Thursday, June 12, 2014

NEW ARTIST'S JOURNAL = GREAT FUN!





After considerable debate with My Self and with My Checkbook, I decided to take the financial plunge and buy one of Susie Shipman's beautiful hand-bound journals. (See IslandBoundBooks.com.) I certainly didn't need another sketch book; after all, I have at least half a dozen, with 90% of the pages of each still untouched. Furthermore, I was more than uncertain about something this spendy. Fortunately, selling a couple of paintings helped me convince Self and Checkbook that yes, I did indeed "need" this book.

This elegant and appealingly tactile book arrived a couple of days ago and along with it came a surpass: I'm not afraid to use it! Maybe it's Susie's handwritten dedication. Maybe it's because she and I chatted by phone about my intentions for the book and what kind of art I produced. Whatever the cause of this sense of magic, the book is inspiring me to explore and experiment. I've always been reluctant to do that on expensive paper, but something about Susie's beautiful creation inspires me to explore color, media, and subject matter. I've already painted flowers using Golden's new QoR ground and watercolors. Next up: My husband's over-stuffed BLT. This is gonna be fun!

No comments: