Signs of Spring to Brighten Your Day

 This is a partial repost of a post I published back in 2018  

“Spring is nature's way of saying, 'Let's party!'” Robin Williams

“Never cut a tree down in the wintertime. Never make a negative decision in the low time. Never make your most important decisions when you are in your worst moods. Wait. Be patient. The storm will pass. The spring will come.” Robert H. Schuller

The weather has been pretty crummy lately, for want of a better word.  We’re pretty spoiled for sunshine here in North Carolina, so several consecutive overcast days leave me feeling a little gray inside.  When I feel the winter blahs, I start looking for signs of spring to lift my spirits.  I urge you to take a walk and look, listen, and smell for these…

Birds singing more than usual

Birds can sense the change in season by the increased amount of daylight. It apparently makes them happy, because there is an absolutely riotous bird chorus happening outside my house every morning.  I like to open the window for a few minutes just to listen to their joyous songs.  

Spring Peepers peeping away

I first heard them on a walk along a quiet trail by an abandoned swimming hole a week ago, chirping loud and proud. You’ve probably heard their song announcing the coming of spring, but may have been unaware of the origin.  These little frogs can be found from coast to coast in all sorts of wetlands.

Buds and blooms emerging

I always feel a little bit of happiness and hope when I see the fresh green tips of my bulbs emerging through the soil each and every year.  Little bitty blooms decorate the tips of budding branches. Look for them! These early spring flowers are a reminder of the faithful cycle of nature as their scents fill the air.

The smell of spring

Surely, you know the smell.  It is a scent of dampness, worms, rain, and moist soil.  It holds the promise of new growth and fertility.  One day you step outside and there it is.  Then you know warm days and green growth are right around the corner.  Interestingly, I just learned in an article, that warring bacteria are responsible for the smell.  If you are at all interested in the science it’s worth a read.  https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2016/03/25/science/spring-science.html

In many cultures and traditions, spring is welcomed as an opportunity for regeneration after a period of dormancy.  I can’t help but feel energized when I see the signs of seasonal change.  I think of it as a great time to reevaluate, discard the old, and move on to new challenges - a time to look at my world with fresh eyes.  I hope you’ll notice the signs of spring, and they will give you hope and renewed energy to create.  

Meanwhile, while the days are still short and gray, I’m going to paint as brightly as I can.  This explains all of the colorful new paint subjects in the spring paint kit collection just released.  You can check out all of the flamingos, palm trees, flowers, and more here.  I did throw in one tribute to winter.  The “Winter Barn” paint kit is a more serious landscape subject for those who like the beauty of snow and crisp morning air.  

Happy Painting,

Arianne 

Creating Opportunities for Artists by Turning the Walls of your Business into an Art Gallery

"Art is too important not to share." - Romero Brito

Prior to the pandemic, once a month, I loaded my car with brightly painted canvases, art supplies, and a festival tent, and set up shop at an outdoor arts and crafts festival in the center of my town. This wonderful community event allowed me to interact with potential customers, create art with kids, and sell my own art. Sadly, since March, all of my artwork was gathering dust in a storage area, until I was contacted by the office manager at Holman Family Dental in Chapel Hill.  A month later, my paintings were on display and available for sale on their walls.  

The dentists and staff came up with the idea of displaying the work of a rotating group of local artists even before Covid-19.  This is a solution that benefits both the artist, the employees who have to spend 8 hours a day looking at the walls in this space, and the patients who need a bit of visual entertainment to distract them.  

It’s a different story at the dental office I’ve been visiting for over twenty years.  While having my teeth cleaned, I have stared at the same art prints for every single one of those 40+ visits. The prints are very nice, but it would be nice to see something new.

Artists rely on community festivals, public events, and temporary art displays in public locations to sell their artwork.  With the cancellation of large events, they have lost an important source of income.  Do you have a wall in your business that could be transformed into a temporary art gallery?  By simply making display space available, not only will you directly assist artists in your community, but you will also create a more aesthetically pleasing environment for your customers/clients and employees.

It might seem like a lot of work to line up artists and arrange for then to come in the hang their work up to four times a year.  It’s not as hard as you’d think.  Once you contact one artist, chances are they can connect you to a number of other artists.  Once the nails are in the wall for the first showing, each consecutive artist just uses the same spots without adding more hardware.  Recently, I hung fifty paintings in less than an hour.  Small notecards are attached to the wall with two-sided tape (Scotch Wall-Safe Tape) listing the artist’s name, contact information, price of the painting, and title.  This way, anyone interested in buying the art can contact the artist directly.  

