AEDM 2011 Is Still Stretching Me This Year

As I continue with  Art Every Day Month 2011 I am continuing to try and STRETCH myself a bit. I have been working with my iPad exclusively the last few days. I should get back to my website, but after uploading all of those art pieces, I was feeling like I needed a break. I am still working at trying to make the the iPad apps that I am using to feel a little more comfortable and not like I have to think about everything that I do, every brushstroke etc. Thinking about "how to do something" after being able to just "DO IT" with traditional media is kind of frustrating for me and sometimes I put the new stuff down because it "hurts my head" trying to figure it all out and I long for the old traditional mediums. 

BUT...I try and remember how I felt when I first started using Photoshop and I thought, I will NEVER understand this program. Then I began teaching it, so anything is possible I tell myself. So...my focus the last three days was iPad using two of my favorite apps, ArtRage and ArtStudio. I was able to get them to mimic some traditional media that I am used to using. The sketching technique was a bit hard to get used to, but the results are coming together after much trial and error at tonight's Dr. Sketchy's Anti-Art School-Grand Rapids. If you are interested, you might have one in your area...it is loads of fun. Burlesque meets art, sketching burlesque models for three hours and then live burlesque. Look it up on the internet, there are many groups all over the country.

©InnerSpirit/Diane M. McKnight

©InnerSpirit/Diane M. McKnight

Days 11, 12, and 13

The first painting was just created with me playing in ArtRage with the brushstrokes and I ended up liking how it turned out. The second spiral effect painting is just in the beginning stages and it is a small segment in the middle of a bigger painting the I am working on in ArtStudio, but I thought I would show what I am doing as it evolves.

©InnerSpirit/Diane M. McKnight

©InnerSpirit/Diane M. McKnight

©InnerSpirit/Diane M. McKnight

Dr. Sketchy's Anti-Art School

There are several sketches here of varying lengths of time. I thought I would put a fun "themed" sketch in here, since it is rather out of my normal realm to do the little "contests" that the Dr. Sketchy group offers for free drinks and prizes. But I did one tonight because I saw something that I thought could work. They usually ask the audience to make suggestions for "themes" to draw the model doing. Then they pick one out of "the box". This theme was "draw the model as a monster". I had to have a little fun while I was plugging away at learning my little iPad. AND...I could have won a drink, but no luck, I had to buy my own wine tonight. Maybe next time though. :)

©InnerSpirit/Diane M. McKnight

I would like to add a disclaimer to these iPad drawings: The artist creating these is still adjusting to creating sketches that mimic pencil drawings and any shading, line work and general rudimentary qualities of these drawings should be overlooked in the estimation of said artists true abilities. That said, it is a process, and it is getting better as I go. You have to start somewhere, and I can only get better.

Do you have any art mediums, projects or other things in life that you sometimes find very daunting to tackle? Are you trying to figure out how to start? Please share your stories of "firsts" or "trial and error" on something that was difficult for you. I would love to hear what challenges others are facing.

Blessings and Love,
D.

AEDM 2011 Waves Are High

This year's  Art Every Day Month 2011 feels very disjointed for me for some reason. I feel like I am jumping all around creatively right now...a little bit here, a little bit there. I am trying to work all of this around the other things that are going on with my Master's of Art Therapy degree so I guess I should not be so hard on myself and just ride the waves of creativity wherever they take me. So, here go the posts...hold on for the wavy ride!

Cocoa loves his blue ball!

Little Cocoa waiting patiently.

Day Seven:
I did not really do too much creatively this day, though I did try and take advantage of one of the last lovely fall days that we had before the snow started in today. I began reading The Validation Breakdown which is feeding my soul and helping me to better understand and help the elderly with dementia that I work with every day, so they are not so frightened and angry. Understanding their situation and learning how to better my compassion for them helps to make me feel good inside and that leads to positive energy coming in that can later be put back out in my art or art for healing. Playing ball with my little buddy, Cocoa also helps feed my soul!

Day Eight:
I went back to work on my website design. I started importing photographs in of my artwork and then I worked on adding all the titles, sizes, medium listings etc. That was very time consuming and it is still is not done. That did me in for the evening, but I am making progress toward my goal. I just have to breathe.

©InnerSpirit/Diane M. McKnight

Day Nine:
I decided to start working on collecting collage elements to add to the painting that I started earlier this month at my friends studio. I started collecting images that just "called out to me" while flipping through magazines and I started ripping them out. This is a way of working that I often use with clients since it allows free association and a bit of the "serendipity of the moment", and it also allows people to get away from their cognitive side for a while. After I got a good pile of images, I cut some out and started playing around with the composition without trying to do much processing of what the imagery might mean to me. That will be the other part of this project, where I will explore what I feel may be hidden messages or meanings that my art might be trying to tell me. More on that as this artwork progresses (sorry about the glare from the overhead light on the glossy magazine cutout pieces). I will be refining the images and composition and then adhering them to the canvas with acrylic matte medium.

