Many, many years ago as a child I saw paintings by Monet. I remember being totally enamored by them and the deep blues and sharp greens. One of my all-time favorites is the waterlilies series.
After visiting New York and the MOMA a few years back I added yet another of his paintings to my list of favorites. I fell in love with his Agapanthus. Once again the color skills, movement and brushstrokes stole my heart. Probably ten years ago I had a chance to visit Giverney, it was in the late winter and I just had to pass even with being so close.
I had always decided I wanted to discover this magical place during the best time of the year.
It was hard to not jump at this chance, however, a place with all that inspiration and soul-filling creativity needed to be in full bloom.
Like Monet, I wanted to be inspired by the place that birthed these beautiful works of art, during the most stunning time of year.
The feelings that you get from a painting come from many places such as color, movement and composition. Brushstrokes are one of my favorite way to bring expression. I love the way Monet squishes, (Do you like my technical terms?) one color into another color and boom you have a seductive reflection. The strokes look so carefree and easy but I can tell you from experience that there is a lot of practice and experimentation that goes into those “squishes”.
One of the things that I find a challenge is just “playing” and seeing where it takes you. As a child I knew that art supplies weren’t cheap and I still know that today. I was taught to really think about my work before I did it so that I wouldn’t waste paint or paper. All of this is so true but to be really good at what you do as an artist it takes a lot of play time. You need to experiment with using a brush in any way possible…even if that means abusing it to capture that special affect.
It is also okay to mix and mix paint and see what beautiful shades develop…you may even create a bit of mud and that is okay also. Some beautiful neutrals can be developed while mixing and creating a little mud. After all life can be a bit muddy sometimes before the rainbow appears.
Have you ever found a painting that doesn’t just whisper but screams as it speaks to you?
I will make it back to France and discover Giverney one day soon.