Art Slam

I am humbled anytime someone contacts me to do an interview.  You can read my latest at the Empty Easel. It is always a blessing and my pleasure to share my love of words and art.

Okay…I did touch the canvases and one of them did get a new layer, but seriously, I am so unmotivated to create right now. So, give me some ideas I have not already suggested for how you jumpstart your creativity. If I have to revisit any of my usual hobbies, I believe I will scream.

So, suggest away. I am completely open to just about anything.

Hands down, my favorite color of all time is blue. It represents depth and stability, the sky and the sea, trust, confidence and faith. All things that resonate with me now more than ever before. Blue is a calming color, associated with tranquility and peace. While red, yellow and orange are usually seen as warm, emotional colors, blue is associated with intellect and consciousness. How I love this color blue.

One of my most popular post here on the Art Slam is Tools Art Journalers Should Have in Their Arsenal. I am most often asked what tools someone needs to start art jouranling. The reason I started the Art Slam was to walk people thourgh the process of beginning their own journals. It can seem intimidating when you only see the finished journal. My art journals are not perfect by any means, but they are uniquely me.

One of my favorite adhesives (the other is Duck Tape Runner) to use in my journals and on my canvases is Modge Podge. Modge Podge is an all-in-one glue, sealer and finish. It can be used on wood, fabric and just about any porous material. I like it because it dries clear, is non-toxic, it is a great value and comes in a variety of formulas and finishes. Personally, I prefer the Matte finish.

This year, I introduced spray inks to my art journaling arsenal. Adirondack Color Wash inks by Ranger are insanely awesome. The color is so rich and a little bit goes a long way. Be warned, it stains. So, I wear rubber gloves and cover up the area I am working in. I also like using Ranger’s UTEE (Ultra Thick Embossing Enamel). It is a dimensional medium that I use to add texture to certain areas of my journal pages.

Recently, I learned about Zentangle, extra fancy doodling using textures and shapes. These are going to add all kinds of new dimension and interest to my artwork. Most of the tangles look best using a black pen. My favorite is Prismacolor Premier fine line markers.

Art journaling really is not about the stuff you use. I keep it pretty basic using paint, inks, pens and colored pencils. I find my images from magazines and I use my own photography as inspiration for my pages. I love using prompts to help me get started creating an art journal page. You can find quite a few here by visiting the Art Journaling tab in the menu above. There is lots of scope for the imagination.

To start 2010 off, I will be offering online art journaling classes. My goal is to open registration in December for a January class. Make sure you sign up for my newsletter so you will be among the first to hear the details.

Related Posts:

• Spark Your Creativity on Demand
• Quoted Photography
• Resources for Right Brain Creatives

This year, I made a commitment to myself to be a more eco-friendly artist. Part of that commitment was to not purchase anything new unless I absolutely needed it. I love pretty paper. LOVE IT, but I have not purchased any new decorative paper in well over three years. Honestly, I don’t need it. I still have a small stash of scrapbook papers I sometimes use in my art journals. As of late, acrylic paint or watercolors have been my chosen medium for my backgrounds.

I also do not purchase new sketchbooks when I start a new  journal. I like to repurpose previously used journals or books from discount bookstores. Altering books is a lot easier than it seems, plus the finished product has just the look and feel I like in a good art journal. Often times, we get too caught up in the things we use instead of being caught up in the process of making art. It should be enjoyable and not about whose product you are using or the latest trends. Honestly, no one really cares whose stuff you are using. It is the main reason I love art journaling. I don’t have to keep track of every single scrap of paper or embellishment I use in my art. That gets real old real quick.

One of the many benefits of working digitally is you can use the same elements repeatedly. If you have a  favorite piece of digital paper you like, you simply open up the file and use it again. There is no mess and no waste. How is that for using eco-friendly art supplies? Digital scrapbooking or collage is also a forgiving medium. You can move things around until it is just like you want it. You can change the colors of your elements and you can start over if you like.

Use what you have on hand to art journal. Art journals are meant to be perfectly imperfect. They are a place to experiment and explore. So, explore with what you have and enjoy the process.

I was looking through my Flickr photostream and noticed the colors I shoot most often. One of them is red. I love the fire and vibrance of red in food, flora and clothing. It constantly inspires me.