As an artist, it is very fulfilling and exciting to think that my artwork is being viewed by a variety of new eyes each day. I’ve sold quite a few as well.  The dental hygienists have told me they love seeing their workspace transformed with new artwork every quarter, and the dentists can feel proud of their support of artists in their community.  I, for one, am extremely grateful for the generosity during these times.  

THE DREADED BLANK CANVAS

 "It's so fine and yet so terrible to stand in front of a blank canvas." - Paul Cezanne

Oh, the sheer terror!  There it is lurking like an evil presence on an easel in your studio, glaring at you accusingly with sheer malice - THE BLANK CANVAS! It is a blinding white void of creativity, harassing you on a daily basis.  How to overcome your inertia and dive into the abyss?  I have some easy tips to make the encounter with the blank canvas more enjoyable - to make it a happy little challenge rather than aprocrastinator's nightmare. So here we go...

1. Set your work area up for success.  Does your studio space double as a sewing area, kids' play room, kitchen?  If possible, dedicate an area to creating art alone.  I mean dedicate.  Clear out the other crap, have all your tools out and at the ready, arrange adequate lighting.  Create a space where creativity can sprout and grow.  
2. Load your work area with inspiration in advance.  You know what paralyzes me?  The what.  What the heck am I going to paint on there?  That's because I scheduled painting time into my busy calendar, rather than waiting for the inspiration. I understand the need to schedule creative time, even though it is not ideal. The trick is to allow the inspiration to flow whenever it occurs while telling it to be patient. How do you do this practically?  Let's say you're taking a lovely walk in nature when you are inspired with a fabulous idea for a painting.  When you get home, create a super quick sketch and tape it to the easel.  Same thing if you are inspired by an image in a magazine, a photo, or a quote - tape them to the easel.  Ideally, the next time you sit down to paint at the scheduled time, there are five or six fabulous ideas sitting there just waiting to take shape.
3. Erase the nothingness.  What else is terrifying about a blank canvas? The sheer lack of anything - the nothingness, the void.  So make it un-blank in whatever way you can as soon as you can.  Even if that means simply painting it yellow - at least you have started and taken away the absolute nothingness. Put a sketch on it or lay in some basic values with a few careless and fun strokes of the brush.
4. Embrace immaturity.  Maybe you are being assailed by self doubt.  Your inner critic shouts, "What makes you think you can do this?  Who are you to pretend to be an artist?"  My solution: pretend to be a child.  A young child is rarely crippled with self doubt, burdened with self-criticism, and hesitant! Pick up that paint brush and start slapping some paint on that canvas with wild abandon, because, you know what?  You can paint over it if you don't like it, but chances are that trusting your instincts and letting your creativity flow youthfully are the best things that will happen to your art.
5. If all else fails, and you find yourself unable to approach the canvas just yet, turn to your sketchbook.  That 8"x10" sheet of paper is somehow less intimidating than your blank canvas.  Slap some ideas in there in a low-pressure pencil to paper way.  Next thing you know, you'll have something to sketch out on that canvas with excitement.  Tear out your sketch, tape it to the wall by your easel, and return to step one.  

Remember, every masterpiece began as a blank canvas.  And now, I'm going to go and try to follow my own advice...

Happy Painting, 
Arianne

If you enjoyed this post, considering checking out my book, Approaching the Blank Canvas, Real Talk on Fear, Inspiration and Not Giving Up in Art and Life. It’s full of true tales and tips from my 20+ years of making art for a living. It’s available on Amazon Books and you can also find the link to it and my other books on my DesignsbyArianne website.   

Does this mean my child is not an artist? Tips on enjoyable early art experiences for children.

 “The world today doesn’t make sense, so why should I paint pictures that do?”

-Pablo Picasso

You’ve filled the palette with gobs of lovely paint colors, placed the canvas securely on the easel, wrapped your child in an art smock, placed a beret on her head and a brush in her hand. Okay, now the magic is supposed to happen, right?  Your child’s inner Monet will be revealed.  You’ll post the video of her in full-on art prodigy mode on your social media, it’ll go viral, and celebrity will follow. Wait, what’s this?  Your child is smearing paint randomly all over the canvas, paying no mind to the lines or color theory.  Where you expected a mermaid, there is a brownish green blob, and your budding artist is now painting her hand and giggling with wonder.  

I get it.  This is not what you expected or hoped for, but trust me when I tell you it is fine.  I’d even go as far as to say it is desired.  You might feel compelled to offer guidance, assist your child, or make suggestions.  Your child’s early art experiences are about unrestrained exploration, free-wheeling creative expression, and fun.  Let’s toss out our adult concern for outcome, and instead let them enjoy the process - the act of playing around with paint, and discovering how it flows, mixes, and reacts.  If you are too involved or critical of their effort, they may learn to have a distaste of the activity all together.  

