Brave Intuitive Painting

I recently bought a new book called Brave Intuitive Painting by Flora Bowley and I love it. She has included some really good exercises that are going to push me far outside my comfort zone but will help me develop and grow as an Artist. The one I chose to work on first was an adaptation of 'to practice non-attachment'- something I find really hard to do. If I paint/draw something I like, I will do everything I can to work around it and save it which usually means I end up sacrificing the rest of the painting/drawing. I'm too afraid that if I cover it up, that I will never be able to replicate it but playing it safe means I will never know how much further it could have gone.

So I primed two 9" x 12" hardboards and began painting, switching between the two. First I used colours and drips. Then I move onto shapes. Then back to block colours. I just kept building up layers. I'm going to be honest with you though...it was an uncomfortable, but enjoyable exercise. The logical side of my brain kept saying 'Why are you covering that part up? It looked fine! You're going to run out of so much paint doing this.' But I fought it. Ignored it. And kept painting. 

Working on two paintings at the same time is such a great idea, not only for the obvious reason of having time for each to dry in between. But also because a lot of the time I have more than one idea and direction- which can get muddled up in a single painting. This way I can separate them out and work on two different, but related ideas at the same time. I mean, imagine these two paintings being compressed into one. I doubt it would have worked; but separated they both have their own personalities and moods.

Neither of these are finished and there are parts I like. Part I LOVE. And parts I don't like. But these two paintings serve as an on-going experiment to become a braver and stronger Artist so maybe I will never finish them. Only time will tell :)

Rhiannon xx

A Painting for Aria

I have to admit that I have been feeling less than creative recently. Everything I do seems like a chore, despite my best efforts at keeping a positive frame of mind. Being pregnant is wonderful, but tiring and uncomfortable. It's all new and lets be honest; a bit weird when you get down to the nitty gritty. You are no longer just you- you're you and someone else. Everything you do affects not only yourself but your little one. And for whatever reason I have been feeling like someone has sucked my excitement and passion for creating right out of me (a scary thought). 

Alisa Burke wrote a great post on getting comfortable with being uncomfortable when her gorgeous little Lucy arrived. And I knew I need to do the same thing right now. Push past being tired, adapt to the new feelings and changes and get on with it. So I decided a good place to start was to work on something that was meaningful to me- a painting for Aria. I knew I wanted it to be bright and colourful, but not ALL pink and pretty. (I am basing Aria's room on this concept of one dark 'feature' wall decorated with bright colours.)

I am so excited and happy with how it turned out. In fact I am going to work on some more but with different animals- the next one being a fox.

Materials: Gesso, Acrylic Paint, Oil Pastels, Chinagraph Pencil, 2B Pencil.
Size: 10" x 12" on hardboard

Rhiannon xx

DIY Macro in the garden

The hardest part of sharing a series of photos is working out which ones to leave out. I took 146 photos of four different flowers in my garden today, using the DIY macro technique I wrote about here. Out of those, at least 69 are still on my computer and I was unsure if I had picked the 'best' ones. So instead of picking 'the best', I simply chose a cross section.

A lot of these images remind me of fractal geometry, which is of course found widely amongst nature. But it's harder to see when you're looking at a whole object.

Using this photography technique has opened a whole new world to me. A world of colour, shapes, symmetry and geometry. And is yet another reminder of how incredible and beautiful nature is.

-Rhiannon 

DIY Macro Photos

Last night I finally wrote a brief for each of my 5 subjects- my 2 Majors are Painting & Drawing and my 3 Minors are 3D, Design & Photography. I have found the direction I desperately needed so today I started on my photography minor. I have written a few goals which consists of learning how to use manual settings properly (something I have put off for a long time) and taking a series of abstract photographs based in nature. 

Today I tried a technique I read about over on Alisa Burke's blog which she calls 'The Lazy Reverse Macro'. With a break in the rain and clouds I ventured into the wilderness we used to call our garden and I got some stunning results!

In fact these captured moments remind me of a book I recently nabbed for cheap at a charity shop called Bloom- such a beautiful book.

Because I use a 18-135mm lens these are mega macro shots and are incredibly difficult to get in focus. Even holding your breath doesn't work. I would expect a shorter range lens, or buying a bunch of add ons (so I don't have to hold the lens in place while taking the photo) would give a crisper finish. But I quite enjoy how these have turned out. It's almost like taking a photo with an analogue camera because you really have no idea what you have just snapped- obviously it's still much faster though haha.

The two photos above weren't as pleasing to look at up close, but from a distance they were still quite magical and deserved to be shared.

I feel like I got off to a flying start today with this idea and I can't wait to see how this series comes together over the next few months- especially with the change of seasons.

