"Agony and Ecstasy"

($40.00......5" x 5"......mounted on a 3/4" depth clayboard)

"Learning a new process falls somewhere between agony and ecstasy." It takes grit and determination to push through the learning curve of a new process. The only way to fail is to quit.

This pouring medium piece looks like the "agony and the ecstasy" with the extreme rise and fall of the color. The iron work in the background is symbolic of the idea of pressing on.

Journals are very popular these days so here is a new thing to journal...especially if you are just learning a new medium in the arts. Try writing down just ONE thing each day that you've learned or realized from your own experience with this new "process" that feels like trying to hold jello. And if you can't think of anything, just write down one thing to focus on for that day. In one month's time, you will be amazed at how much you've noticed and learned and that particular skill or way of seeing will become part of the way you work.

For instance, the ironwork in this piece stabilizes the piece and it gives depth because it was collaged in such a way as to appear like it is behind the moving color. The principle: any image placed behind something else that appears and disappears creates depth. Write it down as something to remember. It is one way to connect disparate parts and create depth.

Most of all, embrace any failures as a hugh learning opportunity and grapple with it until you know why it didnn't work. When you answer that question, you have made more progress than if everything worked out perfectly. And there you have it...just a few more things to think about.

Please contact me personally to inquire about this piece.