Handmade Books, The Dreamer's Tale

I just wrote a story in a style of magical storytelling about an artist who rides her bicycle into the mountains to find out her truth about being an artist in the world today. I also drew an illustration for each page that is symbolic of the words on that page. I found that as the book progressed I looked for more ways to relate the drawings I made to the words in more interesting ways than the actual visual images that the reader might have.

I'm intrigued by the process of making my own books with the craft and also the emotional energy that is immersed into each book as I put the materials together. I also am happy with the visual presentation of the book, it's beauty and originality. The cover is made with handmade paper in two layers. I'm including photos of the book here but if you'd like to buy a copy go to http://www.ellensgreenart.etsy.com.

I've made eight copies so far and am in the process of making eight more since I can make 16 copies from one large roll of drawing paper. The pages are folded in the Japanese style with pages on the front and back.

I'm also at work on another story as well as continuing to paint. I've made a lot of progress with my painting since my last blog in November. Check out my website at http://www.ellenmcmahill.com for some of the latest.

A New Way to Paint

It seems that I've found a new way to paint. It's not that I'm really changing that much. It's more like I recently had time to paint every day and it did something to my perspective. It expanded it. I explored and found more than I thought was at my fingertips! Amazing! Here are three I did in a row as portraits...

Busy, Busy Creating New Paintings

I haven't posted a blog in some time because I've been so busy with life and painting. I'm posting two new paintings that I've been working on for a show I'm entering. I've been getting frustrated with communication and selling art and tshirts, etc. but I'm forging ahead and know that everything that happens is happening because that's what's in my head. so the answer is to have thoughts that break my norm, that reach out and grab me towards the place I want to be. Maybe I'm just tired, but I would sincerely like to make some sales...

New Insights into Art

I've skipped several days of blogging for a lot of reasons. Mostly, I don't know if anyone is reading them, but then again, this blog is a way to just express some of the thoughts I have going around in my head. I've been painting, of course. And yesterday I went on a bike ride by the river again to take some pictures mostly to help me with some landscapes I might be doing soon, or at least one landscape I have in my head so far.

I did a sort of portrait, "Girl with a Spider," for a local show for next month. I'm posting it here because I like it and it's a little different than my past subject matter. I'm also posting another painting I did before that. It's more what I've done in the past only different in that there are two figures instead of my usual one and I think it came out well for the meaning. The title is "Dreaming the Dreamer." I've come to accept my style much more this week and have realized that I want to develop within my style since I can't be anyone except me nor would I want to really. It's just that sometimes it can feel confining to see that I have a style and that that is the way I make art. But that is one of the challenges, to make new and exciting art within that style.

I'm thankful for every day I get to live this life like I am now, to have the time to explore as deeply as I can what making art really is for me and what I can do with it.

Art and Life again

Well, my sale of paintings on etsy was a bust this time, but I'm not in the least bit discouraged. I know that I'm here at this time in my life to paint so I will do that. And I'm ever so grateful to be able to paint right now as much as I want.

The only thing I really miss at this point besides a best friend to do things with and to go places with, is a really good art museum like the Getty in Los Angeles, my top favorite art place of all time. It's beautiful with it's architecture and has the best shows ever with all the masters. But minus a friend and a museum, I still continue to paint because I know I need to concentrate right now especially when I'm learning so much. Practice, practice, practice....though a love is important too (I'll have to wait until the right moment for that).

My motto for the last few years as I've been on my own is "forge on no matter what" because what else is there to do? I really don't feel sorry for myself anymore because I know that this is all my own dream that I've created here with the help of the Universe. And so I have to live with each day as it unfolds. I say onward and upward, up the hill and to victory! whatever that may be!

Another Day in the Life of an Artist

Today is Saturday and I'm staying in to paint and to make another version of a video I want to make for YouTube of my paintings. I've tried several times on this set of paintings about the environment for this video, "The Future Is You." But the way I was presenting it just didn't seem "right" somehow, as if it needed to be something I wasn't seeing.

I had decided to just not make the video, but this morning I woke up with another idea for it, a simpler idea that might work. So I'm going to work on that today too. I just feel that putting a video on YouTube would make it possible for more people to see my art and to be "out there." To sell paintings there needs to be communication and to communicate there needs to be exposure, a conversation of sorts. I'll post it here when it's made or at least post a link to the one on YouTube.

I also finished the details for my 50 percent off sale for my paintings on my site, http://www.ellensgreenart.etsy.com. All my paintings will be on sale today until noon tomorrow. I feel good about putting them on sale for awhile just to add interest and focus to what I'm doing, which is to live the pleasure and delight and challenge of painting and to make money doing it so I can continue to learn and live well.

All my paintings on etsy site 50% off tomorrow

If anyone is reading this blog, tomorrow or Sunday you can go to my ellensgreenart.etsy.com site if you like and buy a painting for 50% off. I've decided to make my paintings available at a savings on certain days because I really believe that people should be able to have original art on their walls and I realize that original art is usually too expensive for most people to fit into their budgets even if they want it.

The nature of art is that it takes a long time to create and it takes alot of experience and persistance to continue to make it in the face of doubts and obstacles such as time and finding a place in the world where it fits and is accepted and then acknowledged. But for those of us who find that they cannot live in the world without expressing themselves with images or music or performance, there is no other way to go about their lives. We are born with the urge to make our expression materialize into the world and the only way to live that is to keep encouraging ourselves to move forward no matter what happens. And ultimately to believe in ourselves.

I hope everyone has a creative day today...