This morning when walking the dog I went off on a tangent to our usual routine, much to the joy of the dog. It reminded me that time spent walking in nature is so deeply necessary to not only my physical well being but to my mental, emotional and spiritual well being. We didn’t go that far out of the beaten path; just enough to test the ground. The dog was covered in burrs and grinning and gamboling about and I made plans to make sure I wore better shoes tomorrow. I’ll have to remember to bring my camera. Years ago I did a daily hike in a small park in Pennsylvania that was a few blocks from my home. I would find all kinds of wonders in there and took lots of photos back when film was the only medium. Today with digital it’s a bit more instant in the gratification of capturing images of little treasures, but no less wonderful to have them. I am rambling about here in this post – but that is the point. To ramble about and just be while exploring is food for anyone’s soul.
I can’t wait to go again tomorrow!
Morning Hike
I had not realized how much time had passed since my last post. It’s always easier to pick up my phone and snap a quick photo and throw it up on Instagram and type in a quick hashtags. Since the last post things have truly changed and my work has been both more fun and more intense. The bird series is still coming together and the Goldfinches piece was an incredible learning experience. In the next few weeks I will finally be revealing what I have been working on for the last several months. I have two Kickstarter projects in development and will be revealing them at Illuxcon this year in October. I am also working on an entire new suite of paintings that I will also be bringing to Illuxcon – I have been posting some of the sketches as I am very excited about the new direction.
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Illuxcon 2017 Sketch 01
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Illuxcon 2017 Sketch 02
I am also revisiting a favorite medium: Polymer Clay. I have been making silly creatures out of clay ever since I was a child and find myself coming back to them over and over. The Derp drawings has reawakened my love of the ridiculous and I am having a lot of fun with these. I have been posting a few teasers of the pile of these I have made and I can’t wait to show them all off in October!
Silly Dragon
Studio dog has been doing all of my resting for me!
Bella Sleeping
Goldfinches for me are the most exciting bird to return in the spring. We didn’t have them or perhaps they weren’t drawn to our bird feeders when I was a girl, so when I discovered them in New Jersey I was entranced by them! This particular painting marks a new beginning for me in my art. I had been planning a series on wild birds and had started with them; the Chickadee piece is in the Wild Bird gallery, I have a cardinals piece started. However I knew I wanted to tell more of the story, to have more hidden meaning in the image. I wanted to create puzzles with answers to the lives of these creatures.
Goldfinches is the first experiment in this deeper story telling. Using graphic elements, patterns, symbolic images and realism I’ve created a map, an inventory of scientific information but communicated in art form. I wanted this to be read without written language. Life cycle, food, patterns of behavior, nest shapes, eggs, all of these are important bits of information to understand the nature of the particular bird. The inspiration also came from DaVinci and other scientific hand drawn manuscripts, the Voynich manuscript, and all those visits to the Carnegie Natural History Museum… even treasure hunt books!
The next one is already on the table!
Gouache painting – Goldfinches ©2017 Julia L Powell
This spring seems forever in coming, but its finally here! It’s these little discoveries of fleeting life that have always spoken to me. Bird’s nests, a fully formed plant where there was nothing, a flower that just opened it’s petals…
and of course – a sweet sleeping dog.
I spent a great deal of my childhood out in the woods and into my adulthood. I love hiking and I usually start just as soon as winter starts to let go and I will hike well into the first snow. I love watching all the changes and greeting old friends. Finding out that I am descended from a long line of farmers and artists explains why the seasons and the outdoors speak to me so deeply. There is always a secret ache in me to have a garden, to know the seasons and to brings in birds and bees and participate in a battle of the wits with furry critters (the squirrels always win!) but more than that – it’s the quiet mind in soaking up sun and listening to leaves rustle in the wind…
That is really what drives my need to make art.
And dogs.
I’ve finally picked up the bird series again with an entirely new vision. I have always loved flora and fauna paintings with a scientific bent – but wanted to take it to a more metaphorical direction. I started with a much simpler idea initially but now I’ve developed a deeper sense of story with these images. In a way I am creating visual puzzles with information that is true about each species. It does leave it open to some interpretation, however if interpreted correctly would bring an understanding of the life cycle and attributes of each bird. This is still very much in development – I need to create a consistent visual language, choose the necessary information to help with the identification of the particular bird, and decide how much and what of their story I need to tell. This is scratching my scientific side as well as my love of ancient texts and illuminated books. This piece is a first dive into the series. This in progress shot is showing some of my exploration of visual symbols, markings and composition.
Can you “read” the information? What is this telling you?
I can’t wait to see what comes next with these!
WIP Goldfinch ©2017 Julia L Powell
