Monday, June 15, 2009

Shook Up, Show Up, Make a Mark

So I'm sitting here on a Sunday afternoon, pleasantly and lazily enjoying the company of my family, listening to Tucson's community radio, KXCI, cogitating on the 36" x 36" canvas that is pale and hungry, begging for paint only twenty-two feet away in the studio, when I hear sounds next door, like someone's there. Sure, I freaked out because the woman who had been evicted had come back to forage for things...again. Why would I notice? This woman is a sociopath, the common, garden variety kind that stalked, threatened and tormented my family and me for the last eight years. Panic. What to do? This is the moment that I realize how art not only created the world, but also saves it (and, me), when things get a bit dicey. I was reminded of a really funny cartoon that Mr. Artyfice has on his office wall. Donning my artist's beret and my painterly smock that says "Good girls go to heaven, but bad girls go everywhere," I leapt into the studio with a mighty purpose, mixing and sloshing paint like a maniac: First, a four inch brush to lay down a layer of blue; Then, a combination of swashbuckling palette knife action for the sky and the hill below; Ending with a gentler swish and a smear for clouds hugging land. Two hours later, we have two more clouds over Patagonia. I've included the small, 8" x 8" study previously posted. Whew! I could write a book about sociopaths...Oh, wait, someone already has: The Sociopath Next Door, by Martha Stout.

9 comments:

Manon said...

Love the study Melinda! You have such great inspiration living in the lovely state of AZ!
BTW....I think we share the same taste in music! : )

Melinda said...

Thank you, Manon! Yes, I think we do. I'm really enjoying your music links.

Arizona: tough place, challenging, intense landscapes and people...

Barbara Muir said...

Yay Melinda,

Okay -- I will follow your advice. What a good idea. I'll refer to the cartoon and break the glass. What a beauty. I can imagine that sky exactly and the two perfect clouds making the blue more intense.

Super!

xoxoxoxoBarbara

Melinda said...

Yes, you know that art calms us and keeps us sane! I have this cartoon etched into my brain. I only wish I could find the cartoonist to give him/her proper credit!

Thank you, Barbara!

susan hong-sammons said...

Fantastic!!! I love how the stronger and more intense yellow/orange works in this larger piece although I think the more yellow color worked well for the smaller. Now why do you think that happens??? Anyway, the energy snaps across the painting.

Melinda said...

Hi Susan,
I agree with you. You have a good eye! I might go back into this after it dries a bit and layer a touch of yellow in some areas. Sometimes it's good to let a painting cure for awhile--then decide if it's done.

Thank you so much for your comment.

kathrynlaw said...

Wow, that little study translated really well to the larger format! I like the proportions too. They're both very strong in their own right. And I totally love that comic. Gotta print that out someday. :)

kathrynlaw said...

Actually, one thing I do like better in the study is that the clouds are noticeably different in size and not centered, which I think is maybe a bit more interesting. I really love the foreground in the larger one though, you can definitely feel the energy there!

Melinda said...

Hi Kathyrn,
Thank you so much for your keen insight. I was thinking the same thing about the clouds. Maybe I can play with it a bit.

Glad you like the cartoon too. We see it every day. It's taken on new meaning!f