Nov. the First

WHAT I DID: 

This week I continued to watercolor the two illustrations I've been working on. I completed the forest pathway illustration, though I have plans to go back in and rework a few parts. The second illustration I am still working on painting. It is with trepidation that I am proceeding to color the piece. My intention is to create a frame with the medium ground space from the crumbling wall and bough of trees, and to color it the deep dusky color somewhere between the hue of late dusk and early dawn. I wanted the background to be a golden contrast, breaking across the landscape--the new regenerating the old earth. But at this point it is all more grand in my mind then on the page. 

Detail

WHAT I ACCOMPLISHED: 

Wednesday night was an IP meltdown. I've been waffling about what to create in IP this year, and it all seemed to crescendo, with the notes being evidently in the minor key. I'd come to see that I was not really (seemingly) progressing towards a desired direction. I haven't created as much work as I should, and in many ways have been treating this class like a three credit instead of a six credit course. And I've become more frustrated and boxed in as I've struggled to find a concept and direction for my work. Though painful, I think it was a helpful refining process. I was able to let the old ideas burn off, and was left simply with what work I had created and was returning to create: illustrations. 

The half-group crit on Thursday was immensely helpful in cementing my direction towards illustration and narrative. I also had a really helpful conversation with Camilla who gave me great ideas about ways to think about construction of a story. She encouraged me to look at the ways different writers I admire sculpt their stories, and gave me a few illustrative books to look at. She also mentioned looking into the construction of songs and the repetition they have. We talked about a more fluid construction, less linear, more subtle. I had already been thinking about making my book less dialog or narratively based. At this point I don't foresee a clear "children's book" coming from all this, though it could contain one if my illustrations and writing tend towards that bent. 

 

 I treated myself  in good faith to a tube of black paint.
(This is monumental in that after three years, I shant have to mix it from a menagerie of colors).

ONWARD:

More watercolors and illustrations lie off the starboard bow. I'm hoping to get into a more earnest creating mode. I'm thinking about spending some time creating a simple "story board" of sorts. I want to start to create with intention and to begin to collect assortments of paintings. I also am planning on editing and printing bits of my writing to use as direction for my illustrations.

Finally, I have a grant proposal to write, with earnest hopes of getting some money for more paint, better paper, and a bit of binding for the future.