Mmmmusings

January 13, 2007

Are you ready for the year of the Boar, which begins on February 18 2007? I’m looking forward to the peace initiatives that will happen this year and unusually warm weather. Certain years favor the activities of artists and this is one of them. How can a year of abundance and sensuality be bad for an artist, I ask you?

I remember the last boar year, 12 years ago, and it was a fabuloso art year for me. I did 2 of my favorite and most ambitious paintings in that year and was full of energy for my very busy life. My son Tony asked me to do some watercolors without doing any drawings under them. It was exciting to see that the puddled edges of the watercolor glazes created their own lines.

You can see what I mean on the homepage “Self Portrait January 2007″ in the hat and jacket which are cut paper with multiple layers of watercolor and no drawing. I’ve been painting and drawing long enough now that I didn’t need the training wheels of a drawing to work from and that realization was liberating.

In January I think about the year ahead and I seek guidance for the year ahead. I sit in meditation for guidance and I record my dreams.

I consult the I Ching. I create a “mission plan” (every year is like a moon launch) without peeking at last year’s plan first. I’m thinking a great deal about blue. My interest is drawn to blue everywhere and it is not a color I often use in my paintings as a theme color.

I read a nice little summary of the different spiritual blues — the blue associated with Mary (think of the Guadalupe Mary’s robe), Krishna Blue, Venus aqua blue, the holy family cielo blue, and then I thought of “Blue Rider” school Kandinsky/Munter blue and the Mark Chagall stained glass blue.