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“JOY”. 9 x 12″ on paper. Click here to visit my shop.
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Lately, I’ve been working on a new series of paintings. I am exploring portraits and more specifically those beautifully soft and telling painted family portraits that you might see hanging as you climb the staircase of a great castle.
This series of paintings started as portraits of characters for an illustrated novel. But I realized I was trying so hard to finish the novel, that the writing had lost all of its strength.
So, I put the writing aside and focused on what I loved… painting.
I just love getting my hands dirty and layering inks, oils, pastels and paints.
It brings me so much joy. And I found that trying to stay attached to finishing a novel that felt like so much work, was only infusing that writing with frustration.
I’m still not sure where my writing will take me or what it will turn into next. But I know to follow my joy.
With this painting, “JOY”, my intention was to create something filled with light. I’ve been attracted to realistic portraits, so I wanted to give this character a human face, but also show she is not of this world.
The abstraction of her body portrays the ways our past experiences merge with our present moment. And her wild hair personifies her thoughts and memories as distant yet very much holding a physical space that continues to affect the here and now.
xo,
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Ps. If you want even more inspiration and insights into my creative process, plus some details that I only share in email, sign up for my newsletter here.
Pps. My latest online course Wild And Free Painting starts very soon! There is a fantastic group already.
If you’d like to join us when class begins April 25, sign up for Wild And Free Painting here.
HELLO
I'M JULIETTE
A painter, writer, and creator of The School Of Happy Painting, online courses to help you loosen up, let go, and develop your own unique style.
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