In the Moment, In the Flow, From the Heart
The process of making art comes from a combination of physical skill and the skill of imagination. Many artists get as excited talking about the materials they use as they do about the part of them that thinks up what to create in the first place. For Lin Viglione, the process begins with self-awareness and emotion: “People always advise, ‘Draw what you know.’ I think it is more aptly stated, ‘Draw who you are, what you feel.’”
Sometimes it’s all about a passion we have with a particular color palette, a repetition of pattern or creating texture. These things delight our muse and keep us engaged. As Ronald Brischetto says, “I’ve always tried to push the envelope to create a compelling piece to make the observer want to deliberately touch the art.”
However each of us likes to create, whichever medium we like to use, whatever life themes are the most inspiring for us at the moment, I think Jose Gallo sums up the reason we all love to engage in the creative process: “Just as when you have an idea, a dream or a goal, you set it, but it seems blurry. Sometimes you see it right in front of you, but you cannot catch it. That’s the beauty of it: making something out of nothing and that experience speaking for itself.”
DAYZEES
Kristin Peterson | 40" × 30" (102cm × 76cm) | acrylic paint, ink, collage on canvas
Dayzees was created by reworking an earlier painting. The initial painting had words, which, at the time, had significant meaning to me, so I wanted to save them. When I finally painted over the words, I felt liberated. I then added napkins, paper, inks and collage to draw people in and make them want to touch and feel the layers and to really look at what is going on in the painting.
COUNT TO THREE
Linda Cotter Cowles | 17" × 14" (43cm × 36cm) | acrylics, tissue, hand-painted paper, pencil on 140-lb. (300gsm) hot-pressed watercolor paper
My artwork is built in layers. After the first few paint strokes were applied to this image, it reminded me of a scene in an imaginary workroom with a bench against a well-worn wall. I followed this theme as I added painted and collaged elements. There was no conscious effort to make it look like a particular place, just the idea of how a composition could be created by the seemingly random placement of shapes and textures representing the tools and materials of the occupant’s work.