You might say, “but I was hoping to see evidence of artistic skill”. At a young age, your child is learning how to flex their creative muscle, rather than develop artistic skill. Try not to attach your adult notions and understanding of successful art to your child’s painting experience.  Your child is still young enough to enjoy trying out a new activity without thinking there is a wrong way or a right way.  We definitely don’t want to take that innocence away from them.  As we all know, their futures will be full of strict teachers, critical bosses, deadlines, and procedures.  This messy, free-form play is where creativity is born, and that is a skill that will serve them throughout life.  

Remember, beauty is in the eye of the beholder.  When your child hands you their finished painting, proudly announcing that the greenish brown blob is a superkitty flying on a cloud, use your imagination, and hang that work of art in a place of honor on the wall.  Your child might yet blossom into an incredible sought-after artist, or they might stick with engineering (I’m sure there are artistic engineers too), but they will have enjoyed the experience of painting.  

Tips for your child’s early art experiences…

1. Ask questions, rather than offering directions, criticism, or guidance.  For instance, “What is that (greenish brown blob) you are painting now?”
2. Show your child how mixing colors to get new colors is fun.
3. Talk about paint textures -thick versus smooth and how you can use the brush to get different textures and looks
4. Try using different tools to spread the paint on the canvas.  Try a plastic palette knife (or plastic card) or a comb.  
5. Praise your child’s effort more than the outcome.
6. Paint with your child, and try to remember what it feels be free of the inner critic full of self doubt and just have fun.
7. Attempt to have a “messy is okay” attitude.  It might help if you cover all exposed surfaces, cloth your child in an art smock, use washable paint, and move your studio out of doors.
8. Let go of your own expectations and embrace an “art as exploration” approach.
   
9. Point out artwork to your child wherever you go - including graffiti, packaging design, and the art of nature, so your child will be filled with inspiration.
10. Read the book “Ish” by Peter Reynolds to your child. In this story, “A creative spirit learns that thinking “ish-ly” is far more wonderful than “getting it right”.

Happy painting,

Arianne

Shop for individual paint kits for yourself or little creative and paint party kits at SociableArt.com

The Beauty of Hope

WARNING: This post contains optimism and descriptions of scenes of natural beauty which might be triggering to those sensitive to positivity. Read at hour own risk.  

“We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars.” 

― Oscar Wilde, Lady Windermere's Fan 

To be honest, I can’t say I’ve greeted each day with optimism of late.  In fact, there have been a number of times when I awoke filled with a slight sense of dread.  This morning felt different, like a bit of hope had been sprinkled on the world at dusk to be discovered when I ventured out to walk the dog.

It was that magic hour when the night slowly trades places with the day.  Pearl, my 16 year old beagle, always stops on the porch steps to sniff the air thoroughly, so she knows what she’s getting into. I paused to take a deep breath too.  The air smelled green and wet with the raindrops from an overnight shower still dripping slowly from the trees.  Shadows of the night clung to the corners, curbs, and crannies of my world as as the palest of pinks painted the eastern sky beneath the stubborn glow of a planet too bright to disappear in the rising daylight.  A pair of bats winged to and fro in a wandering waltz accompanied by a steady chorus of crickets.

As Pearl and I made our way down the quiet streets, past dark houses sheltering sleeping neighbors, pink turned to gold in the sky and the cricket choir quieted and retired to the shelter of the woods to be replaced by birds greeting the day with cheerful chirps and by the low hum of traffic building on the interstate as the world got about it’s business. Before long, walkers and runners joined the morning, moving with purposeful energy.  

There is no stopping all of this. The sun keeps rising, and birds keep singing.  I can’t help but feel how beautiful it all is.  We’re all in this together.  Momentarily, I’m filled with the hope and promise of a new day - another chance to discover the art which fills my heart and try to create something beautiful to share with the world.

Everything is Going to be Okay

Hi.  It’s been a while.  I’ve been busy.  As I’m sure you’re aware, almost overnight the world went from sociable, thriving, “normal”, to socially distant, frightening, and decidedly not normal.  I had to transform my little art business from something based on interacting in public spaces to a not-so sociable paint-at-home solution.  And let me tell you, through the last few months of scrambling, reinventing, creating, and hustling, I was scared.  I was terrified of losing all I’d built over the last ten years, being unable to pay the bills, and of my loved ones getting ill.  Like so many of you, I lost sleep as I listened to the news and longed for words of reassurance and comfort.  I just wanted someone to tell me everything would be okay.

In the course of a few months, I’ve learned a lot. I’ve seen members of my various communities resolving to work together and face challenges with imagination and creativity. While missing the closeness of others, I’ve been touched by kinds words and generous gestures.  I’ve discovered that my community is largely supportive of those who, when knocked down, pick themselves up, dust themselves off, and try again. 

