I read a mundane op-ed in the NYTimes this morning from a writer I rarely read — and I won’t mention it because he’s a dweeb and I don’t want to be sued. But the upshot is that he believes virtual or electronic activities are overtaking physical activities in most walks of life for various reasons, among them being easy access at all hours of the day and low risk in terms of exposure, and that someday real life activities could be replaced to a great degree by virtual or electronic activities.
Some of his editorial was surprisingly sound, and if it comes to pass that he is right then I am glad I am older and in the last third of my life and happily married. (It seems virtual dating doesn’t work, big surprise there… fewer lasting relationships statistically.)
It got me thinking about why I never gravitated to iPad art, not in terms of making it nor in what I’ve seen of it in the hands of artists I admire. In the making of it, I am talking in my case about drawing (pen and ink), watercolor, acrylic, shown below right, and oil on canvas, the latter I now prefer over acrylic.
So here goes, my thoughts today, off-the-cuff!
First, I love the physicality of it. Painting engages my whole body, not just my right-hand clicking parts or wand or finger. Even more so when I have the opportunity to paint BIG on canvas, such as the family series I did, shown right. It challenges me to remember to balance relaxing and holding the brush tight for painting tiny details. I have to get up and stretch, move around, step back.
Watercolors are the most difficult medium for me, and also my favorite. They are endlessly challenging, can be carried everywhere so always available, and I always have them with me. I’ve been writing about why I keep a sketchbook, and a lot of it is for emotional reasons, as in memories.
I am challenged when creating a wash for a sky, making enough wash color, and applying it. Or adding layers without overworking a piece.
I continue to forget ahead of time to choose the right paper, very important in watercolor. I start an image in a smooth-textured sketchbook and am sorry when I decide the image is going to need washes of color, which are better on thicker textured paper. I am lazy about switching out to a watercolor sketchbook or pad.
Watercolors show me a lot about my personality!
The physical challenges are varied and keep me engaged and paying attention. No computer does that for me. I could, in FACT, fall asleep on a keyboard.
Test on silk
Mixing colors…
Oil paint on a previously stripped (damaged) chair.
The senses, especially smell, though not so much with watercolor (though I can smell the difference between Daniel Smith and M.Graham, especially when it is fresh out of the tube).
I LOVE the smell of Gamblin oil paints, and thankfully their mineral spirits are odorless! I was introduced to them in our business, through the projects shown above, and have since continued to experiment with them on small boards and thick paper.
And then there is the memory of the lovely smell of this field of posies… I had to slow down and enjoy that moment, which was lovely.
Spontaneity, which means I can record life-moments in real time, and along with those moments comes the many emotions that I might or might not remember. Painting and sketching them makes them real and keeps them alive — there is something about the physical act that embeds them in my mind.
When we moved my mom out of her house, which was the beginning of the end of her life, I made a small folding watercolor journal for the trip, and recorded my impressions of a drive I’ve taken many many times, shown above.
During the Portland riots, which were frightening, an image so strong came up, and it has said it all to me in the years that have followed. Seeing it brings up the memories of that time, including staying in the studio until very late listening with fear to the sounds of anger in the city.
Getting lost in my work is the best part, and I cannot get lost in any creative act on the computer. In fact, when I am writing, and I do a great deal of writing on the computer, I have to jump start my creative process through hand-writing first, then after a certain time I can take it to the computer until I get stuck again.
Hahnemühle Watercolor
Hahnemühle Watercolor
Finally, I love the tools of the trade, including amazing color you do not get in a virtual image, shown above! Wet glistening paints on a page are the absolute best. If I am stuck sometimes just playing with the colors will move me toward creativity.
Pens, beautiful and fascinating and endless varieties! Right is a cheap but beautiful vintage Pelikan P20 Twist. I had to have it — it has PARROTS on it!
And below, my beautiful Benu pens… collectible but pricey, so I have to have a reason to use them!
I had to get this out… it was hurting my heart to think
about my processes and how I would be heartbroken
if I could not get my hands on paint and brushes!
☾
©D. Katie Powell.
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One final note: I like my palettes CLEAN, though I admit that I frequently find cat hairs in them. (I wonder how that happens?) I cannot stand to have my colors muddied and so I use the mixing spaces in the tins. I clean my paints with a cotton swab when I get them dirty.
D.Katie Powell Art 