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Did You Miss Last Weeks Newsletter? Well here you GO
Hola Amigo,
This week (and next) we have more visitors. Keith’s twin brother and his wife have come to visit for 2 weeks (send thoughts and prayers please) and we are going to try and show them a great time. Two weeks is a long time to entertain though.
They were pleasantly surprised by the home we rent. Once again it was expressed that seeing it in person really makes one stop and think. It truly is a WOW house.
Next week we are going to pop over to San Miguel de Allende again for a few days and show off the most beautiful city in all the world according to every travel publication. That city is a real looker.
We are also meeting up with friends whom we met when they were travelling here in Guanajuato last month. So it will be a welcomed reprieve and I am totally looking forward to it. Maybe I can convince everyone to a game night?
My brother-in-law did bring me some playing cards and the game Phase 10 to go along with my game Mexican Train. Last night we played Spades and argued a lot. haha
I have also been craving some beach time lately. If we were to hop in our car right now, we could be at a beach in 5 hours…maybe I can talk Keith into it next month. It would be fun to take the dogs with us and just go find a shack (within reason of course) to hang our hat for 4 or 5 days.
I am imagining swimming the beach in the mornings, laying in the sun until the afternoon- going back to the ‘shack’ for a nap and then a seafood dinner and live music to top the days off. That would be so nice! My perfect day.
Like the rest of the world (it seems), we are having some ‘weather’ here in Guanajuato. Essentially we have two seasons here: Wet and Dry and we are experiencing some extremely wet weather right now. It rains at least once nearly everyday and the last 2 days it has been nonstop.
The cactus must hate it!
A Tool I Use to Help Me Find My Art Style. Analyze Yours and See What’s Up
Have you ever seen a painting and knew immediately who the artist was without even looking? Every time it happens to me, it gives me a little dopamine hit and I love it. It’s like peeling dried paint off a palette in one perfect sheet.(Michelangelo Who? I just made acrylic lace!)
And if you recognize the artist immediately, that artist is doing a great job at expressing their voice (niche, style or a myriad of other hoity toity words we use in this world). While that is just one factor to being a well-known artist, they are well on their way. It’s truly is the first key.
I wanted to share one thing I do that helped me in the beginning understand and express my style in my work.
We are surrounded by inspiration, but in order for it to make sense, we must organize it. It is in this organization that we learn what really smudges our charcoal (I love a good charcoal smudge!)
I know many of you have saved photos on every social media platform along with an amazing phone memory of thousands of photos. And if you struggle with your art style, this should be one of the first things you analyze.
It is time to look at all your social media saves and truly analyze why it made you stop your scroll. There is something there that looked exciting to you and you need to figure it out.
I am going to do this out loud with this famous, but no longer with us artist below so you can see where I am going with this.
This Basquiat painting would for sure stop my scroll if social media existed back in the 1980’s. Here is what I specifically love about it.
the chaotic energy of the line work
things popping out of the layers- not completely covered- has history
that pink in the top corner- YUM
drips and splatters- fun
I love doing this— Let’s do another one from this inspiring still living artist (IG Handle is Martinus_sumbaji). And the beauty of this technique is that you can learn something from ANY artist and they don’t need to be famous.
What I love about this painting specifically that for sure stopped my scroll
PINK! Lordy I just love pink
scribbles- I like how they are different with the light and dark scribbles but also thick and thin.
black lines
sort of hidden back layers and come through subtly
SPLATTERS
ONE MORE—Same artist! (You should follow him)
Hello smudges and polka dots!?
You almost have to squint your eyes to be able to tell what this is
wild color
don’t let the pink color bite you in the face AGAIN
thick paint
splatters and drips
that greenish color at the top is also delicious
What did I learn from this?
The more you analyze, the better. And it doesn’t just have to be other art. I have saved tablescapes because I loved the color palette. Photos of old peeling paint on walls because the texture is just so good. Pasted posters in an alley because the layers are delicious.
When you analyze and take copious notes, you will see a pattern emerge that you can then take and put into your own creations. This is what obviously excites and inspires you and every artist will give you clues (if you let them).
I have done this extensively so I know what makes me jump up and prime my canvas. Many of the bullet points above are things you will find in my work. I can now see it quickly in other artist works because these details excite me.
So now it is your turn to put all those SAVED photos to work and get some clarity that you can apply to your own art!
I also imagine that this would work with many creative endeavors. Like interior design? Maybe cooking recipes? Any other ideas?
Also, I was thinking about this last night and now I want to poll you and see what is really going on out there.
For the Paint Splatters (in case you missed it)
Here are your links to your tutorials that I hope brings you joy in creating!
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