The artist in me knows that I must also be an outlaw (vandal, culprit) in the world. It might be a controversial image, or words that rub some folks the wrong way, but my job is to put it out there; to stir up conversation and maybe cause some notebook doodling. Whether it is powerful women with weapons, monsters lurking in the shadows or books about the monstrousness in all of us, I'm gonna do it. About the art: I had an idea for this one, a female outlaw in mid-air. So I began with a gesso'd canvas and some thinned oil paint and sketched a rough outline of the figure. Next a layer of background paint, pushing in to further refine the sketch. A long drying time. Using a small brush I went in for the detail work - face, hands and weapons. While those were drying, I placed shadows in the clothing, the hair and the legs. More drying! The requisite 80 million layers, pushing and pulling until the right level of detail vs abstraction was reached. It took many weeks. OY! Finally, a second layer on the background, and a very wet brush laden with paint for the dripping parts of her clothing. After four more weeks of drying, I added a layer of varnish. She is a big, powerful piece in the studio. She does not tolerate timidity or hesitation!
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It is the most exciting penultimate day! The day before MonstroUS is released. And I am having a little surreal moment - is it nearly here already? But rather than talk about the stories and the writing today, let's chat about the art. Over 60 pieces of oil paintings and pen and ink drawings went into this book. Each story has a different style inspiration; a unique visual perspective. The studio had pieces propped, taped, clipped and leaned everywhere for more than a year. I was surrounded by the art! Here are a few of my favorites.
Thank you to everyone who has preordered MonstroUS! If you haven't already ordered, you have one more day to reserve a copy AND be entered to win one of two original pieces of art from the book! Woohoo!
may the wind deal kindly with us may the fire remember our names may springs flow, rain fall again may the land grow green, may it swallow our mistakes we begin the work may it continue the great transmutation may it continue a new heaven and a new earth may it continue may it continue - DIANE DI PRIMA
And now it is time for the next exchange of questions with the incredibly talented Dotty Seiter! My next question for Dotty: Dessert - what is the sweetest, most decadent and delicious part of your creative life? dessert dessert for the poet as she walks rue saint-denis in montréal is a mamie clafoutis oh mon dieu croissant, a classic flaky buttery french pastry filled with a substantial core of rich chocolate ganache, drizzled with dark chocolate and dusted with confectioner's sugar. dessert for the poet as she listens to an audio novel while she walks her own massachusetts neighborhood is the italian word fermata, a word new to her that might never have caught her ear had she not had a nearly finished draft of a poem awaiting final tweaks for which fermata becomes its oh mon dieu croissant! --dotty seiter
I've been following the monks who are walking for peace, and find this so comforting at thiis time.
And so I leave you today with their words: When peace, compassion, and loving-kindness shine in our hearts, all the barriers that seemed to divide us simply dissolve-- and what remains is the beautiful truth we might have forgotten: we were never strangers, only family and friends who hadn’t yet recognized each other. May you and all beings be well, happy, and at peace.
About the art: beginning with an old acrylic painting, I slathered on some gesso and then carved through it with a rubber wedge to expose parts of the underpainting and to create texture. Then, inspired by a sunset photo and the idea of a city hidden in the distance on the horizon, I began laying in swathes of color with a brush and thinned oil paint. I built the layers on this piece over a number of weeks, seeking dark darks and vibrant color. Butcher paper blotting to create sky texture and the trailing path on the lower left. A tiny brush and RESISTING over-definition for hints of a city. Chopsticks through paint for more texture. There are just two more weeks to enter the October Reader Giveaway! Leave a comment on any blog post this month to be entered. And please do leave your suggestions for future Reader Giveaways - I take each and every one of them to heart. Thank you!
It isn't always easy, of course. It is, however, always messy. Werewolves just aren't that neat, and we don't expect them to be.
The July Reader Giveaway continues! Leave a comment on any blog post this month to be automatically entered to win a piece of original art - free!
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Which sent a flood of awareness coursing over me - all the people whose benefits, jobs, housing, education, food, utilities, medical care and citizenship are at stake now. First a trickle, then the flood. But we see you, human monsters. We see you and we vote. We protest, we write letters and send emails and make phone calls. We see you.
But back to the quote at the beginning of this post - I absolutely live in the gap. What I imagine and what I paint are two different things. But I am relentlessly determined to have my skills catch up to my dreamscapes. Probably they never will. But there is always the next one. Which is a lot like hiking. What's over the next hill? Around the bend? Across the stream? Always curious about what's coming next. Always willing to go and look. About the art: beginning with a piece of art board (donated by my artist husband while he organized his studio space) I roughed in a mottled sky using a palette knife and thinned oil paint. Using the side of the palette knife and some dark paint, I roughed in a landscape in a V shape with a couple of hills. Working quickly and abandoning preciousness, I build layers of paint until there was some texture to it. Grabbing a piece of butcher paper, I pressed it into the paint to lift some of the layers, then pressed the paint-laden paper in other sections, creating a rocky ground look. Carving back into the paint with a rubber wedge and creating some "treeness", then adding color to those verticals with the palette knife. Inspired by hikes in the waterfall section of the Columbia River Gorge. The June Reader Giveaway continues! Leave a comment on any blog post this month to be automatically entered to win a piece of original art - FREE! And thanks for your comments and your support!
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AuthorLola Jovan 
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