That's a good reason isn't it?
We do take them down eventually, usually around Imbolg, we like to celebrate with the seasons and this seems fitting for this area.

This year I'm concentrating more on my painting and my fabric art 'stuff'.
As the room in which I work a.k.a. the kitchen, is full to the gills with paints and canvas, fabric and trims, I really do need to get on with these ideas to stop them just roaming around in my head.

I also need to get more organised with scanning and cropping etc so that I can actually show others what I have been doing , I mean, it might just appear to everyone that I am a lazy artist who just has ideas and no content, can't have that now can we?...he he he.

So here's one I prepared earlier...
I have been lured by the Siren's song yet again...

The sketch

First daubs

I know, she looks awful.
These are the early stages of the painting, where I can throw paint at the canvas and not worry about it too much.
I have the idea of what the finished work will be, so I just 'place' things where they should be without much thought, then I'm not too concerned about covering them up when I find the right place for everything.
The 'fish' are just blobs of fishythingys and will be changed completely later, they just need to remind me where I wanted a fish in the picture.

So, that's a little peek at what I have been doing, how about you?
Hope you have a lovely, creative year ahead, doing something you love.
Now, I really must get back to 'work'...the Muses are pulling my clothes again...:o)