Sing the Song You Were Born to Sing

Sing the Song You Were Born to Sing...

The song I used to sing was about being a teacher.  I put my heart and soul into it for 25 years. My tank is running on low with the demands that others and my own self have places upon me.  I have another tank and that one is full to the top of fuel.  That tank is dedicated to art.  

I have committed to living a creative life. Surrounding myself with art that I love, friends who love art and also dedicated to living a creative life.

Being on vacation always allows be to dedicate even more time to creativity.  My walls are now quite full of art and my visual journals are also filling and I am singing the song I was born to sing!  My heart is singing loudly and playing in allegro... music talk for swift, lively...

This week has been a busy art week finishing up  unfinished art and visual journal entries. I finally finished multimedia bird today that I had started in a summer multi-media class. It seems I have to let ideas migrate in and out of my head to figure out how to take the final plunge to complete pieces.

This above is a zebra bird was drawn using a dipped pen in ink and then painted with watercolour.

Today I added some musical notes of Vivaldi's Spring. I included the word "allegro" as a reminder to sing the song I was born to sing now, swiftly, and not waste time!

I made the music notes transparent by making a transfer using gel medium on the front and then wetting the back and scraping the paper off of the back!

I added some soft pastel around the edges to tie it into the other two bird pieces I have completed in this series.

This is the second zebra multimedia bird that I complete today. This zebra bird has a map for its cheek and gel medium with tiny rocks for texture in its breast and feet. Also texture was adding using modeling paste and stencils. Pencil crayons, soft pastels, washi tape, rubber stamps, acrylic paint, pencil crayons and a charcoal pencil were used.

This little multimedia piece was started in the summer in my multi-media art class and I also finished it today!  I got stuck in the summer and couldn't figure out how to finish it. I changed the background three times and finally found the right relevant quote... "Sing your own song".

Here are some other pieces that I have finished in the past week.

Here is my front cover of my new journal. I found the Police sticker on the ground at the Farmers' Market this summer in San Leandro, California.

After our Christmas Eve Chinese food feast, my fortune cookie fortune stated, " You are going to have a comfortable retirement!" I created a transfer using gel medium using the fortune.

I like to use keepsakes from everyday life to remind me that there are wonderful things in my ordinary life!

I also used Golden acrylic paint, fabric paint, pencil crayons, markers and a gel pens.

Live a creative life is my motto!

This is the inside cover of my new art journal. I have included a little drawing from 2008 when I first rekindled my love of making art. I have also included a piece of masking tape that has my dad's writing on it. He caught some pike for us in 2007. Can you believe it, I found some frozen fish in my freezer from 2007? Since the label was on a tub of frozen fish, I created a fish scale pattern. I also created bubbles because I love bubbles and seeing them dance around. Bubbles and fish and water colours seem to belong together!

I used Fabre-Castell markers, Jane Davenport watercolour pens, acrylic paint, fancy duct tape, pastels on the little landscape and gelatos.

I hope you all can live a creative life!

I know when I do, I am much happier and fulfilled!

Here are some of my favourite creations for 2017...

• modeling paste, gel medium and acrylic paint

• acrylic painting

• watercolour painting of my horse Weebit and dog Lucy

• watercolour, white gel pen

Monday's visual journal Art Journal Junkies prompt: "Wish"

My wish is to become an even better artist.

I take art classes with Maureen Newton, a local artist at Inspire Cafe and Art Studio, to help me to achieve my goal. This summer I took a multi-media class with her and I wrote notes. She said two very inspiring things:
1. " Be patient with where you are at!"
2. "When you are stuck and don't know what to do next, ask your creative self and you will have an answer!"

During my class, I wanted to create an inspirational piece for a granddaughter. In my journal I planned it out really roughly. Even though I finished the piece in the summer, I wanted to make my notes and plan finished looking, so weirdly enough, my plan was completed today after the original piece of art. I wanted to grow, so I challenged myself to paint the eyes open instead of closed on the original.

I kept some of the original pieces of advice, but the female does look different than the original!

Thank you for all of your supportive words and for the opportunity to share and make my wish come true!

close up of Dare to Dream

The  first version given to my granddaughter.  The heart is a necklace fob that I wore as a little girl.

• close up

• gel medium with glass beads, rocks, sand, and acrylic paint

Thanks for viewing my art gallery of 2017 and the beginnings  of 2018!

May you sing the song you were born to sing!

Happy Creative New Year!

Happy Paint Friday!