Sunday, November 6, 2011

'The thinginess of things....'


Sylvia Plath has been quoted as saying, "If I could paint, I would want to paint things. I love the thinginess of things."

I also love the 'thinginess of things,' and I love that phrase! I think of it when I paint,or even photograph, a still life.

Today I thawed out my paints and did this painting. It is a bit of an irony, as it is an oil painting of a watercolor palette and a cup of dirty paint water. It is 9"x12".

I have heard jurors and art critics call amateur painters "Sunday painters" with a distinct snub in their tone when they say it. I seem to have become a "Sunday painter." I won't apologize for it, nor do I think anyone should, if they can only paint on the weekend or in spare bits of time. Better on a Sunday afternoon than never, I say! While I am weaving through the weekday work times, I can't get out the paints. My painting studio and my weaving studio are one and the same, just on opposite sides of the room. Going back and forth between the two mediums involves a lot of clean-up, not to mention a completely different mindset. So, for now at least, I am quite delighted to have a hour or two on Sunday afternoon to put paint to canvas.

Reluctantly, I will now stick my palette back in the freezer, hoping that I'll have a bit of time, and the inspiration of 'the thinginess' of something or other, to bring me back to the easel next Sunday afternoon.

4 comments:

Dinah Rose said...

I have just finished reading your blog from the beginning. You are an inspiration to me. I am a beginning tapestry weaver with no background as an artist. It probably took me 4 days to read the whole thing when I should have been doing other things but I really enjoyed it.
Dinah
www.dinahrose.com

K Spoering said...

Thank you, Dinah! I visited your site, as well. Your warp-faced wall pieces are stunning! I can see you have a lovely color sense - which I have to work at (especially, it seems, this morning.)
How does Etsy work for you?

Rebecca Mezoff said...

I think that painting must help you see in different ways. Being a "Sunday painter" is simply gorgeous.

Jan said...

I love the painting of paint! I had a fellow grad student who would just paint whatever was around in her studio, often things like a pot full of paintbrushes, and tubes of paint.

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