Watercolour (this is a first for me). Once again, I am compelled to consider a medium I would never (ever) contemplate using. Watercolour is for kids don't you know. Only it's not. Pigment mixed with water has a mind of its own — it wanders all over the paper to pool, bleed, and scurry its way into every corner. On it's way there, it leaves a big-blotted blight of a mess. I dive in (it is water, after all) with a portrait, instead of the usual flower and foliage we (I) sometimes associate with watercolour. I learn a way to control the paint — first, a select area is painted with a wash of water, and then, while still wet, pigment is applied. The pigment only flows to those areas painted with the water (yes, this works). Also, white paint is not used — anything white or highlighted is unpainted. Watercolour is a surprisingly slow process, and this is a work in progress.
Well, I am now onto the 3rd (of a 4 year) Bachelor of Fine Arts. Its a part time gig, so I will be at this for another couple of years. I do find we move with speed to satisfy the curriculum. The classes are mostly studio work with on-going and formal critiques, where our work and minds are open to the perspective of others. Part of what makes those tactile and creative processes so joyous, are the many challenges and frustrations I encounter along the way. The results aren’t always the ones I set out to achieve (and just like in real life), it’s those side-roads and wrong turns that uncover new and interesting things. I make considered choices and am encouraged to take risks, and sometimes look for ways to make use of different materials like fabric and thread. I am also delighted by how much fun I have with the young folk. Despite our significant age difference (you might say), we stand as peers and get along famously. I am a newcomer to the formal practice of art, but I bring to the game some real life experience. So, whether things I make comply with a lesser or greater language matters less than understanding where those definitions come from and who benefits from those distinctions. The codes and conventions that come with the practice of art are of real interest to me, though in a practical sense, I understand them as part of a system that is open to inquiry. At this point, I only bring a mind curious and open to learn about all things Art and the will to hone my skills through practice, practice, practice. Today in studio, we paint Alla Prima -- and it means painting "at once". Unlike the grisaille method, (where the painting is done in stages with wet glazes applied over dry paint), this time, we apply the paint in one application without any retouching. First, I mix paint colours and assemble a range of flesh tones on my palette. The paint is thick and I apply it directly using a big brush, attentive to shadow and colour shapes. Making a painting does take time, and this is the result from our morning studio class.
We are invited to create a series of images that represent our social landscape. I am on a weekend trip to Montréal with my three sisters that corresponds with our Dad's birthday. It's a pilgrimage of sorts, and Mom is supposed to be with us, but she stays at home to nurse a winter cold. These photos are taken from the train while looking out on the things we see along the way. I am taken with the constant flow of graffiti that we see in hard-to-get-to places. It's animated by a trail of melted snowdrops on the window, and the blurred view as we move down the tracks. There isn't time to observe everything carefully — though despite the fleeting gaze, I do notice things — and the perishable views from the train are both ephemeral and lasting.
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May 2018
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