Cliches are all you got? — 52 Cards Project #20

This week for my 52 Cards project, I had a bit of a problem…I thought I had one theme but it turns out that wasn’t right at all. The week has been one of trying to let go of my perfectionist tendencies, creatively, but also trying to let go of many attachments I’m holding on to in my life—the big one being that a good friend is moving away, and I really would rather she didn’t :-)

Change is hard.

In any event, ‘letting go’ was the original theme idea and I thought a lot about images that might convey the theme—but just like the dandelion letting go of its spores, all my ideas were cliches! I considered a figure letting go of a rope…floating things, arms raised…absolutely nothing new came to me.

Meanwhile, this dog kept inserting himself into the ideation mix. He really wanted to be part of this picture! And it turns out he’s kind of sarcastic—but he’s right. I am stuck in cliche land for now.

A much more true way to capture my week.

Collage sketching

collage + watercolor and ink - art journal

Looking through my work lately, it seems my subject matter is all over the place—from landscapes to buildings to figures, from urban sketching to concept art to portraits and abstracts. A not so kind inner voice might go on about how I have no focus (and what the hell are you doing?) but the deeper, much kinder voice tells me to just keep going.

I really can’t claim to know which voice will win, but in the meantime I decided to take yet another turn and play with collage cut outs—if for no other reason that my latest art journal is just pages from being filled and I want to finish it…and yes, for some reason, I felt the need to explore color and shape.

In the end, I always say follow your intuition.

So I cut out a bunch of random shapes from magazines — and also kept the negative space pieces—and then experimented with what are just quick collage sketches. Above, my guy looking over his shoulder (awkwardly peering back over the crease in the two page spread), started just with the shapes—his hands.

Below, I played with botanicals a bit. If I wanted, I think I could take this idea and create much more refined and finished pieces…but I think I might be satisfied with the quick sketches:

4 pages in my art journal - botanical collage sketches

From there, I took the remaining pieces on my desk and made this:

negative magazine cut outs in my art journal

And finally this:

I think that’s my inner critic by the end of the session…what. are. you. doing???

I’m not sure I can say right now—and I’m okay with that.