Although much of my work is an expressive interpretation of the world around me, lately I’ve been using it to describe my thoughts and emotions.
But the inner world is an untamed, nebulous landscape, and my current artistic vocabulary of impasto brushstrokes, fluid drips and bright daubs wasn’t quite cutting it.
I turned to the book “Find Your Artistic Voice,” by artist Lisa Congdon for tips on how to break free.
What resonated the most with me was her emphasis on risk-taking and experimentation. She gives permission to “make a lot of junk” as part of the artistic journey. Keep pushing, keep exploring and embrace fear.
So I reached for some craft materials. Specifically yarn, embroidery thread, tissue paper and googly eyes.
Yeah, that pretty much sounds like a kindergarten art project. Not exactly the ingredients for a serious piece of art.
But that totally works for me, for many reasons.
For one, I like the seeming contradiction of using children’s materials to share a complex message. It invites the viewer to look beyond the superficial.
At the same time, the playfulness and whimsy resonate with a core component of my personality, and feel like an honest way to share who I am.
From a functional perspective, these materials break free from the two-dimensional picture plane, creating more visual interest and expressive possibilities. It’s also helpful that yarn can be a conceptual metaphor, portraying connectedness, tension and/or flow.
The work taking shape is a mix of representational and abstract—a liminal place between mood and atmosphere. They are not exactly illustrations and yet I feel like they depict parts of me that wouldn’t otherwise be seen.
Giving myself room to experiment has resulted in art that is different from past work, while remaining authentic to who I am. Thanks to Congdon’s guidance, I’ve been able to explore expressionism with a new vitality, another step on discovering finding my artistic voice.
