I love to paint. I was reading a book on painting outside, in real life, getting the paint to reflect the emotions and fleeting light, capturing a feeling and a moment in paint.
This is a supreme challenge. And the artist said something most profound. He said every daub of paint, had to work. Every miniscule dot of colour, tone, texture, shape, line was meaningful. It could not be accidental, sloppy, haphazard, or thoughtless.
When I next visited a gallery I looked at every work very carefully. Modern, impressionist, traditional, post modern, minimalist. Every part of the painting formed the whole and because I was looking at the best of the best, I could see what he meant.
Every fleck of paint worked, when you stood back, it looked right, like the painter wanted us to see it. When I pressed my face close (or as close as the electronic sensor would let me go without bleeping a warning) the whole painting dissolved into meaningless daubs of paint. I wondered how the artist working close to the surface could possible see how every brush stroke could form together as it did from 20 paces? This is the mystery and beauty of artists and their work, their skill....
They do it by making every miniscule blob of paint work harmoniously in the whole and knowing that every mark matters.
Your life is the same, everything you do, every moment, day, week, month, year and lifetime, will combine into one masterpiece. Your life.
Every action matters. It may be small, but it creates the whole. You cannot escape from the consequences of your actions, they play out in your life.
You must be an artist and develop the skill to see each small mark in it’s entirety.
Start with your thoughts, how you think, feel, dream, plan, aspire, believe. These are the only things within your ultimate control. Master your emotions and the mastery of your brushstrokes and your masterpiece, your life, will surely follow....
For every masterpiece, for every great artist, how many artworks and artists are rejected? Lots and lots! But for all the rejection, there are masterpieces. We should not become despondent when we paint badly, but learn from our mistakes and put another clean board upon the easel. It is a rare and beautiful thing when it all comes together artistically and that is how I want to live my life, with moments of artistic wonderment at the beauty and mystery.
May you be hung in a gallery!
If you want to know an easy way to paint a masterpiece, try 4me2realize. It’s like colour by number and joining the dots!
P.s. The book I refer to is Alla Prima – Everything I know About Painting by Richard Schmid, highly recommended, it is one of my favourite books for both it’s lessons in art and life.
Kindest regards,
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ANTI-CHAOS SYSTEMS PTY LTDPhone: +61 1 300 344 070 Skype ID: Castaly.Lombe |  | |||
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