On Monday, I applied a second coat on five different oil paintings, all from my second oil spill series. I added contrast to some, others were darkened, still others received more vibrant colors. I was fairly satisfied with the outcome on all five - enough to say "finished".
The following day, I took a long hard look at two floral paintings, (one being a large 30x40 inch work) I had started last week and then had to put them aside, to not only let some of the paint dry, but also because I felt they were both flat... lifeless. I have a certain creative process in regards to my oil spill series - I turn the canvas upside down and then paint from right to left. I thought I would apply this same process to the smaller of the two floral paintings and see what I could come up with. I also added color, lines, and small waves to the work, very similar to the oil spill paintings I've done over the past 2-3 weeks. After a few hours, I stepped back and it seemed the painting came to life. I was blown away!
Feeling confident, I put the first painting aside to dry some more and stepped up to the larger canvas that had a large rose in the center. It, too, got the "oil spill" treatment. The end result, however, was different than the first painting. Because of its size, distance viewing mattered a great deal. Up close, one can still see the rose, but the additional colors and lines seem a little scattered. However, from a distance of say 15 feet, the painting actually looks three dimensional. To make sure I wasn't getting delusional from all my painting, I asked a friend over to view the paintings, but mainly to see the rose. At first, she looked at it from about five feet away, then approximately 15-20 feet away. Her only comment was, "Holy crap - you're right! It's like magic! I love it!"
Less than 24 hours later, one would think I would be riding high and eager to paint, but that wasn't the case. I'm unsure if it was a lack of energy, or crash-and-burn type thinking, but I just couldn't get motivated to go into the studio. I even wallowed in the thought that all my successes had come the day before and how on Earth am I going to top my large 3-D rose painting? I called it a day by early afternoon. Thursday is always my day off - my husband and soul mate has a half-day at work and we spend the afternoon together, which at this point, was very beneficial for me.
Friday rolled around, and after taking two walks and connecting with other female artists to finally clear my head, I picked up the paintbrush again. The first painting I approached was inspired by a glass sculpture that was outside a Mexican restaurant that my husband and I dined at back in September. The glass was arranged in a circular way, that when you looked at it from above, the design looked like it go on forever into infinity. My first rendition of that inspiration was so off the mark, I abandoned the work for about a month. With great trepidation, I took that same work up, turned the canvas upside down, and "oil spilled" it from right to left.
When I felt I was done, I moved the easel about five feet away, walk over to a comfy old sofa I have in the studio, and said, "Dear God - let me see the beauty of this painting." Then I opened my eyes. Lo and behold, I not only saw beauty in this work, but new patterns, designs, color combinations, and numerous other possibilities that just weren't there before. I was so moved by this painting, as have others, that it will grace my newest batch of business cards, my website, as well as my Facebook page.
Speaking of websites, my new website, JillLangdon.com, is finally finished. Please check it out and bookmark it as more works will be added to the "Gallery" section and you can stay up to date with showings, classes, etc.
Until next time, I'm going to infinity and beyond,
Jill
Rose copyright 2016 Jill Langdon
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