‘I have learned that what I have not drawn I have never really seen, and that when I start drawing an ordinary thing, I realise how extraordinary it is, sheer miracle.’ Frederick Franck
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Time slip
The title ‘Time Slip’ was the first thing that popped into my head once I finished this mini abstract. I must have been thinking about Doctor Who… or possibly the lyrics of the ‘Time Warp’ song… “With a bit of a mind flip, you’re into a time slip and nothing can ever be the same.”
Time slips happen quite a lot when I’m painting ― no, not the kind where I’m suddenly transported back to the French Revolution. I’m referring to the kind of time slip where you are so focussed on what you’re doing that time slips away and the time you spend doing something feels like no time at all.
Proof, as far as I’m concerned, that time travel IS possible.
Shoot it, Sketch it: Hidden depths
I’ve painted this magical place (although not this particular image) before. Hamurana Springs also inspired Flow (my first ever abstract), Stand (an experiment in using pastels) and Redwoods (an acrylic version of Stand). There are quite a few layers of paint on this one ― lots of colours and loads of texture. The painting looks particularly good at night with the light spilling down through the gap in the trees and reflecting on the water.
Give us what you’ve got
“Creative work is not a selfish act or a bid for attention on the part of the actor.* It’s a gift to the world and every being in it. Don’t cheat us of your contribution. Give us what you’ve got.” Steven Pressfield
*actor, artist, photographer, designer, craftsperson, writer, architect, singer, dancer, jeweller, florist, chef, poet, potter, musician, storyteller…
Cliché
“The secrets to life are hidden behind the word cliché.” Shay Butler
The green, green grass (and the red, red hills) of home
Sergei Bongart’s advice to study nature, exaggerate light and be less inhibited (the quote I posted here on Friday) is more than a little to blame for this painting which I started on Friday morning and finished off on Saturday afternoon. It is based on one of the photographs I took during our DC-3 flight over Christchurch last year.
Because I wanted to exaggerate the landscape, I decided to go with a fairly adventurous palette (inspired by, among others, the late, great Friedensreich Hundertwasser’s ‘Blobs grow in beloved gardens’ 1975 and ‘Green town’ 1978.
But where did the red hills come from? Well, the bright red is my complementary exaggeration of the dark green trees. And the sheep? That was my way of introducing a calm focal point ― something to suggest that perhaps the hills were not on fire : )
Anna Cull ~ Art & Music 