Entries Tagged as: creativity
Day 7, Flight
November 7th, 2013, Comments (12)
Tried to keep it simple and a little smaller today as I'm not feeling fantastic (just a cold). This was inspired by an Instagram picture I took last month, when a large group of birds zoomed through my yard. The picture was a daytime one, but I made the painting at night.
Earlier in the day, I did a little raking and Annabelle had a blast jumping in the "Annabelle leaf pile" and "helping" me rake. It was cute. She was having so much fun with the leaves that we took a few in and I showed her how to do leaf rubbings. This picture is of her concentrating really hard, trying to trace a leaf.
Day 1: The Search
November 1st, 2013, Comments (21)
Hooray! Art Every Day Month has begun! I hope everyone had a good experience today. If not, tomorrow is a new day. For today's art, I had to squeeze my painting into a short nap, then finish up in the evening. I let this one just happen and here's what came out. It's called "The Search." I like the constellations, which were a sudden inspiration that I enjoyed running with. The piece is 8"x8" with acrylic and ink on panel.
The cutest thing happened today. I was out running errands with my 2.5 year old daughter, Annabelle and told her for the first time about Art Every Day Month. Her response: "I want to do art every day too!" Haha! I thought we might do AEDM together someday, but wasn't quite expecting it so soon! We are definitely creative every day together, it's impossible not to be, but to consciously think about creating each day together might be an interesting challenge. I'm not sure we'll have time each day to do and document something, but we will as often as we can. Today we made a necklace. She picked the order of the beads and strung the round ones. She was quite pleased with her creation. 
Color and Commissions
April 7th, 2013, Comments (4)
I am enjoying this color theme so far, how about you? I've been playing with color in paint, in nail polish (purple toes), in colorful salads, and some turquoise clothing.
I thought I'd share a couple commissions that I've been working on this month. One is a commission that isn't quite done yet. I had to stop because I wasn't sure whether I wanted the dresses to be white as originally planned or pink with a white stripe and ties (I'm still thinking it over.) I still have to paint the moon and stars in and a few other small details, but I love how it's coming along. It took a long time for this image to develop. I was playing with the arrangement for months and the final idea came to me while I was in the shower! I was using the steamed up glass shower door as a sketchpad and the idea formed. My favorite part is that there is a subte heart shape between the mother and daughter figures. (It's 8"x10" with acrylic on canvas)
This one was a commission for someone who recently experienced a loss and wanted an image with a dragonfly in it. I love when this happens, the image came to mind as she was talking and it came together very quickly. (It's 6"x6" with collage, acrylic, and ink on panel.)
In a way they are (unintentionally) similar pieces! I seem to be liking these trees curving towards the moon and of course, the moon and trees are always big in pieces of my art. But the pinks are a bit different for me! I think it's Annabelle's influence.
Let her Sleep
March 8th, 2013, Comments (6)
I saw this Napoleon quote in a variety of places in the last year, on wall decals and a variety of etsy art, including an embroidered piece, sign, and a print. Even though Annabelle has never been one I've had to "let sleep" (she is a super duper early riser and not the best sleeper. Oy!), the quote still made me think of her, my little fire ball, who I think will move mountains for sure.
I wanted to do my own version of the piece and since the theme is black and white this month, I opted to do it in ink. It makes me happy. I think I'd like to do it bigger with paint and grays and purples. We shall see. Time is limited these days!
Anthology of Babes
March 1st, 2013, Comments (4)
Today is the launch of Anthology of Babes: 36 Women Give Motherhood a Voice, edited by Suzi Banks Baum. It is a collection of writings and art about mothering by women who are also artists. Do you pause during the course of a normal batshit busy day to wonder, “Will I ever finish a full sentence again?” or “Is it possible to resurrect my own voice amid the din of this crowd that persists in following me, even unto the bathroom?” These 36 women have finished a few sentences for you to be inspired by and to assure you that, yes, it is possible and even, really important for you to finish that row of knitting or write that story. In the words of Audre Lorde, “The farthest horizons of our hopes and fears are cobbled by our poems, carved from the rock experiences of our daily lives."
You can read more about and purchase the book here. Tonight there is a celebration of the launch with new readings from mothers in the Berkshires. More details here. How exciting! I wish I could be there too. I'm honored have my writing and art included in this anthology. I can't wait to get my hands on it!
Guest Post by Luna Jaffe
February 22nd, 2013, Comments (2)
Lightening up around money
The color drained out of Lori’s face when I asked her to describe her relationship with money by drawing it. She looked at me like I was crazy-- then looked at the art supplies, then glanced out the window.
I focused on making a pot of peppermint tea for us, and when I returned she was working intently on her image, purple, red and black flying across the page. When finished she looked up and smiled at me, shaking her head. “Oh, my god!” she said, laughing, “I had no idea I felt this way!” She had drawn a hot air balloon full of money rising into the air, and a tiny little stick figure running after it.
I asked her to give the image a title. “That’s easy! It’s called ‘Beyond my reach’”. She flopped back in her chair and laughed—“Yup, that’s the story of my life! I can see money, almost taste it, but just as I’m about to FINALLY have some financial stability or solid cash flow something happens and puff! It’s gone.”
Using creativity to discover and heal your relationship with money is powerful, insightful and transformative. Ultimately it helps you step outside of your money story so that you can gain perspective, have a good laugh, and begin the process of choosing a new healthier way of being.
Here are five ways you can leverage your creativity to lighten up around money so that joy and possibility can begin to seep in:
1. Draw or find an image that reflects your current relationship with money. Write about what you notice, what surprises you, where you are in the picture. Then draw a new image representing how you want your money relationship to feel. Remember to make sure that you AND money are in the picture!