- Rhiannon x

Mushroom Project - Watercolour

The first of my experiments in my mushroom project would of course have to be in my favourite medium- watercolour. I sketched the design out using a 2B pencil on an A3 piece of Bockingford Watercolour paper. I used my favourite liquid watercolours which have the richest and most vibrancy of any watercolours I have ever used: Ecoline

I knew this would turn out well as its a medium I love and am very comfortable using. And while there were a few patches I messed up (the smudges around the border), overall I'm pretty happy with everything. I particularly love the detailing of the gills underneath of the mushrooms.

Today I used oil pastels with this design but that is story for another day.

I would love to hear what you think I should try and replicate this design using. Maybe there is a medium or technique I have missed that I could try. Feel free to suggest anything below in the comments :)

-Rhiannon

The Learning Connexion: A Mushroom Project

Hi lovely followers! I'm back! The combination of a bad winter flu (which I'm still trying to shake) and getting into a new routine of course work each day has meant this blog got a little neglected. In fact the last time I wrote, it was still autumn. I'm now on the couch, sandwiched between two cats and feeling the warm glow of a fire in winter. It's not really cold enough for a fire but there is something so cozy and comforting about it I can't resist. 

Where was I? Oh yes - lets start with today and a few whimsical mushrooms!

I had one of those days where ideas were flowing and everything in my head was making its way very clearly onto paper. I've said it before and I will say it again- I love drawing mushrooms. Especially more stylised versions like those I drew today.

I had to pick a theme for my painting this term and because you could take this subject in so many directions (the colour combinations, shapes, patterns, etc) I knew it would be perfect. What I decided today though is that I want to take one concept and finish it in different mediums. Such as chalk pastel, oil pastel, acrylic, watercolour, oils, collage, and maybe even appliqué. I want to see how one subject, or one senario can translate across many different mediums.

Today was about trying to find the best composition through concepts, something I tend to avoid. I'm the kind of person who will draw something once and say "well that is probably the best version" and move onto the next stage. I also tend not to finish pieces of work since I find flaws later on (something I could probably avoid had I spent more time planning and exploring at the concept stage).



I ended up with 6 different ideas, and I am yet to decide which one I prefer so I would love to hear which you like best in the comments below. I am really excited about this project and I can't wait to see it come to completion in a few months time.

I hope you enjoyed a look inside at my course work :)

-Rhiannon

Becoming a full time student at 24

On Monday I announced that I have decided to become a full time student which is a going to be a huge change for me. Most people I know have done their three/four years at University or a Private Tertiary Institute and are now working in their field of expertise  But one thing I know (& my family can vouch for this) is I tend to do things backwards. It's not a conscious decision but it usually ends up that way. I guess I like to do things differently! 

I dipped my toes into the study thing in 2010-11 when I completed my Certificate in Art and Creativity with TLC (which is how this blog began) but never really thought I would get the chance to do it full time. Then the opportunity did present itself, although it took some convincing that this was the path to take.

A drawing I worked on this week using Cretacolor watercolour pencils. 

For someone who said at the start of the month I will be taking each day at a time and not looking and planning for the future, I have done the complete opposite and made a big decision. But I do know that the week or so where I did follow my day to day plan, was what I needed in order to decide. 

The school is in Wellington so sadly I can't attend onsite (which I'm quite gutted about as there facilities look incredible) but I'm not the only one. I have already started chatting with another student working on their Diploma and I'm looking forward to meeting more like-minded artists doing the same thing. 

At the moment I'm wading through the student loan process along with the application for the school. Fingers crossed I will be able to start in the next few weeks and I am really looking forward to sharing what I get up to over the course of this year.

-Rhiannon 

Art Journal Page #33 + A life changing decision

#33 - Expand on last weeks Art Journal page

I really enjoyed creating last weeks page and wanted to develop it further this week. It's a refined experiment with basic shapes and patterns using pastel colours, finished with some pen detailing and doodles. I would say it's an accurate reflection of my state of mind at the moment - calm and content. The reason being that last week I made a big, life changing decision that has given me direction that I've been searching for since being made redundant 2 months ago.

I have decided to become a full time student with The Learning Connexion, where I will achieve their Diploma in Art and Creativity. I will write a bit more about this tomorrow but suffice to say I am ridiculously excited and I while I am still nervous about being a student with a mortgage (eek) I know this is the right decision for me.

-Rhiannon

Graduate of TLC

This post is a bit late because I was hoping to receive my certificate first, but the government takes time to process these things apparently. I wanted to share something semi-official though.

EEEEEEE! I am still so happy about this! I accomplished something that, at times, I wasn't sure I would. This whole blog began when I started that course. I have grown so much, personally as well as artistically and I would love to be able to take it further one day and do the Diploma.

Rhiannon xxx

Blog's First Anniversary!

Wow...

