‘May Feelings’ acrylic on canvas about 4 x 5 feet May 2012
click on images to enlarge
A ‘Red Line’ series is falling into place. It started over a year ago with this painting.
I was awake and wanted to paint. It was 2:00 in the morning. This happened during a workshop taught by Leigh Hyams http://www.artsreal.com/. at Mountain Home Ranch in Calistoga, California. I put some warm clothes on, took my flashlight and went down to the studio. Turning on the lights I brought out a large roll of pre-gessoed canvas, cut off a piece and left it on the floor. I looked and looked, sat by it and walked around it. What am I going to paint? What is in you? Who are you? What do you want to paint about? What are your true feelings inside you. What have been your true feelings? What have you been dealing with? Ah ha! with that question I knew it was easy. I had just been diagnosed with throat cancer. How did I feel about that? What was inside me ? Not what had I been looking at in the real world. So I put some limits on my painting, no familiar shapes or colors. The colors had to all come from within. The painting had to express how I felt about having cancer in me now. What color were my cancer feelings? They sure as hell weren’t pinks, peaches and cream, these colors being my familiar palette. I mixed up a mess of colors and started to paint. I painted with my brushes, with a palette knife, my hands. I didn’t stop until I was done. The painting needed something. I took a tube of red paint and made a red line. The painting was finished. I tacked it up on the wall and walked back up the road to my room as the morning light filled the outside space.
‘Rolled’ acrylic on canvas 4 x 5 feet October 2012
The cancer is gone. New feelings come with new experiences.
Very touching story you tell. I like the painting and the colors you used to express your feelings. You are a very brave lady, a true artist. RLTE
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The visual side of my brain is sure the dominant one! I need a painting feeling like using your colors 🙂
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like these paintings. they’re strong. go on.
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Paint one about your new arrival in the family 🙂
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You have a whole new voice from deep within. You are generous to share this profound voice. I hear it with my insides, bypassing the usual barriers. Thank you.
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oh then I have done my job 🙂
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Thank you for sharing this. Your work, and your story are so powerful.
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Hi Alissa
Have you tried to explain your paintings? It’s hard.
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Really powerful work, Carla. I just kept looking and looking.
So much pain, yet so powerfully painted. I look forward to seeing this painting in the flesh (so to speak!)
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Interesting, when I am in the process of painting them it is not painful.I’m loving what I am doing.
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It’s very strong work, Carla. I can feel the strength of your emotions and pain as I look at the piece.
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I definitely have strong tough work side of me and then I can change to a little sparklie flower. Wonder what that means 🙂
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They are full of strength, and raw emotion. I like the way the red lines make connections. This is a beautiful post, Carla.
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I’m going to post where that red line started about a year and a half ago. It is interesting how a series of work comes together.
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I found it! Don’t mind me…. 😉
To be honest, I don’t really get paintings, esp. illustrative, abstract paintings. It is nice to get into the mind of a painter. Er? Any hint … interpretation? I’m totally dense.
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ps. Karen at drawandshoot.com shows her photographs – some are very abstract. You can still say to yourself variation in form,color, line texture, space.
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Hi Rommel. I don’t know if you got my reply. It looks like I didn’t push a button somewhere. Also I may refere to you in my next post.
OK Rommel. You have challenged me! You are from S. California so you probably swim in the ocean. Ever get rolled by a wave when you are in the ocean and don’t know which way is up? So if you look at that painting, on the lower right just above the red line you will see a little white paint shaped like me falling legs and arms up with curved back, If you look around the painting you see bits of blue sky The painting or ocean is dark with flashes of light. all kinds of shapes, fish, kelp, water swirling maybe you get slammed against a rock and get a flash of pain (red line). So my painting is how I felt when I got rolled. Or how I felt with some situation going on in my life. How I felt in my head.
Abstract painting is like interpreting jazz. Abstract painting is made up of variations of color,form, line, texture, space. It’s how the painter feels. How does Branford Marsalis feel when he plays his saxophone? He makes that instrument talk using variations of sound. How do you feel when you respond to these abstract music rhythms and sounds?
Squint your eyes when you look at a landscape. It reduces your ‘picture’ to basic shapes, color, line, texture, space. Let me know if you ‘get’ even a part of what I’m saying Thanks for the question.
