Nature Hanger

I've been working on this little clay nature hanger for a couple of weeks, as I have the time. And yesterday, I finished it! I started off by collecting beautiful leaves from around our yard and pressing them into air dry clay (forgot to take pics sorry!) that I rolled out with a rolling pin and cut to size. I was sure to add small holes at the top and bottom for string. I decided to have some that are the actual shape of the leaf and others that are circles and ovals, just for some variety.

After the clay had spent about 5 days drying (doesn't need that long, but that's when I had spare time again!) I painted them in the colours that I wanted (gold, chocolate and caramel) and then let them dry.

I added gold and bronze leaf to the leaf prints as well, for added interest and well ... just because I'm a bit addicted to leafing actually!

I then went about threading the clay pieces together just with normal raw string, making sure that the string went through behind the clay piece, not on the front of it. 

I strung the pieces in odd numbers and then hung three strands of them off of a branch that I just picked up from out in the yard!

All that was left to do was to hang it up and enjoy!! I really like it and I think it turned out beautifully!

What have you been creating this week?! 

Have a great weekend!

New Lessons

I agree with the recent statement about creativity from Claire De Boer, when she says,

"So much of it is about nurturing something within; and the more it is nurtured the more it develops into something strong and beautiful, not unlike watering and feeding a plant".

It gives a picture of not demanding from ourselves, but letting our creativity have room to breath and develop. Giving our creativity the permission to make mistakes, to not always have to create a masterpiece. To not have to always get it right. To not even always have to create something that must be seen. 

People interpret art differently. Art serves different purposes for different people. It takes on different forms for different people. 

In our recent entry into our regional art competition, the outcome for me was no prizes. Am I bothered? Absolutely not! For me, it was never about winning in the first place. It was about being around creative people who 'get it'. They get that urge to create that won't be silenced until the brush is on the canvas, or the pencil is in the hand, or the hammer at the ready. 

There is no point in me beating myself up about not winning a place. There can only be one winner, and that's how it is.It does me, or you, absolutely no benefit whatsoever when we compare our art negatively to the work of others.

I said negatively for a reason.

I did compare my work with others that night. But not from the perspective of 'I really shouldn't have entered' or 'my work is pathetic'. Having my work up on display alongside other artists, allowed me to compare honestly, where I'm at as an artist. I was able to see that while my art is good, with classes, it could be a lot better (as I've not really had any). I don't think I would have been able to realize the opportunity to develop myself as an artist, through doing some classes, if I hadn't seen my work with the others. I'm very thankful for seeing that learning more really does assist with better expression and technique in the artwork. 

So my encouragement to you today is? To put yourself out there. Don't be discouraged in yourself if you don't win prizes. Art is about so much more than prizes. Open your eyes to see the learning opportunities that come from events like this and be thankful that we have a plethora of ways that we can increase, develop, hone and nurture our creativity.

Don't give up on yourself. Keep right on trying and creating. You can do it! You'll be so glad you did!

P.S. My eldest daughter did come second place in the children's category for her piece titled 'Summer Time'. She was very shocked and we are very proud of her
for giving it a go! 

First Ever Art Competition!

Our home is a busy little creative hub at the moment ... and I love it! My two girls and I have decided to enter into a local art competition for the first time! We're very excited to have the opportunity to be involved in something like this, and we're looking forward to seeing all the entries and having a great opening night next Friday night!

There are four sections to enter; art, photography, sculpture and ceramics, and children's art. We're entering all apart from sculpture and ceramics.

For us, it doesn't matter about winning or losing. It's about gathering with like-minded artists, sharing our work, encouraging each other, drawing inspiration from each other, and giving my daughters an opportunity to be encouraged creatively by people other than their Dad and Mum.

These are our finished entries ...

Top is a photograph taken by my eleven year old when she was ten, "Autumns Beauty".
The bottom pic is her first abstract piece. Acrylic on canvas, "Summer Time".

This piece was created by myself. "Moving Forward"

Another abstract piece created by myself. 
Acrylic on canvas with Gold Leaf "Reflections"

My photograph titled "Ollie Boy".

Above photograph taken by myself, "Dew Drop".
Bottom piece created by my eight year old daughter, "Diamonds"

A photograph taken by myself, "Morning Glory"

Above and below images are a triptych that my eleven year old took,again when she was ten.
If you look closely, you can see the beautiful
little bumblebee she's captured in each piece!
"All in a Days Work"

My little artists! They are very excited to be entering the competition! I'm so happy to be entering along side them!

My eleven year old ... "Summer Time"

My eight year old ... "Diamonds"

"Autumns Beauty"

"All in a Days Work"

Now all that's left to do is drive them to the art gallery so they can be displayed with all the other amazing artworks that will be entered! It really is going to be such a fantastic experience, and we can't wait!

So, you'll have to keep popping in to see how it all pans out!

Happy creating everyone!

Abstract Pieces

I've plunged into the deep end. I've taken a risk. I've painted more abstract pieces. Yesterday I spent the better part of the day painting. By the end of the day I had created four abstract pieces in acrylic, and some with oils mixed in as well. 

It still remains a mystery to me as to why all of a sudden I have an urge to paint in abstract, when I've never had a desire for this style in the past. However, I am really enjoying the freedom of it and the fact that there are no hard and fast rules. 

I have found that painting abstracts that relate to favourite song lyrics of mine add personal depth and meaning to the piece, as well as painting things that I know I like (trees, birds, etc). How do you approach your abstract pieces?

I must admit, I'm hooked. Even though I'm new to this style, there's something about it that makes me want to keep trying a different technique, a different colour scheme, a larger sized canvas! I keep a sketchbook with my ideas in preliminary sketches so that if it's a while between paintings, I have all the ideas written down (I'll show you this book in another post).

Here's the pieces from yesterdays blissful creative time! ...

"Rainbow Lorikeet" ... acrylic on canvas.

"Forest" ... acrylic on canvas with silver leaf.

"His Glory Appears" ... acrylic and gesso on canvas.

"Bonfire Dance" ... acrylic and oil on canvas.

It's school holidays here, and I really hope to cram in as much painting time as I can ... after I've bought more paints and canvases! 

Happy painting everyone!

First Ever Abstract Piece!

Abstract art has always been something that I've appreciated, but not really personally enjoyed. Which is why I found myself very shocked when I had a huge urge to paint abstract! Where did that come from?! 

Seeing as I'm trying to challenge myself with my art, and be brave in trying new things, I thought that I probably should do an abstract piece! And let me tell you, it was so FUN!

As we're also in the process of moving house, I realised after I had all the paint out and impasto mixed in, that my pallet knives are packed! So ... I cut up rectangles of packing boxes instead! Using cardboard was easier than I thought, and so was the clean up!

I have named this piece "Reflections" and for my first EVER abstract work, I am very happy with it!

What do you think?

Hope you enjoy doing something creative this weekend!