Soul Art 2017. 12 x 12 mixed media on paper. © 2017 Sheila Delgado
Hours filled with blessed creation. International Soul Art Day 2017 proved to be meaningful, mindful, and mending. This was my fifth year participating. I always find it so hard to put into words.
I was in the moment. No plan. Feels like I have said that before about Laura Hollick’s Soul Art Day. Layer after layer, I continued to paint without a preconceived idea of where I wanted the work to go.
In the midst of movement and chaos, keep stillness inside of you.
Deepak Chopra
Not sure why the word chaos came to me when thinking of a title for this post. The only chaos was the unrestrained creative activity. The free-flowing mark making.
We live in a rainbow of chaos.
Paul Cezanne
First layers.
Watercolor dripping and staining the paper. Wine, yellow, orange, fuchsia, rust. Acrylic stamping with wood and rubber. Stenciling gone wrong, paint too wet. Do more “wrong” stenciling in different areas. Use a dropper to add more yellow acrylic. Mist water on top and watch the paint spread in jagged blooming fingers. More yellow marks with a twig.
It seems like the chaos of this world is accelerating,
but so is the beauty
in the consciousness of more and more people.
Anthony Kiedis
Detail 1.
White acrylic scribbles and swirls. Some of the watercolor mixes in and softens the bright here and there. White repeating texture. Some strong, some fading. Some becomes soft yellow when paint accidentally mixes.
Wine dipped dry brush tapped on the paper. Marks become like feathers. Thinking flight. Freedom. Spirit. Jagged marks with watercolor pencil. Swirling scribble line to cover the page.
Detail 2.
Dark splatters in watercolor and acrylic. Cover almost all with watery white acrylic. Layering in patches. Use the same square brush that made the feather marks.
Outline Seussical shapes with black marker until it runs dry. Continue with thick wine watercolor. Cover black marker with the same. Soft diluted splatters finish it off like sprinkles on frosting.
Art is the triumph over chaos.
John Cheever
A few tools.
When we submit our work to the Soul Art Gallery, Laura asks about our process, what the day means to us, and what insight we gained from taking part. The insight was slow in coming. Maybe I just was not focused on that.
That inner nagging voice told me that this wasn’t about creating a pretty picture. Maybe I took a wrong turn and missed the path to enlightenment. Maybe I was stupid for worrying and being too serious.
Maybe it did not HAVE to be deep, to be meaningful.
It wasn’t until the last layer of whitewash that it came to me. A single, simple thought. I know. Not very original or deep. But a message just the same.
Bloom where you are planted.
I struggle with the same thing all the time..finding meaning in my work. Some days, especially when I work 60+ hours a week, it’s nowhere to be found. That’s when I start making stuff up. haha Hey, I don’t have much else to do, might as well. 😀 I’m so glad it came to you in the end. 🙂 I love this painting, btw.
So glad you like it Katie. I will keep that in mind for next time. If it doesn’t come to me, I’ll make it up 🙂 LOL Happy painting to you!
This was a powerful, deep post and I loved the words and the beautiful art. Thank you so much! ✨?✨
So glad you enjoyed it Kat. Hope all is well in your neck of the woods 🙂
Grateful for all the words (hard though they might be to rustle up), for the windows into your process and experience BUT, with the blooms right where you planted them in SOUL ART 2017, no words necessary : )
Brava!
Grateful for your generous comment Dotty 🙂 The experience continued today, as I visited the Facebook group and read the artist’s stories, and viewed their work. That was a treat 🙂
It sounds like you had a wonderful day – both creatively and spiritually. Glad it went well Sheila
Thank you Val 🙂 Funny that having permission to play can make such a huge difference.
Sheila, this is truly beautiful. Without your words being read by me the work by its own spoke volumes. Your description of the process only augmented my enjoyment of this. Bravo!
Thanks for that Laurelle 🙂 I had to wait a day to write the post, so I am very glad that I managed to get the story down.