Day Ten
I signed up to take Reiki training Classes. I have wanted to take lessons in this forever, but I kept putting it off for various reasons (money, timing, etc.). Today I decided that I was just going to have to dive in and sign up! This really is a creative move since I have often found that when I am moving forward on my spiritual journey which is directly tied into my journey toward helping others to heal, I am overcome with creative potential and ideas that I can record and come back to later.

Everyone is doing some fantastic artwork for Art Every Day Month 2011. Go to the main website and click on the participants posts for each day to see some other terrific artists works. Are you participating in AEDM or have you ever considered taking the plunge and trying it?

Blessings and Love,
D.

AEDM 2011-Creativity Comes Around Again

Behind Already In The Posting

Once again this year I am participating in Art Every Day Month 2011 created and ran each year by Leah Piken Kolidas. Well, as usual, I am always trying to get lots of different things done. My mind is always flowing with many projects and thoughts. Though my projects may seem haphazard, there is usually some coherence or common thread between them all so I have learned to just go with the flow and embrace creativity however it is manifested. It seems that the only time that I really write in this blog is during AEDM. I keep saying that I am going to get better and here we are again. Posting some I guess is better than none...though that doesn't really get many followers. 

I decided this year for AEDM that I would incorporate some creative work that I need to get done for my website into part of the daily creative sessions. This way, it will actually give me the motivation to get something moving forward in that department. It has sat idle WAY too long! So...I started out this month with a sporadic array of creative endeavors, which, other than the website agenda, they have been pretty unplanned. A small correction to that statement, the tattoo designs have been rolling around in my head for some time, and I had already decided on the Chinese writing symbol for "God" and the Reiki symbol for inside of the circles.

© Innerspirit/Diane M. McKnight

The Sporadic Way That My Creativity Flows
Day One: I started this painting at a friend's studio during a little "art date" that we had planned. I was inspired by some of the various shapes of metal pieces that she had down in her studio in a box. I used them as stencils and painted around them. It was "freeing" to be in someone else's studio and using their art supplies. We decided that night that drinking wine and painting just naturally flow together. I am having her over to my studio next time so she can experience the same feelings of freedom. I will work some more on this one later in the month I hope.

Day Two: I worked on completing two tattoo designs. I had already downloaded the two symbols I wanted to use. The one in the top circle is the Chinese Lettering for "GOD" and the one below is the Reiki symbol Cho Ku Ray "The Power Symbol", which also means "God and man coming together". I added the gradated circle behind the symbols in InkPad, an iPad app that is very similar to Adobe Illustrator. I really liked the way that they turned out, so I emailed them to my tattoo artist for a later appointment.

Day Three: I reviewed my website package pricing and the additions and features that have made to the site since I last had looked into using this company as my way to build my page. I also reviewed all the website samples again, since a lot of them were new and used the new features that are now available to members. They have made some very useful and exciting additions and I was excited that they have included some promotions such as three free months if you sign up for a year of monthly billing or one whole year FREE if you pay for a whole year in advance. I thought that I could not go wrong with that, so I plunged in and started the two week free trial. This allows you to start building your website and if you still like what is happening and how easy it is to work with, you just sign up and all of your work is kept and you have not lost anything. I am so excited to actually be STARTING this project!

© Innerspirit/Diane M. McKnight

© Innerspirit/Diane M. McKnight

Day Four: I revisited a project I started several months ago where I created a few variations on my iPad of designs from a photograph that I took of one of the flowers in my garden. I had still not been extremely happy with the variations that I did before, so I took them even further and I was happy with how these two turned out. I enjoyed playing with all the textures and colors in these apps. I will be going back into these with my colored pencil app on the iPad or iPhone and do some additions to them to pull out some of the shapes at a later date. Maybe even this month.

Day Five: I was back at my website deign. Unfortunately, I am not able to post this creative endeavor in progress, but I will be sure to let everyone know how it turns out and the website link will be posted on my fb page, my blog and I will also twitter it. Today I worked on adding my logo and some basic navigation tabs that I want to have on it. Such as workshops, private sessions, fine art, blog, books/resources, bio/about me, contact info, mailing list, purchases, etc. I mapped out the skeleton framework that I would like to start with and see if that works. I can change and customize my templates at any time if it doesn't work out.

© Innerspirit/Diane M. McKnight

© Innerspirit/Diane M. McKnight

© Innerspirit/Diane M. McKnight

Day Six: I created an abstract design in an iPad app that I really like, and then pulled it into Grungetastic iPad app and created the three design variations above that I really think are fun. I like the orange and blue design as it is, but I might pull the other two into another app and do some work with them just to see where it goes.

Wow, this was a very long blog post, but I was playing catch up. The work week starts tomorrow and I am going to try and get more done on the website, but I am also still working on trying to get my corrections and changes done for the IRB committee so that I can start collecting my data for my Thesis so I may be slow on the posting this week.

I would love to hear any comments or suggestions that people have about the array of things I am working on during the AEDM 2011. I am excited to continue on and see what others are doing in their blog posts.

Much Love and Blessings,
D.