This is my first blog ever. It came about spontaneously, as I was writing on Instagram and then decided the text might well fit into a blog. I love writing, so I knew I was going to blog one day - but not that it would be so soon after the launch of my website.
After a year packed with course work, and with the end of 2021 approaching in (partial) lockdown, I feel like slowing down a bit and immersing myself into reading about art and art making. I started ‘easy’ this weekend, with Brave intuitive painting by Flora Bowley, with the telling subtitle: let go, be bold, unfold. It is a small book (albeit in a big format), and it is an easy read - not least because it is well written. You can finish it in less than a few hours. At the same time, the book also lends itself for a more contemplative, slower read, if you wish. As for the content and the way it is presented, I really like it. Being quite a control freak myself, I am well served by a book like this. But also if you're not in that box, you can benefit from the book's encouragement. As a book hunter I’m surprised I didn’t come across it earlier.
The book gives a clear and concise overview of the issues involved in intuitive painting. It pushes all the right buttons. It starts with tackling limiting beliefs, and the need to let go of fear and replace negative stories of what we cannot do with positive ones of what we can. It emphasises the importance of getting out of our own way, of exploration and discovery, of the need to honour our intuition, and of focusing on process rather than product - the latter emerging by itself as the result of a sound process. And many more vital issues. It provides prompts to help you get into the right mindset and flow. Besides this, the book touches upon the principles of art making, and stresses the need to alternate intuition and intention, letting go and decision making, feeling and thinking. Furthermore it emphasises the importance of variety - or contrast, or differences - in your artwork, be it in composition, value, colour and/or mark marking.
While the book didn’t give much that was entirely new to me, it did prove a great reminder of things which I had learned earlier but tend to slip to the back of my mind. With that the book brought me back to basics, and, most of all, gave me a boost to let go, be bold and trust that my work will enfold! So I’m all ready for a new week of painting! And what about you?
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