on painting and life matters



all packed and ready to fly off to new homes!

delighted I made several sales at the Fair, and even the day after a couple of new orders came in! so all in all a success
and I feel I can carry on making!


reishi spawn/sawdust mix with which I made a flattish surface for painting purposes, this is an attempt at making and using sustainable materials for art(projects)
the spawn was pressed between two glass panes, wrapped in clingfilm for a few weeks and when it had grown together forming a flat sponge-like square I unwrapped the foil and gently pulled it free from the glass plates and just got painting, using the indigo paint which to my surprise was absorbed, surprised because I had been told the mushroom-substance tends to ward off moisture, like a duck's back. I didn't like the positioning of the tree so I dabbed off most of the paint with tissues, painted yet again and still not content with the result a second dab and third layer felt okay, and then some stamp pressing using the blue alcohol based ink-cushions (Stayz On)
I like the layered effect of the 'tree-shadows'


about 0,5 cm thick

in between whatever I do a bird usually pops up


Art is restoration: the idea is to repair the damages that are inflicted in life, to make something that is fragmented – which is what fear and anxiety do to a person – into something whole.

 – Louise Bourgeois quote I found in Willemien de VillĂ­ers' website, such an interesting inspiring artist btw, her blog 

 


 

some of my own thoughts:

Painting is essentially about paint and the act of painting, how the paint behaves on the paper

I’m not used to painting human figures, I can paint an animal without thinking, but a human form is a struggle, so back to basics: an oblong torso, 2 arms sticking out 2 legs with/without feet, a head, especially the head I find difficult, the shape, size, tilt

I like painting hands

Being surrounded by a large garden is healing, which is why I have placed her in a/her garden with the dogs and flowers, two willows, the house and embryonic sons

artists are inspired by other artists

I have lately been painting female figures, why? maybe finally painting self as self [not in animal-guise]

this painting by far the most personal in a long time:


it is about motherhood

how almost all beings on earth are born from a mother, except hermaphrodite snails and seahorses

how the beings born from our wombs take over our minds - maybe that is why she doesn't have a proper head - how mother&child remain connected even if we don't want to be, how a dog always lives in the moment, how i sometimes wish i was a bird, how we all need/long for a home, how nature nurtures 









Comments

Faith said…
Mushroom paper sounds fascinating. Does it hold up well, or is it fragile?
Saskia....this is such an extraordinary

privilege

to watch...be present...witness this Shift for you/in you

to watch

an Artist take Hold and go into her Art, fully

Thank You. beyond Thank You for this......Love

Nancy said…
Saskia~ This is a very powerful piece/post. Much to digest indeed.I thank you for putting it here, sharing the process and influences with us. xo
deemallon said…
I agree with Grace that it a privilege to watch your work develop. It’s been on an astonishing trajectory lately. I’m sure human figures will be well in hand soon. And BTW I love the green shadow too.
Saskia said…
it's both Faith, strong as an egg-box....especially crumbly at the edges, I'm sure it could be stronger still but there's lots more experimenting to do;-)
Saskia said…
watch an artist take hold, that is a great way to put it Grace, thank you!
there's a lot of shifting....
Saskia said…
you are more than welcome Nancy, and also many thanks for showing up and supporting me
Saskia said…
the speedy ride has been enabled by all the Time I can now dedicate to just working in the studio Dee (or where ever, as the artistic mind is never really stitched off)
so grateful to you too for being here

tungsten

tungsten

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