I sure do love to draw!  There's something about the act of drawing that's so immediate, intentional and strong.  My urge to draw has been just huge for the past couple of years, and I've mostly satisfied it through sketching, or drawing with water soluble pastels or water soluble pencils which I then brush with water to make little painting-sketches.  Lately, though, I've been finding ways to introduce drawing into my painting process (again).

Today I'm starting a new painting which I began by drawing in some basic shapes with pastel, then adding a bit of oil medium, then some thin paint; now I'm working some oil pastel and oil sticks into the mix.  It seems to be going fast, though my plan is for many layers, hopefully creating a glorious texture, surface and image in the process.

No pictures of the work today; I will post some of today's painting if and when it evolves into something I am proud of.

In the meantime, enjoy your holiday weekend; I am (doing my favorite thing—drawing and painting).

"Twisters"
Encaustic and Wood on Panel
12" x 12"
© 2010 Marilyn Fenn

Creativity is about play and a kind of willingness to go with your intuition. It’s crucial to an artist. If you know where you are going and what you are going to do, why do it? — Frank Gehry

This is a very comforting quote for me.  When I paint, I frequently have only a very vague idea or sometimes -- no idea at all -- of what I am searching for in the new work.  I start somewhere, and often, the finished piece is so far away from where it started, it's unrecognizable.  One of my favorite things about working this way is that I discover things -- such as shapes and images -- that I just couldn't invent.

I recently watched the excellent movie called "It Might Get Loud" - a documentary on the electric guitar told through interviews and a meeting between three generations of guitar greats: Jimmy Page (Led Zeppelin), The Edge (U2), and Jack White (White Stripes). I have loved the work I've heard by Jack White (such as the completely unabashed and fearless "Ball and a Biscuit”), but wasn't really all that familiar with him.

He blew me away in this movie. He talked about the need to struggle in the process of creation, and if you're not struggling, he says, do something to create a struggle. (And there were many more great quotes from him, which I'm sure will inform future posts).

Well, I definitely do struggle in my process; sometimes I'm sure it really shows; other times, you can't even tell. It's become far more rare for me to just breeze through a painting. (Dagnabit!)

"Jetsam-Flotsam"
Encaustic, Oil Pastel, Rice Paper and Ribbon on Panel
12" x 12"
© 2010 Marilyn Fenn

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There may be several stages in the course of working on the painting where I think, "Oh, this is good.  Maybe I'm done."  And then I do something else, and ruin what I had and have to go further to make what I've now got into something else good.

"Ship of Fools"
Encaustic on Panel
12" x 12"
© 2010 Marilyn Fenn

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Sometimes I fear that I have lost the best stage of the work, but once I'm done, how do I know whether I did or not?  I really should document more of the transformative process.

"Emerging"
Encaustic, Rice Paper and Ribbon on Panel
9" x12"
© 2010 Marilyn Fenn

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These four paintings are four of my latest struggles; one is a reworked painting from 2008; another I've changed since I took the photo; no promises that they won't continue to change, including the orientation and the titles.

How about you? If you're a creator, do you struggle to achieve your final result, or does it come easily? Is your best work the result of a struggle or not? Under what circumstances do you create your best work? Let me know in the comments below.

Wendell Castle
Music Stand (1964)
Oak, Brazilion Rosewood
55.5" x 25" x 20"

I just discovered this great blog post about an artist/craftsman named Wendell Castle at Emily Evans Eerdmans' blog.  Wendell Castle has been creating amazing furniture for over 50 years.  He has ten "Adopted Rules of Thumb" for staying at the top of one's creative game that I find very compelling:

1. If you are in love with an idea, you are no judge of its beauty or value.
2. It is difficult to see the whole picture when you are inside the frame.
3. After learning the tricks of the trade, don't think you know the trade.
4. We hear and apprehend what we already know.
5. The dog that stays on the porch will find no bones.
6. Never state a problem to yourself in the same terms it was brought to you.
7. If it's offbeat or surprising, it's probably useful.
8. If you don't expect the unexpected, you will not find it.
9. Don't get too serious.
10. If you hit the bullseye everytime, the target is too near.

To find out more about Wendell Castle, and view more of his amazing creations, visit his website at wendellcastle.com