2. Get an egg—a real egg—and decorate it, give it a name and personality. This represents your nest egg, that which provides financial stability and protection from catastrophe. Carry this with you for a week, being careful not to drop or break it. What if you treated your money with this same level of love and respect?
3. Send money and love notes to people that inspire you—the very act of doing this generates positive energy around money. To read more about this concept, click here
4. Money-In Calendar: post a wall calendar for the sole purpose of noticing when money comes into your life—salary, bonuses, alimony, interest, gifts, refunds—all of it. You can even get more playful and use different colored post-it notes to mark increments of money-- $50, $100+, $250+, etc. (shameless self-promotion: just a dollar contribution to our Kickstarter campaign gets you a beautiful Wild Money calendar that is perfect for this activity!)
5. Create a sacred space for doing your money – make an altar, use a special candle, light incense, surround yourself with money positive images—and give thanks for what you have and how you show respect for the money in your life. Create a little ritual for loving yourself up after paying your bills—a nice glass of wine, some dark, yummy chocolate or a bubble bath.
My wish for you is that you learn to see your creativity as a gift that needs training wheels for new terrain. There is nothing wrong with you. You aren’t missing the money gene. It is possible to lighten up while taking your money more seriously. You are worth it.
To pre-order your books and help with Luna’s Kickstarter campaign, click here. Bonuses at all reward levels! Ends March 2nd.
Luna Jaffe, visual artist and Certified Financial Planner™ is the CEO of Luna Jaffe International, a company dedicated to inspiring creatives to transform and heal their relationship with money. She is the author of the forthcoming books Wild Money: A Creative Journey to Financial Wisdom and Wild Money Financial Field Guide and Journal. More at www.lunajaffe.com
Hearts
February 15th, 2013, Comments (8)
I hope you all had a wonderful Valentine's Day. My day was fantastic. Sure, there were a lot of tantrums going on (we're going through a dramatic phase), but in the morning, A asked me to pick her up, then she petted my face gently and said, "Mama pretty. Pretty Mama." Heart melt! And then this evening, Andrew came home with a delicious dinner, my favorite chocolate chip cookie on the planet, and a beautiful bouquet of flowers. I surprised him by telling him I got us a sitter for an upcoming evening, so we can enjoy that couple's massage gift certificate I got him for our anniversary (back in October!) All in all, a great day.
I had some fun making Valentine's Day related crafts this year too. One on my own and one with A's help. On my own, I used my best friend's heart hole punch (I must have one of these) to cut heart shapes from old playing cards, scrap paper, and some paper I'd painted. They made such a pretty garland. I really wanted to make some vertical garlands, so that's what I did, but next year, I think I'll make more and make a regular long garland too.
With A, I wanted to make a Valentine's Day card for her daddy. I saw a great idea on Pinterest for making a hand card that made a heart shape when it opened. I wanted to adapt it, so that she would be more involved by letting her paint the paper we made it with. We spent one day while she was home sick, playing with red and white paint, so she could see how the colors mixed, making a new color, pink (one of her favorites.) I let the paint dry and on another day, I traced her hand on some paper. She loves doing this and she likes to see me trace my hand too. Then when she'd gone to bed, I cut out the shape of her hand and used the cut out to trace her hand onto her painted paper, which I'd folded in half.
Cutting the paper with her pinky finger and thumb touching the fold, creates a card with a heart shape in the middle. What a sweet memento. And her daddy loved it.
Sending love out to all of you. Have a great weekend!
Laundry Lines
February 12th, 2013, Comments (17)
This piece I'm calling "Laundry Lines" is 6"x6" with acrylic and ink on panel. I started out thinking the colors were going to be SO different. It was going to be a more wintery scene, lots of blues and purples, but it went in a very different direction. I love being surprised as I create. Yellow isn't a color I use a lot, but it fits so perfectly with the light theme this month.
I hope everyone in the Northeast survived the blizzard. We got just over two feet of snow, but the craziest part was the snow drifts. They made banks up to five feet high in some spots!
Projects done in the dark of night
January 25th, 2013, Comments (8)
Going along with the dark theme, here are some projects I've been working on in the dark of the evening and a project I want to start bringing to light!
We did a very late Christmas celebration at my house this year with my family. I'd been wanting to make wreaths for the first time this year and I'm so glad I gave it a go! The first one, I'm so excited about. It was kind of tediious, but I didn't mind it at all. It was kind of relaxing tying all those ribbon bows to fill up this wreath for our front door. I ended up using a lot more ribbon than the instructions suggested, but that may have been because I just eyed the length of the ribbon for each bow.
The second was a simple cardboard frame with paper layered on top to create a pattern. I used it to decorate our wall of holiday cards.
This was a gift made for my step-mother, who likes my Itty Bitty Kitty paintings and once owned a Himalayan cat. It's just 4"x4" on panel. I've got other Itty Bitty Kitties for sale here.
And this...was my childhood dollhouse build by my grandpa for my third birthday. It is in rough shape. I'm hoping to clean it up and have the beginnings of decoration in place for Annabelle's 2nd birthday in May.
She Dreamed of the Sea
January 11th, 2013, Comments (12)
Another feature of the Dark, is a time to dream. I think I was inspired to create this dreaming piece in part because I wonder about what my little girl is dreaming about. I pictured her soft blankets, that she's become so attached to, like a landscape/dreamscape for her imagined worlds.
This piece is 6"x6" on panel. The blanket was created with collage first, then the entire piece is worked into with acrylic paint and ink.
