When Is Too Much Too Much?

In my last post, my conjecture concerning a failed experiment concluded by saying that the reason for said failure was my inability to leave anything out.  The piece just had "too much stuff" in it; you could say it was "overstuffed."  In my quest to determine if my theory about the composition was valid, I thought perhaps I should try systematically cutting off parts to see if it was improved; a scientific experiment of sorts.  Hypothesis: too much stuff.  Experimental methodology: cut off some stuff.  Dependent variable: loveliness of the composition. 

As I went to get the trusty exacto knife, it suddenly occurred to me: why not use Photoshop to crop it, instead of an actual 3-dimensional implement of destruction?  That way, I could crop it one way and observe the result, then go back and start over, as many times as I wanted to.  Genius!

The original mess

Version 2:  The first thing I did was to cut off the edges a little.  I didn't think this was a great improvement.

Version 3:  I trimmed it down a bit further.  Not bad.  But now the upper right corner seems too light and doesn't really go with the rest of the piece.

Version 4:  I took off some of the light area on the right side, and I'm starting to like it better.  There is still a tension between the gold/rust diagonal and the gold/rust bar at the bottom.  My eyes bounce back and forth between them.  Hmmm...

Version 5:  Here, I eliminated the bar at the bottom completely, making the gold in the center the focal point, and simplifying the composition greatly.  No more push-pull; the composition is more static.  Has it become boring?  

I realize this was all kind of tongue-in-cheek, but in spite of my silliness, there is something to be learned here.

Of course, you may be thinking, "Who cares?", and I wouldn't blame you.  But if you have any interest at all, I'd like to know which version you think is best, and why. 

Is less really more?  By golly, I believe it is!  Next thing you know, I'll become a minimalist.  No, wait... what am I saying?


 And now on a nicer and less brain-taxing note, lovely Laura of Shine the Divine: Creativity as a Spiritual Practice has generously given me a Beautiful Blogger award.  Laura is a brilliant writer whose spiritual insights always inspire me.  Thank you, Laura!

Because many bloggers don't do the awards thing, I'm just going to say:  Please visit the blogs I have listed on my blogroll; they're all wonderful!

The Experiment Continues...

So, my ongoing experiment with doing collage 'sans monotype' is still going on.  This is hard, people! (Did I just say that?  I'm starting to sound like my students!)  Here is, I suppose you could say, the 3rd incarnation of this piece- sort of.  You'll probably recognize parts of it from incarnation #2.  I felt it wasn't going anywhere, so why not rip it up?  Nothing to lose, and lots of potential learning to gain.  Besides, tearing something apart is a good way to get out your frustrations, if nothing else.

This has several layers, and has gone through quite a bit of ripping and scraping of its own. It didn't scan very well, I guess because of the metallic joss paper; the colors are a bit off, despite my attempt to correct them in Photoshop. 

Self critique:
I like the colors, but I'm not sure if the joss paper is too bright/strong in value compared to the rest.  Maybe there's too much contrast.
I think the composition is the biggest problem here.  Not enough of a focal point; it's a disjointed jumble of stuff, like the inside of your kitchen junk drawer.  The issue for me has always been that I have difficulty eliminating anything, so it becomes too much, too much, too much!
Maybe I should cut the sides off?


Well, it was fun, and I did learn from it.  And I made a huge mess in the studio.
Your critique?  Any comments, advice, and/or constructive criticism are appreciated.

Tune in next time for incarnation #4...

Doors and Windows

There's an old saying...

I'm sure you're familiar.   It goes something like...

"When one door closes,

another door opens."

Or is it, "When a door closes,

a window opens."?

You're probably wondering if I have a point here, which I actually do.  Some of you may recall my recent post, where I ranted on and on about how much I hate applying for exhibitions.  Well, the rejections have started rolling in, and I could just hear the doors slamming!  I started to feel a little... less than hopeful, I guess you could say.  

But then, yesterday, a strange and unexpected thing happened.  I got an email from a gallery saying that they have chosen me for a solo show!  I'm still not convinced that it's not some sort of mistake.   I hear a voice in my head saying, "This just doesn't happen to me."

