In the beginning...

On most mornings, my daily ritual begins with a pot of green tea served in one of my handmade mugs (which have been made by potters across North America) and a lit candle in my studio as I turn on CBC Radio.  Yesterday I awoke at 6.30am choosing to prepare bread dough wanting to utilize my body before beginning my abstract class and this morning I made a cup of matcha tea using my matcha tea bowl and bamboo whisk.  I've decided to incorporate ritual into this process as I want to honour this time that I am taking to stretch my creative muscles.  I've always enjoyed working on the floor so this canvas was a pleasure to prepare using the warm colours of the sun though I did have to remove my socks as I kept stepping into the paint that I was allowing to drip around the 24"x60" canvas, and occasionally onto the foam brush I was using to push and pull the colours.  It's a cool day outside today but my studio feels so warm and compelling with these tones and the sun shining brightly through my window.  It's interesting to note that my initial vision was a canvas that was more orange and pink (not a colour I ever use though I have decided to challenge myself) but it became saturated with red through this process.  I think I'm going to like this intuitive form of painting.