I still want someone to tell me everything’s going to be okay.  That’s what we all want to hear, but who can possibly tell us that? The world is upside down and topsy turvy, and we’re just trying to hang on.  No one can tell us what tomorrow holds, but I can tell you one thing…in this one moment, right now, while I sit and type this, everything is okay - in just this one moment for sure.  I am breathing.  I can turn and look out the window and see that the sun is still shining even behind clouds, birds are still singing, and trees are still giving.  The world has been through worse.  I can only hope I’ll come out stronger and kinder on the other side.  

Everything is going to be okay.  I’ll just have to say it to myself.  Sure, I’m still worried, but I have faith that I can still create something that people want and need - that I can still do some little thing that will make the world a brighter place.  I’ll just keep on keeping on and creating art from my heart.  I hope you will too.  

Just Paint Over It - Don't Give Up!

New and Improved Daisy painting - 2019

 “Style is knowing who you are, what you want to say, and not giving a damn” 
― Orson Welles

At a morning paint class a couple of weeks ago, one of the student artists blurted out, “I can’t do this!” in a tone of self-disgust.  With that, she dropped her paintbrush on the table and sat back in her chair in defeat. 

I see this reaction regularly, especially with children.  At almost every community art event, there is inevitably one perfectionist – a child who has set extremely high expectations for themselves and ends up in tears when the paint goes outside the line. 

In both these instances, the aspiring artist had a vision of how she wanted her painting to evolve, and the reality was not living up to the dream.  This moment that I see repeated often at my events, is a great opportunity to teach one of the greatest lessons about painting and a bit of a life lesson at the same time.  My response is always the same: “If you don’t like it, paint over it.”

More often than not, the dissatisfaction stems from one of two sources. Possibly you are expecting perfection.  There is no perfection in art, so stop. Art is not a science.  It is sometimes messy and freeing.  Let it flow. 

Maybe you are trying to replicate a style that is not your own.  You aren’t letting your own vision influence your interpretation. The solution might be as simple as giving yourself a chance to warm up, let go of expectations, set an intention, and get into the flow.  I find that it is good practice to do a preliminary sketch to limber up your creativity.  If you still find yourself at this moment of discontent, just paint over it and start again with a new approach.  Make it your own.  

Consider this; a painting, like our lives, is constantly in a state of evolution. Striving, reaching and never quite attaining are all part of painting and life.  Once you accept your lack of perfection and perhaps, inaptitude, your art will flow more easily and without struggle.  Try to reach a point, where you can say to yourself, I may not be one of the best artists and not everyone will like my work, but that’s okay.  My work is uniquely my own and valuable because of this distinction.

Did you know that it was and is common practice for painters to paint over their old paintings? Apparently Vincent Van Gogh also had moments when he was dissatisfied with his work and threw down his paintbrush in disgust.  Advances in technology have allowed us to see earlier, less impressive versions of the Mona Lisa underneath the famous masterpiece https://listverse.com/2016/03/06/10-hidden-images-discovered-beneath-famous-classic-paintings/.  

Many of my paintings also have years of layers.  I had a daisy painting that I created four or five years ago.  You can see the original version below.  It was nice, but I was never thrilled with it.  I painted it at a time in my life when all I wanted was simplicity.  I half-heartedly tried to sell it at festivals a couple of times, and then gave up. I changed the background color as new shades went in and out of fashion.  I sometimes hung it on a wall in my home. Other times it was getting dusty in a corner of my studio.  One day, I looked at it long and hard and decided to give it a new life.  I had not liked it, because it had no personality. There was nothing there that showed the character of the artist that painted it – me!

Orignal Daisy Painting - 2015

I repainted the background guided by my heart and soul and finally the painting was a reflection of my unique vision of the world.  

I left the original daisies and added color and elements that had meaning to me.  The painting sold very quickly after I finished. I even ended up having to paint another just like it for another client.  Why?  Because I put my unique personality into the piece. Before it had hung mutely on the wall, lacking significance and power.  After, I repainted it; it “spoke” to people.

So in short, your painting is not finished until it is sold and out of your grasp or until you feel a sense of completion.  Neither perfection, nor satisfaction should be your aim.  Be true to your own personal style and the message you speak with your paint.  

Happy painting,

Arianne

 

If you enjoyed this post, considering checking out my book, Approaching the Blank Canvas, Real Talk on Fear, Inspiration and Not Giving Up in Art and Life. It’s full of true tales and tips from my 20+ years of making art for a living. It’s available on Amazon Books and you can also find the link to it and my other books on my DesignsbyArianne website.