Welcome to MissouriBendStudio!

This is an online journal of my artistic investigations and a way to communicate about my work, ideas, quandries and queries! I welcome comments and conversation and do hope you enjoy these musings. My artwork is available in my shop MissouriBendStudio on Etsy.com or on my website.

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Monday, January 23, 2012

Daily Still Life Drawings

Hand stitching is a slow process....a very slow process.  I've spent a fair amount of time since I last wrote here on two of the pieces I've got going, but it hasn't made enough of a difference and I won't bore you with all the interim shots. I've run out of thread on the third piece, so that's a bit of a delay....I can't just dash off to the store to get more....it's about a 45 minute trip and one must have a list of other needs to make a trip to Sioux City with the price of gas these days.  I'll be getting some more this week though, because it turns out, now I do have a list!!!

But, here's what I do have to show you....the development of the daily drawings.  I liked what was happening with the teabag on teabag still life theme, but it all really depended on the strength of color in the teabags and sometimes things were invisible....so it occurred to me that the teabag could actually take a bit of paint since it was sealed, having been adhered to the bristol board with gel medium. I've been continuing to experiment with still life compositions in the daily drawings.  Okay, I have to admit that I did cheat a bit.  Since I was gone last week and my time in the studio was all thrown off, I had a couple of days with no drawings to represent them, which I just couldn't bear, so I made 2 or 3 of these pieces in one day and slotted them in. Their dates are in brackets underneath, so I know they weren't actually done on that day.  Of course, no one would have known this if I hadn't felt compelled to confess!!  Anyway,  here is a selection of some recent daily drawings.

1-23-12

1-22-12

1-21-12

1-20-12

1-18-12

I'm not sure why the notion of the still life is so close to my heart and my hand these days, but it is.  There is something silent and timeless about a still life....the notion of a moment in time held in the hand, fixed by the eye....a moment that contains all other moments....that's what it is. It's about a slowing down and the illusion of stillness, because there is never any stillness, not really....if so, we'd all perish.

Perhaps you can tell who my hero is in terms of painting and still life....it's Giorgio Morandi....the master of simple composition, silence and stillness.  So elegant.

Natural Morta I by Giorgio Morandi

I'm thinking about the daily drawings having their own Etsy shop. I have a few from the fall over at MissouriBendStudio, but there is so much work in my shop now, it's probably a bit overwhelming.  I think a second shop filled with just daily drawings all in the same price range might be a refreshing change.  Any of you wonderful readers who are Etsy sellers want to weigh in on the question? 

In the meantime, I keep forgetting to mention that I am having a sale in my shop through January, so it goes for just another week....15% everything in MissouriBendStudio!  Plenty of artwork there that would love to have a good home....the pieces are happy to travel anywhere on the globe!  See you later in the week....have a great one!




16 comments:

  1. they look a little like something off the walls of pompeii...delicate but holding time..

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  2. Your drawings are a wonderful tribute to Morandi.

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    1. Thank you so much, although I can only aspire to evoke any of the same qualities as his work always will...so timeless!

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  3. I really like these still life paintings, especially the first and second one. There is something quiet and contemplative about them.

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    1. Carrie....thank you! Yes, I like the first and second one the most too...they are the most recent ones. I'm curious to see how these will unfold and evolve....I'm glad they are evoking a sense of quiet. Hope you are doing well!

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  4. Dear Patti,
    I had to leave this quote that I found on

    http://texturesshapescolor.blogspot.com/

    that addresses yours and my feelings of cheating. The daily project can have a boomerang effect, coming back at us with a vengeance that is not in line with our intentions. I am beginning to think that the daily project may not have to be a linear succession of days to have value as long as we when we veer offtrack it is because the creative spirit calls us to a finer place. I'm just working this through. What do you think?

    The Process
    I am against being too goal-oriented. “Getting there is half the fun”- especially in art, where the question could well be: is there a “there” there? The process is always valuable in its own right, especially so when it allows us to become freer, less rigid, more alert to all the happenings on the page.

    - Wolf Kahn

    Love your still lifes. I think you have definitely achieved the calm of the moment. They are so ethereal.

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    1. Lorraine....I totally understand your point, as I can become too driven....I guess I'm trying to think of these daily drawings as a kind of metronome that help keep the rhythm of each day. I'm interested to see where they lead and how they will change over time....the process, yes, the process! I'm glad they are emanating some calm....thanks for your insights, as always!

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  5. these are wonderful, patti! delicate meditations on the moment.

    if it's not too overwhelming to maintain two shops, it would be lovely seeing your daily drawings in their own shop. i can see a cohesive collection aesthetic & price wise being successful on etsy. i do struggle with the question myself sometimes.

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  6. Anca, thank you for the support! I will continue to give this some thought and if I do it, I'll make sure to let everyone know. I thought it might be good to have a shop that was more cohesive than my current one is....best wishes to you with your work!

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  7. I really love them...you can see that you're heart is in those works! Love also the delicacy or them.

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    1. Thank you....I'm getting more attached to this process each day. Glad you like them too!

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  8. i just love these- you are so talented :)
    annie

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  9. Hi Patti - there was just a line of commentary among the Etsy group on Linked In that relates to this issue of multiple shops, profiles, etc. Sometimes a series of work, or work in a whole other medium, or reports of one's activities completely unrelated to some other aspect of your online presence do indeed require and succeed in a separate dedicated space. Other times it just gets confusing having too many places to visit to see all of what one individual has to offer. I prefer an integrated approach when possible, but I think in this case the daily pieces need and deserve their own shop, so I say go for it!

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  10. Gabriella....thanks for the thumbs up! I think I will do it....want to work on photographing things a bit differently and will do this eventually. Thanks also for the background on Linked In and the Etsy group....I'm a member, but not active in Linked In at all....it's just one more thing, but maybe it's one more good thing?!?!?! Cheers!

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I'm happy to hear from you...comments and questions are welcome!