As a Charlotte painter, I am often inspired by those around me to try a new medium or style. This week I will be doing that and using some water based media: acrylic and inks.
Today’s post is about painting one’s shadow- or the dark, unlit repressed side of the ego. This painting symbolizes the “shadow” we drag behind us and is a visual for me of the aftermath of Katrina- heavy with the parts of ourselves or of community that we didn’t approve of. I am sure with this image this is what my subconscious is sorting with- even though I was not physically anywhere near where Katrina took place. Some events haunt us and when they do it reminds us of the significance of the event.
What I am doing in effect is calling up the “energy lost in the shadow” because it is this energy that enables us to affect change. I usually paint the sun- the light- or calm- not the dark- the shadow- or unsettled. (We all try to keep this part of ourselves hidden- or as poet Bly says “stuffed in the bag we carry around, full of TO DONT’S -things we heard like: “Can’t you be still?” or Seinfeld like-ilk that makes up the first twenty years of deciding what we are to become and what to put in the bag to the last twenty years of deciding what to take out of the bag.) You get the picture. I think I am merely trying to cut the bag loose by painting out the dark side.
Art has always symbolically been a vehicle of change for me- the most we can hope for is that we don’t take ourselves too seriously while doing so.
No one should feel guilty for not keeping a journal or expressing yourself through art because it helps the whole world- every bit of energy that we engage in is good use of an orb of unused energy floating around. I have been around people where the energy was so strong you could feel it.
Using your energy in a creative way ensures positive results.
“Ocean Stir” is 24″ x 30″ acrylic on canvas
My Studio location: 1517 Camden Road in the Historic South End design district of Charlotte, NC- is by appointment but can be viewed daily 11-3 during CAL hours because I share a small work space that is part of a co-op of community artists within CAL (Charlotte Art League).
Most of my art images explore the land in the form of seascapes, marshscapes and coastal views and record for me the viewer and my children our travel-places we have fond memories of.
Marshscapes and coastal estuaries pull at my heart -so these images I post fuel my process. More images and information can be found on my website: www.rlistudios.com.
RLISTUDIOS dedicated to showcasing ECO ART OF THE CAROLINAS, marshscapes and depictions of coastal estuaries, can be found in North Carolina Community Treasures (a 263 page compilation-resource guide aboutNorth Carolina places, the business people who live there, their products and their passions). This hardbound, coffee table book will guide you to some of the most inviting places across the state, from the warm Atlantic shores to the breathtaking Appalachian Mountains.For your copy click: http://treasuresof.com/BuyBook.aspx
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