As a student of Buddhism and other philosophies, I know that our thoughts do create our reality.  I think we expect what we get used to, and those thoughts can become a habit, a pattern, a self-fulfilling prophecy.  My point is this: when you're busy focusing on the closed door, it's hard to notice the open one.

The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitudes.
- William James

To Our Mothers' Mothers' Mothers'

I know Mother's Day was yesterday, so technically, I'm late, as usual- slower than molasses in January, as my Mammaw would say.  But I don't suppose it much matters, since technically, all of these women have passed on, except Mammaw, who I visited yesterday.

I want to send a message of gratitude back through time, to my Mother,

Bonnie Lou Creech Davidson (I love you, Mom; I miss you.);

to her mother,

Nellie Pearl Wilder Creech, now age 94;

to my paternal grandmother,

Olive Rebecca Hunt Davidson;

to my great-grandmother,

Juliet Bracelin Davidson;

to my great-grandmother,

Aldora Thompson Hunt;

and to all the others who came before.  For everything you did to nurture the lives that were in your care, for all the love given, and for being the vessels of my incarnation,

I am grateful.

Something Green

Everything has suddenly turned very, very lushly green.  Each Spring this seems to happen virtually overnight. One day, you know Spring is coming, you see little buds peeking out, and the trees start to bloom... then- GREEN!

This got me thinking about the color green and all its permutations, and, well, I decided to see just how many shades of green people had actually attached names to.  This turned out to be well-nigh impossible because, apparently, you can call a color anything you want, especially if you happen to be a paint company.  "Uphill" and "Cabbage Patch", are names for colors of green paint, for example.  I also learned that the computer can distinguish over nine million shades of green (!).  Humans, not so much.

This site listed 99 shades of green, but some of them seem pretty weird, like "Bile"- yuk!  Here's a partial, non-definitive list I compiled from those that seemed reasonable. (A lot of them refer to vegetables, which makes me hungry!)

 Algae, Amazon, Apple,

                                                Aquamarine,                   (Kinneyconnick Creek)
 
Army, Avocado, Bottle, Brussels, Cactus, Camo, Caribbean,

                                   Celadon,                                                              ( Lamb's ear)

Celery,

                                                  Chartreuse,                             (Wild grape)

Chromium, Clover, Cornsilk, Drab, Electricity, Emerald, Eucalyptus,

                                                Fern,                                       (Wood Fern)

Fir, Forest, Glass, Goblin, Gooseberry, Grass, Hookers, Honeydew, Hunter, Jade, Jungle, Juniper, Kelly, Laurel, Lawn, Lime, Malachite, Mallard, Ming, Mint, Moss, Office,

                                                 Olive             (Reflection, Kinneyconnick Creek)

Olivine, Parrot, Pea, Perylene, Phthalo, Pickle,

                                    Pine,                                                                  (White pine)          

Pistachio, Sage, Sap, Shamrock, Spinach,

                 Spring,                                                  (budding leaves, Kinneyconnick, Kentucky)

Spruce, Teal, Turquoise, Verdigris,

                                              Veridian,                                         (Wild Rose)

Willow, Zucchini.

Inspired By the Rain

As often happens in Springtime, it has rained here all weekend.  It started on Friday night, and rained all day Saturday.  Then, when it was finally finished, another storm came in right behind it.  If I look out the window right now... yep- still raining.  Somehow the rhythm of the rain got inside me.  All I could see, hear, think of, was rain.  This is what it became.

