The Art of Art Club

I started a new art club with my kids and friends to create together. It was my daughter Greta who wanted to get together with her pals and paint. I had such fun on my roof painting and talking about what inspires us. Is it nature, relationships, simplicity, color, the texture of the paint, what?  The California artist Wayne Theobald painted very thickly with a pallet knife. His paintings of cakes and pies make it look like there is actual frosting on the canvas. I thought about him today and also Vincent van Gogh who is one of the artists I am writing about in my second book, More Than Tulips: Van Gogh, Vermeer and Dutch Culture (working title).

I needed some green tree energy today and used the color wheel tool I had in my paint box. Even though I have painted for over 30 years it is still such an amazing instrument. Perhaps the first Saturday of the month would be a good day to have art club meet. Start the month off with a little creativity and community. Even though painting is a personal journey it is fun to share that journey with others. What color do you feel today? I get why Pablo Picasso had his blue period. We all have chapters in our lives that are a bit bluer than others. Big changes, sorrows, depression, loss, and just being an adult sometimes. I don’t know what inspired me to paint in blue and green today perhaps I am coming out of a blue period in my life. Also studying a lot of van Gogh so his color scheme is wearing off on me. Greta chose to paint in yellow and greens which seem more optimistic than my colors.

Color is powerful. In art school I learned that pink is calming to all, and I heard about a football team that once painting the guest locker rooms pink to try to make the opposing team more docile. Blue is a precision color which is why surgeons wear it. Bright colors like red, yellow, and orange draw you in but after a while make you want to leave. Many fast-food places like McDonald’s use these colors to attract customers and make them leave soon after being exposed. Purple makes you feel mysterious and spiritual. Green is the only color that feels warm in the winter and cool in the summer so a good color to use in interior design.

Art Club Saturdays…I am excited!

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The Art of My Next Book