Thursday, December 31, 2009

Finding clarity






Nothing like a date with your easel to clear the mind and weed out the cobwebs. Yesterday I finally took time to paint...

I've been working on a series of children at the beach, like the pictured "Child's Play". I'm having so much fun with color in these. Just as the child is running to play in the ocean, I'm running wild on my canvas splashing and dripping paint in every color my brush decides to go play in. My underpainting for these interpretations of blissful innocence are as spontaneous as the subjects themselves.

It began as an experiment. I had just purchased five slender canvases, expecting to use them in panoramic form as that suits a landscape artist just fine, when I saw a painting online with a child reflecting in thin, beach water. It was painted on a slender canvas and something about that composition grabbed me. It was September, just passed the prime for swimming in the ocean in Maine. (Not that swimming here is ever really warm... We prefer to call it "refreshing".) The day was warm, so with camera in hand, I drove to the beach in hopes of finding a few lingering beach goers.

It turned out to be perfect. Not too many people to crowd the photos and disrupt the reflections. The water was surprisingly warm so people weren't shying from it. Like this child, many wore summer clothing rather than swimsuits. For the artist, sun-drenched, blowing clothing is a gift. My photo shoot was very successful!

I've finished three of these and have three others in progress. Capturing the unintimidated movements of the children feeling "set free" at the ocean is giving me great pleasure. In the pleasure I'm finding clarity. For that I am grateful. If the holidays have you feeling tired and warn, I suggest you take time to go play with whatever it is you like. Letting go of stress and feeling your spirit bubble out with playful excitement will do you worlds of good.

Have a safe and happy New Year's Eve everyone. I wish you all playful excitement in finding your own clarity.
Thanks for reading...

6 comments:

  1. Hi Sue, I really love this painting. Just thought I'd let you know.

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  2. What beautiful colours and mixtures of your paint pallet. I am in heaven, this is so dreamy!
    Love, love, love it!

    Hugs!


    Julie

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  3. J'ai hâte que tu me fasses découvrir cette plage...
    Bisous

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  4. Nice work.If you want to use my blog to post your stuff Ill give you the password

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  5. You've captured the innocence and delight of childhoods explorations, dappled in glorious light sending colorful hues throughout the atmosphere... Your colors and techniques are wonderfully instrumental in transporting the mind to that special place in our memory when once we felt as this child must have felt that day, in that time and that way.

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