Conversations with Edward

I spent a pleasant day with Edward Coughlan and we did some art, walked, drank coffee & talked a lot.

Art: “Just as You are” – the words of Zuiken my digital version is in the next post, Edward’s lino cut print is also in the next post.

Here is the Podcast: The topics covered include ideas about art, and how thinking about it impacts on our work.

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What follows is a mindmap of the podcast & some of Edward’s pictures we talked about.

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Following the flame – Jung’s Dream

Posting a sketch here by L Laughy from Nithwave for inspiration.

I had a walk & talk with Kate yesterday and we were musing over our projects – her horse treks & my sketches. She told me the story of Jung’s dream with the candle. I found it really useful to keep me focussed here & today has been a busy Thousand Sketches day! No sketches, but podcasts & posts and a few good emails have come & gone.

Then as luck would have it when googling for Jung’s dream I found the words accompanying a beautiful moleskine sketch, I’ll post the words and then the sketch.

“I had a dream which both frightened and encouraged me. It was night in some unknown place, and I was making slow and painful headway against a mighty wind. Dense fog was flying along everywhere. I had my hands cupped around a tiny light which threatened to go out at any moment. Everything depended on my keeping the little light alive. Suddenly I had the feeling that something was coming up behind me. I looked back, and saw a gigantic black figure following me. But at the same moment I was conscious in spite of my terror, that I must keep my little light going through night and wind, regardless of the dangers. When I awoke I realized at once that the figure was my own shadow on the swirling mists, brought into being by the little light I was carrying. I knew too that this little light was my consciousness, the only light I have. Though infinitely small and fragile in comparison with the powers of darkness, it is still a light, my only light.”

From: C. G. Jung, Memories, Dreams and Reflections.

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Process

I am, after four months, still captured by this whirl of art enthusiasm. I have been watching videos on art & reading books. I look at galleries online and offline. I look at art blogs & websites. I am immersed and enjoying the process. I am catching up on a lifetime of not doing this. I was searching for a word, suppressing, avoiding doing this art thing? Not really. I think it was incubating, biding its time.

A long post reflecting on process follows.

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Being Digital – Tablet PC – exploring a medium

pen

I realised that it is not immediately obvious that the images I do are created digitally. In fact it was not clearly mentioned in my About page till I added it just a day or so ago.

This is a project with minimal parameters – one is to do 1000 in one year, the other is to do them all digitally, which in essence means using my Tablet PC or Palm Treo.

The time frame creates a frame – not unlike the frame around a painting. It is a space within which to explore & see what arises.

Being digital is similar. There is diversity & choice – there is also a clear line.

It is obvious that I am looking over the fence, Yesterday’s post: colligraphy and today I found myself following up on egg tempera mentioned in Katherine Terrell’s post! There is media envy, and you cans see why – that crappy little pen is all I ever use!

I am reading a about peoples work Рand loving that Рmany are also exploring & blogging their creative development, they are material people. I am also keen to find others who are doing what I do, virtual stuff, Tablet PC + Gicl̩e prints. The medium allows diversity & also has its own constraints. If you know of others or you are one, please let me know.

There must be lots of people using the various painting & drawing software… so I guess I am curious also about those who use it to explore their creative journey.

Which brings me to another post… Creativity.

Thousand Sketches Talk

At the launch I realised I like talking about this project. It energises me and it was great to see how people were enthused by it. I heard others thinking about what the “Project” might be in their life. People asked good questions !

I am happy to do talks! I can show prints and project the images.

Tablet PC & Art

JK On the Run, Tablet PC expert James Kenrick has posted positive and focussed words about Thousand Sketches. Thanks James. James has a great podcast that I have been listening to for a long time.

Tablet PC people have taken some interest in my work, and rightly so, without my tablet where would I be? I would not be doing 1000 sketches that is for sure.

Variety & Repetition

In the discussion at the launch this question arose: “Will there be less variety as you come to the end and find your style?” I did not have an answer, but I do now.

I think there are several styles and each will be stronger in its own right. Here are eight styles I have noticed and a representative of each.

Mood pictures like # 58 Buzzing

Botanical sketches.

“moleskine” café sketches

Photoshop manipulations

Pastels

Landscapes

Oils – more coming

Palm Doodles

Sharper lines between the styles, develop these styles… maybe that is the next step? Too many styles?

The Thousand Sketches project is fully launched

Last Friday we had the launch of the project, the real life physical one with food & wine. Many people came along, and I am very pleased, thanks for your interest & enthusiasm!

It was quite amazing to see all those pictures up on the wall – and to think that only a couple of months ago there were none! If you have photos from the night – please send, I was too busy to take any! I have a bit of video from the ending, I’ll spliced that together:

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cl9nchATun0&w=425&h=350]

I was pleased how easily people valued the project as a whole and the way I am cooking up something. A common remark is: “I wonder what number 800, or 1000 will look like?”. One person said: “It’s a performance.” well observed, I do find my self unexpectedly on a stage. “It is not only how you are doing it, but what you are doing.” Right, very Louis Kahn. “At the end of alchemy is a miracle.” “Trust the impulse, return to the impulse.”

~

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