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NO. Bwahahahaha! I’m completely, densely baffled. All the more, I’m even more and more impressed. That painting to that explanation, I’m completely blown away!!! Bedazzling, indeed.
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ha ha ha I wondered if I’d hear from you. Guess I’m not a teacher. I just fool around with art stuff making things. We must have dominant opposite sides of the brain. I can’t figure out your post BUT I’m going to keep trying. (That painting is about five feet long.)
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OK Rommel. You have challenged me! You are from S. California so you probably swim in the ocean. Ever get rolled by a wave when you are in the ocean and don’t know which way is up? So if you look at that painting, on the lower right just above the red line you will see a little white paint shaped like me falling legs and arms up with curved back, If you look around the painting you see bits of blue sky The painting or ocean is dark with flashes of light. all kinds of shapes, fish, kelp, water swirling maybe you get slammed against a rock and get a flash of pain (red line). So my painting is how I felt when I got rolled. Or how I felt with some situation going on in my life. How I felt in my head.
Abstract painting is like interpreting jazz. Abstract painting is made up of variations of color,form, line, texture, space. It’s how the painter feels. How does Branford Marsalis feel when he plays his saxophone? He makes that instrument talk using variations of sound. How do you feel when you respond to these abstract music rhythms and sounds?
Squint your eyes when you look at a landscape. It reduces your ‘picture’ to basic shapes, color, line, texture, space. Let me know if you ‘get’ even a part of what I’m saying 🙂 Thanks for the question.
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The deeper the emotion, the stronger the work. I hope you stay well. My brother lost his voice box to throat cancer. Paint is a beautiful dialect. Cheers Sue
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From across the world I sympathize with your brother.He may not want to see my 80 drawings in 80 days radiation drawings but then again maybe he woud like to look. Thank you. I am well.
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From across the world I sympathize with your brother.He may not want to see my 80 drawings in 80 days radiation drawings but then again maybe he woud like to look. Thank you. I am well.
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I love your honesty and the power of the work – what amazes me is the strength of your voice – this art speaks volumes…
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I seem to have two sides of me – one strong the other more lyrical. I sure don’t have one ‘style’ of working.
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I seem to have two sides of me – one strong the other more lyrical. I sure don’t have one ‘style’ of working.
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I’ve replied to you somewhere else I think. I know I did on that post. You are clever! What a hoot! You totally caught me! Hummm I re read my post when I reblogged yours and I’d better put up a wild colorful bright fun happy abstract painting! like how I feel right now 🙂
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This is a touching post. I read it because you were featured on Rommel’s page. I’m glad your throat cancer is gone. A non-smoking, retired teacher friend of mine recently had to have his voicebox removed because of cancer. He is such a go getter, and it sounds like you are too.
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Hi there! Thank you for dropping by I love Rommel! Luckily I can talk and laugh and read your lovely posts..
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Thanks!!! Hope you enjoyed them, and hurry on back. I’m following your blog as well.
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Hi there! Thank you for dropping by I love Rommel! Luckily I can talk and laugh and read your lovely posts.. 🙂
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Congratulations! You are amazing! This post should be required reading for everyone who passes by. Thanks for including me on this big day for you. Carla
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First, I’m glad it’s gone. Second, this is a touching post, full of feeling but so direct, straightforward. That red line is like a ligature around the throat – it really cuts across the frame – it does add something, emotionally it makes sense, and it makes the composition even more intense. And the white “blob” actually reminds me of a cancerous growth, with its vague, indefinite form. Thanks for explaining your journey here, without getting hung up on feeling sorry for your self. You’re very strong! (The second painting is also so good – I love that they’re big, too). There is a lot of symbolism in a red line – in Buddhism there was some esoteric “Red Thread” group, I think. I think it pops up a lot, the idea of a red line.
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Thanks for this observation. I just googjed it and read all about the red thread – mostly symbolizing a love one will find in the future.(connected by a red thread) Also,, protection. Here is one that seems to work best for this situation.
It gets dies when one does a lakshmi prayer, i.e a prayer to the goddess lakshmi (which was about 2 weeks ago). Lakshmi is the goddess of wealth and this string is tied as a symbol of having this spirit with u the whole year through, remember wealth is not only monetary wealth but whatever the individual considers it to be i.e wealth in terms of health, happiness, love, success etc and this is kept with u all the time in the form of the string.
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