Creating With Thought and Emotion

Joy of Our Earth    Jim Plesh     acrylic on canvas     24” x 48”

As artists there are emotions and thoughts we bring into our creative work. There are emotions and thoughts we have about our completed creative work. And ultimately, there are thoughts and emotions we evoke in others when we share our work with them. When we embark upon creating something, we bring our whole selves into the process. Our experiences, our feelings, our expectations - along with our imagination and vision. These are the ingredients which make our art unique and distinctive from others.

It would seem then, that self-awareness is essential to creativity. The more we understand our thoughts and feelings for what they are, the better we're able to incorporate these elements into our work. Our work takes on greater depth, since it's the recognition of our range of emotions and thoughts which spur on the creative process. Stress, self-doubt and procrastination must be eliminated from the process. 

Many artists greatest creative efforts come when they are responding to strong emotions and want to express them through their art. This exhilarating experience is one of the reasons we, as artists, must continue as a way of life, to be aware of our feelings and respond with art which conveys emotion.  Technique, style and skill are  the tools - feelings, emotion and imagination are what fuels the tools.

 

Searching For New Beginnings

                                  ”

Warrior and Woman    acrylic on canvas    48" x 48"    J. Plesh

As we grow, the events of life contribute to who and what we are. Creating art is somewhat the same. A painting includes a series of events or steps taken to grow the image. And like life, our art continues to grow after each accomplishment. The creative process is one in continual search of a new beginning. The ending is for the viewer. The completed painting tells the artist’s story, but by then the artist is already at a new beginning—exploring, visualizing, seeking a new story to tell. This is the way art is made. This is the creative process—moving in the direction which gives the artist his or her greatest pleasure, excitement and challenge. The painter must render canvas after canvas, searching and perfecting, before he can freely express himself with spontaneity and authority. The freedom that results from these efforts has no boundaries.  Not unlike life itself.