  Storm Front

Ingredients: monotype, Caran D'Ache crayons, watercolor pencils, acrylic ink, acetate, acrylic gel medium, PVA glue.  
6" x 10"

Let the rain kiss you.  Let the rain beat upon your head with silver liquid drops.  Let the rain sing you a lullaby.  ~Langston Hughes

Rain! whose soft architectural hands have power to cut stones, and chisel to shapes of grandeur the very mountains.  ~Henry Ward Beecher

Archetype: The Raven

Traveling around the blogosphere the other day, I came upon a lovely piece by Patrice Lynne Young, featuring one of my favorite figures- a raven.  I've had a fascination with ravens/crows for many years, and I've noticed that this is something I seem to share with a fairly large number of other artists.  In fact, when I started looking, I was surprised by the number of raven/crow images I had done.  What is it about this common bird, I wondered, that captures our imaginations to such a degree that you might even call it an iconic figure?  I had some idea, but decided to investigate further, and to share with you a small part of the information I found.

The Crystallization of Winter in My Heart by Sharmon Davidson

"Ravens are common characters in the traditional narratives and mythologies of cultures around the world," according to Wikipedia, and are "often depicted as a trickster or culture hero figure."  Carl Jung discussed the Trickster as one of the primary archetypes of the collective unconscious, an ancient and eternal cross-cultural symbol through which we humans interpret our experiences.  Examples of other archetypes include the Shadow, the Savior Child, Anima/Animus (the soul), the Wise Old Man, the Magician, the Divine Couple (Syzygy), the Hero, and the Great Mother. Archetypes occur within the traditions of every culture, though each archetype takes different forms in each culture. While familiar with the concept, I don't think I explain it very well, so for a more complete explanation of Jung's Archetypes, go here.

There are many trickster figures besides the Raven, such as the Coyote in native American myths, and Eshu in the Yoruba tradition,  among many others.  Some characteristics of the Trickster are as follows: "The trickster deity breaks the rules of the gods of nature, sometimes maliciously, but usually, albeit unintentionally, with positive effects.  Often, the rule-breaking takes the form of tricks or thievery... Frequently, the Trickster exhibits gender and form variability." (Wikipedia)

To illustrate, I thought you might enjoy one of my favorite Raven stories.  Someone paraphrased it into the following form, but since there is no further information on the page, I don't know who to thank.

Raven Steals the Sun

       According to a Haida story, in the beginning the world was in total darkness. 

      The Raven, who had existed from the beginning of time, was tired of groping about and bumping into things in the dark.  

      Eventually the Raven came upon the home of an old man who lived alone with his daughter. Through his slyness, the Raven learned that the old man had a great treasure. This was all the light in the universe, contained in a tiny box concealed within many boxes. 

      At once the Raven vowed to steal the light. 

      He thought and thought, and finally came up with a plan. He waited until the old man's daughter came to the river to gather water. Then the Raven changed himself into a single hemlock needle and dropped himself into the river, just as the girl was dipping her water-basket into the river.  

Earth, Sea, and Sky by Sharmon Davidson 

      As she drank from the basket, she swallowed the needle. It slipped and slithered down into her warm belly, where the Raven transformed himself again, this time into a tiny human. After sleeping and growing there for a very long time, at last the Raven emerged into the world once more, this time as a human infant.  

 Longing for Spring by Sharmon Davidson

      Even though he had a rather strange appearance, the Raven's grandfather loved him. But the old man threatened dire punishment if he ever touched the precious treasure box. Nonetheless the Ravenchild begged and begged to be allowed to hold the light just for a moment. 

      In time the old man yielded, and lifted from the box a warm and glowing sphere, which he threw to his grandson.  

Ancestral Ground by Sharmon Davidson

      As the light was moving toward him, the human child transformed into a gigantic black shadowy bird-form, wings spread ready for flight, and beak open in anticipation. As the beautiful ball of light reached him, the Raven captured it in his beak!  

Kiva Spirits by Sharmon Davidson

      Moving his powerful wings, he burst through the smokehole in the roof of the house, and escaped into the darkness with his stolen treasure. 

      And that is how light came into the universe. 

  Rise (detail) by Sharmon Davidson

As is the case with most ancient myths, numerous versions of this story evolved as it was passed down orally over time; to read more, click here and  here.

I hope you found this interesting.  To learn more about the relationship of Jung's Archetypes to mythology, an excellent and beautiful book you might want to read is Joseph Campbell's The Power of Myth.