I can't believe it's been a whole year today since i started this blog. Man, how time flies! I have just spent the last hour searching though my previous posts and reminiscing. It's quite fun to see how my writing and posts have developed though - for the better I like to think.

I originally started this blog with the intention of sharing just my course work, but it has developed into so much more. I have found myself sharing posts about myself and things that I love. I have also found that I am using this as a place to record and share inspiration. I am having so much fun coming up with new posts and sharing my art, inspiration and being able to meet new friends.

This date is actually quiet exciting for another reason too - it marks the official end of my course at The Learning Connexion and I am happy to announce...

I PASSED!

I am so incredibly happy - passing this course was very important to me. I only graduated high school with a Level 1 NCEA Qualification (I left when I was about 16 so I didn't sit any higher qualifications). This had always played on my mind though because I know I am smart, and know how to do a lot of things that others my age still can't do but I never had a piece of paper that said so. Now I have a Level 4 Certificate in Arts and Creativity - It has given me such a confidence boost!

In celebration of this first year I have listed my top 5 favourite posts from the last year (in no particular order). Hope you enjoy flicking through them :)

1. A new beginning [June 2010]
2. Favourite abstract painting [Nov 2010]
3. A day of photos [Jan 2011]
4. Creative struggles [Mar 2011]
5. Friday's Feature Artist // Natalie Malik [May 2011]

I have big plans for this blog (including a full redesign) and I have so many fantastic ideas for upcoming posts. I can't wait to share them.

In the mean time, I thought it would be the appropriate time to upload my latest header so that will be up by tomorrow - I'm digging pinks and purples at the moment.

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And don't forget tomorrow is 'Friday's Feature Artist'. Check out the inspiring interview with Natty Malik of Awkward & Beautiful from last week.

Rhiannon xxx

Personalised Organisation

A while ago I did some decoupage for my course. I had received so much great feedback and resources from my tutor but it was all scattered around my room and I could never find anything when I needed it. So i decided to decoupage an old ring binder to store all my resources: Personalised Organisation.

I had an old calendar my partner bought for me about 2 years ago of Victoria Frances art. I kept it because I love her work, but never knew what to do with it. After a lot of measuring and planning, i made a plan of what would go where on the folder.

I used some background texture from the calendar to cover the edges of the folder first and then pasted the main images across the outside of the folder and then moved to the inside of the folder.

I noticed that the front cover edge was quite untidy so I added some thick black ribbon and a small strip of red and black dotted ribbon.

I then covered the whole thing in a varnish and voilà! The result is much nicer than a grotty old ring binger.



Rhiannon xxx

tonal sketches

the end of my course is fast approaching; only three more weeks. i can't believe its nearly been a whole year - seriously, where has the time gone?

i have got one last final drawing piece to do and i have completed all my final works. so i have been researching different ideas for my last piece, which needs to be focused on tone (although it doesn't have to be in just pencil). Here are a few of my favourites i have found so far


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I will be brain storming ideas tonight to start tomorrow

Rhiannon xxx

'goal' collage

it's amazing what you can accomplish when you NEED to do it...

i have just spent the last 3 hours making a collage about my future- part of discovering what your goals are. i'm not 100% sure what mine means but i noticed that i am incredibly neat with things- straight edges, things must be quite exact.

i ended up doing about three layers. first layer i didn't like, second layer i still didn't like, third layer i started to like and ended up developing it more. that probably means something too - perfectionism?

traditionally collage's are image only. but i had to have words on mine. my art tutor from years ago noticed that no matter what i paint or make, i have to put words on it somewhere. might be the logical left side of my brain wanting to join in?

it's weird - i look at it and see the gist of what i want to do (goal wise) but i'm sure that anyone looking at this would have absolutely no idea what i'm on about.

i think the process says more about me (and therefore figuring out what i want) than the final piece. i think i will put it away for a while and then get it out again and have another think.

rhiannon xxx

getting my a-into-g

i just got an email from my awesome tutor at TLC saying that my end date for course is approaching and is on the 27th may... I'm sure i had an extra month on my side?! so instead of jumping right into it and doing the work i need to, what do i do? blog about it of course [another way of procrastinating].

so before i get into my work i need to do some maths - how many hours per week i need to do. basic maths is telling me that it is going to be approx 22 hours per week. eek! that's on top of my 40 hours of full time work per week. so this means that no more going out, no more socialising. in fact no more life up until then.

in a strange but back to front kind of way; this is good for me. now i have a deadline to meet and i will meet it. no matter what - i didn't start this course to fail at it. it's just not an option. priorities must be made...

i leave you with two of my favourite pieces i have done recently :)

watercolour of a tulip - very happy with this ^_^

portrait sketch - face was too wide (and not long enough) compared to the picture i copied but i'm still stoked with it

Rhiannon xxx