| Welcome to this stop on the Blog Hop! Artists, designer, writers, and illustrators from around the globe are making an artistWeb answering the same 4 Questions and linking up to other creatives to do the same thing. Freelance artist, designer, and fellow Sagittarius Vivayne (check her out!) invited me to link up from Las Vegas, Nevada & I jumped at the chance to join the fun. |  Consu Tolosa #personita, "Home" 2014 |
Q & A
1. Why do you do what you do?
It really does not feel like a choice to make art: I make things because I need to!
How seriously and frequently I engage with it is a different question. In the late 90s I got a degree for what my mom might call a 'real career' and put art-making on the margins of my life. I expressed creativity in small ways around the house and in my clothing choices, but that was about it...
BUT THEN ... I went on a retreat in late 2012 and came back determined to slowly but surely reclaim the artist that was languishing somewhere inside. In 2013 I started to paint more regularly and my sweetie built me a studio in the backyard. I also started my blog & website that year too. And in 2014 I took another leap! On the very last day of June I gave up my full-time office and started sharing space with a friend where I can only be two days a week ... which means that the other 5 DAYS I have a chance to be in my studio. I am beyond thrilled with this arrangement!
How seriously and frequently I engage with it is a different question. In the late 90s I got a degree for what my mom might call a 'real career' and put art-making on the margins of my life. I expressed creativity in small ways around the house and in my clothing choices, but that was about it...
BUT THEN ... I went on a retreat in late 2012 and came back determined to slowly but surely reclaim the artist that was languishing somewhere inside. In 2013 I started to paint more regularly and my sweetie built me a studio in the backyard. I also started my blog & website that year too. And in 2014 I took another leap! On the very last day of June I gave up my full-time office and started sharing space with a friend where I can only be two days a week ... which means that the other 5 DAYS I have a chance to be in my studio. I am beyond thrilled with this arrangement!
2. How does your work differ from others of its genre?
I paint Personitas of all sorts. My work is illustrative and whimsical mixed media, and there are lots of wonderful artists in this genre to be sure! Something that sometimes happens in this genre is that art can become formulaic and the figures start looking identical to one another. . . One thing that I love about the characters that emerge in my paintings is that they show up with their unique faces & personalities and they often crack me up. Also, when there are multiple characters in a painting, you can definitely describe some sort of relationship between them. They feel a little bit alive, and I love them populating my magical universe with a quirky diversity that very much reflects a part of who I am.
3. How does your creative process work?
My current approach is varied in a technical sense, but ALWAYS ruled by a sense of freedom, play, curiosity, and visual delight. I like to wake up really early and paint outside in my back yard in the summer. I keep myself entertained with music, and I often sing while I paint. My more successful paintings have either humor or tenderness as a central element, and sometime both. The personitas reveal themselves to me at some point as I am playing with layers of color, and then the whole piece comes into focus.
As I deepen into my creative adventures I continue to develop my skills and find my voice.
As I deepen into my creative adventures I continue to develop my skills and find my voice.
4. What are you working on now?
This is kind of the perfect time to have this question asked because I have many exciting things going on!
1. Through the month of August I am posting art Every Day on Instagram (#30daysofartshares) and blogging about it once a week. A fun challenge that you can read more about in the four previous post, here in the blog.
2. I am also finishing up a commission and getting ready six pieces that will be in two different shows in the month of September. (BTW framing, wiring, making tags: is the first job I will delegate when I get an assistant).
3. I am also participating in a live painting event and fundraiser for Siren Nation, where the piece I am creating live is being auctioned by the end of the night!! Terrifying, but nothing like a little challenge to keep things exciting. Please come and say 'hi' if you are in Portland on September 6th!
1. Through the month of August I am posting art Every Day on Instagram (#30daysofartshares) and blogging about it once a week. A fun challenge that you can read more about in the four previous post, here in the blog.
2. I am also finishing up a commission and getting ready six pieces that will be in two different shows in the month of September. (BTW framing, wiring, making tags: is the first job I will delegate when I get an assistant).
3. I am also participating in a live painting event and fundraiser for Siren Nation, where the piece I am creating live is being auctioned by the end of the night!! Terrifying, but nothing like a little challenge to keep things exciting. Please come and say 'hi' if you are in Portland on September 6th!
Thank You for your Visit!
Stay a while and explore the rest of the site!
And if you want to keep in touch, drop your favorite e-mail address on the right margin
& I'll send visual candy to your inbox every once in a while.
And Next Monday, September 1st, 2014, Hop on Over to
Amy McLain's and Anastasia Parmson's
to discover two new wonderful artists from around our world!
 My hilarious friend & talented fellow Portland Painter Amy McLain, 2014 |  The lovely and talented adventurer & citizen of the world, Anastasia Parmson, 2014 |
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