1st Step - Pick a Theme
MY BACK STORY:
I have been trying to find
my own style, and I have been leaning heavily towards abstract. During a Pinterest search I was attracted to a painting by Franz Kline. I found he was part of an American art movement called Abstract Expressionism (AE).
Not knowing much about art
history (I’m a math girl, I loathe history), I had no clue about the whole AE movement. Sure, I’ve heard the term, but I didn't really know what it was all about. Wanting to learn more I did some online searching
– my first real introduction to the subject of abstract expressionism.
The more I researched the
topic, the more I felt at home. It’s as if I have found my people. I had admired
the work of Kandinsky, being drawn to his color play. But now I had other favorites to add to the list
(Franz Kline, Robert Motherwell, Jackson
Pollock and Willem de Kooning, to name a few) They were
all friends in real life and part of a group
called the New York School.
The New York School (synonymous
with abstract expressionist painting) was an
informal group of American poets, painters, dancers, and musicians active in
the 1950s and 1960s in New York City. 1
The more I learned about this
movement, the more I felt like the artists are my kindred spirits. Like, in some cosmic way. Like, I would have hung out with them if I had actually lived then. ( I feel the same way about some jazz musicians. And I think I would have lived on the Grand Concourse in the Bronx!)
While spending hours playing
with my art materials I took note of different techniques that have crossed my mind. I made plans to experiment with these techniques –
ones I thought were new – only to find some were the same that these artists
used in their work. The very ideas
they played with are the very ideas
that came to me. Spooky, huh?
So this is why for this challenge I have chosen the NEW YORK SCHOOL as my
theme.
I found quotes by some of
these artists and will be using these as my inspiration.
Last night I prepared my papers. I cut mixed media paper down to 8x10 size and marked off a 5x7 area. Each day I will tape that area off so I will have a clean piece of artwork, ready for framing.
We will see what
develops together – wish me luck!
Tune in tomorrow when I will share my first painting –
DAY 1.
1.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_York_School_(art)
Why don't you join in? I'd love to see what you create!
As Leslie says,
“It's about getting in
to the studio to try new things. It's about painting more often. It's about
having fun and developing new habits!”
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