Blog Hop

Wanderer (Wapiti) / 36x48 / acrylic on canvas

Last week I was invited to join in an interesting blog hop by the artist Galia Alena in answering a few brief questions about my creative life and to share three other bloggers whom I admire...

1) What am I working on/writing?

Currently I am working on a new exhibit for August titled 'Sacred Space' which entails of acrylic painting on canvas and features the canoes & tipis & landscapes of my youth in northern Canada. I am also working on a series of art journal entries, a Gratitude Project of sorts, illustrating a word a week for each letter of the alphabet. And finishing up a couple of articles for publication in fall as well as working on an online workshop for 21 SECRETS Fall.

2) How does my work/writing differ from others of its genre?

For many years I created several bodies of work, one being abstraction which I didn't generally share publicly...but then, as I was creating a series of canoes to honour my childhood growing up in an Aboriginal community, I saw how the two could connect, including the pictographs and petroglyphs I encountered not only in my youth but also in my adult hiking life.

3) Why do I do what I do?

Life as a professional artist can be very solitary and yet extremely rewarding but in order to maintain my sanity I need to be involved in my community (I sit on several arts related boards, curate exhibits at our public library and organize youth art programs), collaborate with other artists, and share the information that I've been privileged to gather through my education and connections in the arts community. I have learned throughout the years that artists are extremely generous.

4) How does my writing/working process work?

I begin every morning very early (around 6am), make a pot of tea, light a beeswax candle and turn on CBC Radio in my studio. If I have a plan, I begin working directly on my canvas, if not, I begin by sketching (doodling really) or writing in my journal. Or I'll begin by stretching canvases. I find that just being in my studio and getting to work causes ideas and time to flow. Not always effortlessly, but always forward. There is certainly something to be said about the creative brain/hand connection...even manually writing out ideas begets more ideas. In art college I learned that a quick way of getting into the creative brain was to use the left hand as it's directly connected to the creative side of the brain.

And now let me introduce the wonderful artist, Galia Alena, who asked me to join this blog hop as well as 3 artists who are an inspiration to me - they will be publishing their blog hop posts next Saturday:

Light chaser, wanderlust gypsy, clay slinger, paint splasher, word crafter, sacred journaler, beauty unveiler, adventure seeker and soul feeder… Galia Alena is a “coeur”ageous pioneer artist with a poetic vision exploring intuitive wisdom. Her images evoke tranquillity and infinity, coaxing the viewer to participate into the self-exploration which successfully ties the lyrical to the universal. They reflect an understanding of mythical and archetypal wisdom common to us all, yet from a supremely vulnerable individual perspective. “It is through my creative practices that I feed my soul and return to myself always afresh.” Galia lives in Sydney, Australia. Find out more about her art on her beauty-full blog, her Facebook page, and her artistic website.

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"When the true essence of creativity flows from me, I believe it is my muse’s creation which is being portrayed and birthed into the world.  My passion is mixed media works, in which I create using primarily encaustic medium, collage and/or altered books.  Each piece I create, I see as a container for the unfolding of a story with layers of narrative which serve to delight, provide meaningful insight and/or provide the viewer a place of comfort and connection whether it be joyous or melancholy. "
~ Supria Karmakar  http://supriasdesigns-encausticmusings.blogspot.ca/

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Jill is a mixed media artist from New York City, who creates her art with a combination of her photos, ephemera, found objects and items of significance to her. She often has hidden meanings within her work, often time includes bits of her poetry, either easy to read or buried within layers of her work. Jill has participated in altered book projects from artists across the globe, has been a guest artist for an Italian blog challenge and received first prize for her work in the National Arts Program. You can find her artwork published in Pasticcio Quartz 13, The Pulse of Mixed Media, within  art-zines  created by Alicia Caudle of Altered Bits as well as in the premier issue of the Art Magazine titled  Featuring.   You can follow Jill's artwork, photography and poetry in her blog
~ Jill Zaheer  http://www.jazworks.blogspot.ca/

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"I am an artist who can’t choose a favorite colour, a recovering perfectionist, professional procrastinator, and a mom of twin girls and a boy. Although I’ve been an artist my (almost) whole life, I started painting again in 2009 to help heal myself physically and emotionally. I hope my art brings beauty, colour and happiness into your life."
~ Belinda Fireman  http://belindafireman.wordpress.com/

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