I have a challenge for you.

First, pick a color. Now, for the rest of the week, go around and shoot everything you see in that color. What I like about this concept is the inspiration it has for future projects or series of work. So, go ahead, get to shooting and please share a link to your color inspiration in the comments.

A few years ago, I was commissioned to create two art journals with over 50 unique layouts. The college class that would use my work would journal on the pages later. This was an interesting experience for me, as I am used to journaling on my work while I am creating it. Not being able to hide hidden words under layers of paint was a stretch for me, but it was a good stretch. I learned to not get caught up in the words, to work with collaboration in mind and to create lots of pages in a short amount of time.

This particular page was one of my favorites. Mainly because of the phrase on the page. It is such a simple question, yet one I can confidently answer, No. Nothing is perfect and I am fine with that. A phrase I have been using for years is Perfectly Imperfect. It is something I embrace with my art, my words and my photography. I no longer feel a need to have perfection in my life. It would be so boring if it was that way. Instead, I have chosen to enjoy the process of striving for a perfectly imperfect life. There is much learning and adventure when you allow yourself to be in that space. And, it is a good space to be in.

May’s theme for A Year of Color blog is Green. Since I am serious about being a more eco-friendly artist, I decided to use only what I had for my project and show the participants you can recycle art. I used an altered canvas I was not very fond of as the background for this newer piece. I also used scrap fabric, which just happened to be green as part of the background. I ten added an image from an old book and finished it off with some buttons I have been saving for journal projects. In sticking with the green theme, I did not complicate the piece with my signature layers. I kept it simple and I love the way it came out.

I hope this inspires you to recycle some of your art you did not initially love when you created it. Sometimes, that kind of art just needs a little extra lovin’.

Green Posts:

• Greening Up
• Eco-Friendly Art Supplies
• Honoring the Planet

I have a guest post up at Marie LeBaron’s Make and Takes blog. I found her blog like I do with many I read, purely by accident and I instantly fell in love with it. It was a thrill to meet her in person when I went to Blissdom earlier this year. So, go over, check out the tutorial I put together and stay to visit the rest of the blog. It is a wonderfully creative place.

Relevant Posts:

• Tools Art Journalers Should Have in Their Arsenal
• An Art Journal Page in Three Steps
• What is a Morgue File and Why You Should Have One

I am often asked what I use the most when I work in my journals. I admit I have a lot of materials I do not use, but I find I come back to a few basic tools everytime.  Here are a few staples I use almost everytime I journal:

Sketchbook -This goes without saying…you need something you can art journal in and a nice sized sketchbook you can take with you is perfect. My favorite is the large Moleskine Sketchbook. The pages are blank and it is a sturdy size for travel.

Black Pen – Sharpie makes a pen I love. It has a fine point and does not stink like a regular Sharpie. A good black pen should not bleed all over your work.

1 1/2” Paintbrush – You don’t need an expensive paintbrush, just something big enough to give your strokes texture when you paint or apply gesso.  I have a One Stroke flat brush by Donna Dewberry.

Adhesive – It does not make a difference what you use. I like glue sticks or Duck Brand tape runners. I even have a bottle of rubber cement that works just fine.

Watercolors, Acrylic Paints, Oil Pastels or Colored Pencils – These are all good for getting some color on your pages. I use Prismacolor colored pencils because they are so rich. They are my favorites and I use nothing else but them when I need colored pencils. I also like Staedtler Watercolor Crayons. They are portable and all you need a is a brush and a little water to give them that watercolor look.

Scissors – If you don’t like ripping  images out of magazines, a decent pair of scissors can come in handy.

Curiosity – If you want a great journal page, approach your sketchbook with a sense of wonder and curiosity. Art journaling is suppose to be fun and is more about the process than the end result.

As you can see, you do not need a whole lot of stuff to work in an art journal. In fact, I encourage you to not to get caught up in all the fancy tools and gadgets available to creatives. Remember, these are just tools. The real creativity comes from you.

Additional Art Journaling post you may enjoy:

• An Art Journal Page in Three Steps
• Resources for Right Brain Creatives
• Picture Imperfect