Wednesday, May 18, 2011

Paint a Painting to get your Creative Juices Flowing

”Art washes from the soul the dust of everyday life.”
- Picasso.

Do you feel the need to make something? To build something? To create something?

I get this way often. It is inherently part of who I am. But are some people more creative than others? That's an interesting question. I think it is all relative and EVERYONE has creativity as part of their nature. Some people need it more than others...some people are more talented in certain areas than others...but we all can tap into our creative sides. Give it a whirl. It can be very therapeutic.

I have many ways in which I tap into my own creativity, but I'm going to start with one that I stumbled upon a while back quite spontaneously and it quickly became a wonderful hobby and a way to add beauty to my  home.

Paint a painting!

Never had any formal training? Neither have I! I didn't even take high school art. I just decided one day, about 7 years ago, that I wanted a large piece of colourful, original art for over my couch in my living room and didn't have the funds or the patience to look for what I wanted in stores or in galleries. So off I went to the art supplies store.  I bought a large 3' x 3' stretched canvas for under $20 and a simple, inexpensive collection of acrylic paints and some brushes. I put an old sheet down on my kitchen floor and off to the races I went.

At first I was hesitant, but very quickly I just let the brush and colours guide me. Yes, I know that sounds very cheese ball, but it's true people. And as I mentioned in a very recent post, I like me some good cheese! But I digress...

My very first painting on canvas - "Crimson Awakening" (Acrylics)

So the above painting is what became of that first foray into becoming a painter. It hung above my couch in my last home until we moved. I got many a compliment and I loved the feeling of creating something unique that would touch other people in some way. And so I continued to paint. Canvases are surprisingly inexpensive and so is paint, so once I got going I really got going! Then I got asked by my brother to paint a few pieces for his home. Then a few friends asked if I could create pieces that would fit in with their colour schemes. Then I posted a few pics in an album on facebook and someone asked if they were for sale (and all of a sudden they were!).

"Untitled" (triptych - acrylics on canvas)

"Rainbow Stones 1" (acrylics on canvas)


"Rainbow Stones 2" (acrylics on canvas)

"Untitled" (acrylics on canvas)

"Turning Tides" (acrylics on canvas)

I didn't set out to become a professional artist...nor do I have the time or the space at this point in time to pursue this. I just needed to get my creative juices flowing while I was at home on maternity leave. I needed to express myself. And I simply needed something to cover that large, empty space on my living room wall.

A few bucks and a few moments of motivation is all it took. And it took me places I never thought I could go.

How do you get creative? Do you have anything to share? Let us know!

Smiles,

Lora

Suggested Reading

Poetry: Another Creative Outlet
10 Acrylic Painting Tips for Beginners

5 comments:

  1. That looks like a lot of fun! I love to create, too, it gives me such a sense of satisfaction.
    Love the blog!

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  2. Thanks Sarah! You are so creative. And love your blog too!

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  3. Sold 3 more paintings - including "Turning Tides" as shown above - today!

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  4. Wow...you are a great artist Lora!

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  5. You're VERY talented Lora! Keep going!

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