Inspiration Fridays! What dreams keep you awake?

What dreams keep you awake?

A drawing in my sketchbook is an investment in who I want to be.  It my not look like much at first, but at this point i have a lot of sketchbooks.

“All men dream: but not equally. Those who dream by night in the dusty recesses of their minds wake in the day to find that it was vanity: but the dreamers of the day are dangerous men, for they may act on their dreams with open eyes, to make it possible.” -T.E. Lawrence

As a child of the eighties, I wanted to be a stockbroker. I had absolutely no interest in finance but I thought it would impress my grandmother and also, I wanted a Lamborghini.  I soon realized there was no impressing Grandmary, and really any car would be a step up from the bus, so I abandoned my finances completely and became an artist. To both of our surprise, Grandmary found this leap to be quite impressive.

My declaration to become an artist was a good start, but I also began making changes to the way I approached my day-to-day.  I chose to paint and draw when I wasn’t washing dishes or waiting tables, skipped out on some social functions, and eventually began designing my social life around the practice of making art.  I even brought my sketchbook along to parties.  Awkward at first, but I’ve actually ended up meeting a lot of my favorite people that way.

What dream keeps you awake? Woman Lounging - a drawing in a sketchbook - Gabriel Lipper

My friends become the muses for my work.  I love the opportunity this affords to connect with people in a richer way.  We get each other.

Everyone has dreams for their lives. Some people pursue them with wild abandon, many put them aside for a season only to realize that they can’t be ignored, while others pretend they don’t exist at all. Dreams can be wonderful and inspiring, but they can also feel unrealistic and scary if we allow ourselves to believe that they may not come true.  Still, I would rather die trying than die wondering.

There is a distinct difference between having a dream and reveling in a fantasy. Both can start with the same vision, an idea so delicious that we can’t seem to get it out of our heads.  It’s the next choice that makes all of the difference. If we begin to take steps towards that vision no matter how small, we create momentum.  What transforms that dream into reality, is our decision to take action.

 

Have you given yourself permission to dream? Is there something you’re doing each day to bring those dreams to life?

What dreams keep you awake?

I would love to hear about what steps you’re taking. Join the conversation below and let me know!

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Inspiration Fridays! Coffee Stains

Coffee Stains

Coffee stains. It started with a ring.  Napkins and coffee cups littered the café tables where my friends and I would meet before heading off to our high school in downtown Portland.

“Serious art is born from serious play.” – the SERIOUSLY observant Julia Cameron

There I would sit, pounding equal parts coffee, sugar, and cream, and fidgeting with whatever pencils I found at the bottom of my bag.  I drew my friends, cups and saucers, the complimentary bread and butter, even the shiny metal ductwork.

Frenetic conversations escalate quickly. Inevitably, a mug would make my sketchbook its coaster, branding my drawing with a rich sepia ring. My masterpiece ruined, tempers would flare, someone would forget their money, and a collage of stained napkins and spilled coffee would be left in our wake, caffeine’s reminder of how not to behave when drinking coffee at a nice restaurant that serves free bread.

Drawing was fun, but mostly, I was lost in the act of finding my identity and creating something new.  The painting came later.

Coffee Stains

I’m pretty good at drawing people at the adjacent table without being too obvious.  No one really seems to mind anyway.  In fact, I’ve made a lot of friends this way.

I don’t drink as much coffee as I used to but I don’t like to see it wasted either.  What began with a couple of misplaced coffee cups and some dark rings on my favorite sketches, has evolved into the beginning stages of some brilliant little paintings!

These days, when I turn up at a coffee shop armed with my sketchbook, I bring along a bit of a kit. A roll of artist masking tape, a small paintbrush, a couple of pencils, an eraser, and a small tube of white gouache make the possibilities almost infinite.  If I’ve drawn out something I like, I will mask it off and dip my brush into what’s left of my coffee.  Add some gouache highlights here and there, remove the tape, and presto, there might even be something worth framing!

This recent addition of a couple of new tools has flipped my sketchbook on its spine.  It’s a new world out there. Think of the rich tones I’d get with a blueberry scone.  Have you given coffee a try?  Too jittery? Go sultry with a deep Southern Oregon Tempranillo.  Or chase the dragon. Maybe both!  Experimenting with different media is a great way to snap us out of our doldrums and energize our creativity.  Why so serious!? Making our art fun is the aperitif to making our art great.

What tools are you using to keep your art practice feeling new and exciting?

What freaky tools are you using?

I would love to hear some of your ideas, leave them in the comments and let me know!

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Inspiration Fridays! My left hand.

My Left Hand.

I am right-handed. I have been informed by my left-handed friends that being a south paw is very special…

“If the left half of the brain controls the right side of the body then only left-handed people are in their right mind.” – W. C. FIELDS (obviously a left)

And because they are my friends… I agree…. but I carry on, favoring my right hand along with the other 88% of the population, using my left only to wave while driving.

I’ve logged countless hours training my right hand to glide across the canvas and apply paint with what I would like to think is a close approximation of surgical precision. Well, after 40+ years, I am proud to say, my right hand is usually obedient.

Directing my left (on the other hand) is like herding cats with a new puppy… It wants to do the work but it has none of the finesse. And just like a new puppy, this can be so FUN!!

Seated Figure 2

Seated Figure 2 – 12′ x 12″ – acrylic on panel – Gabriel Mark Lipper

The clumsy inaccuracies and beautiful surprises that emerge when I get my left-hand painting are fascinating! Each stroke is unexpected and adds some extra vitality to the work that I just can’t manage with my ever-so-reliable right hand. It’s a test in letting go, in acceptance, and an easy way to break my routine without over-thinking.

In many ways this is an extension of my last post (Stepping Into the Unknown) I’m following up by sharing a technique I use to help shift my work away from control and invite in the unknown. I have worked hard at achieving some accuracy but the expression is even richer when I can allow myself to just to let go. Painting with my left-hand helps shifts my focus from hard-wired technique toward expression and discovery.

Try using your non-dominant hand on one of your works and you may just find, that just like some of my left-handed friends, it doesn’t get the credit it so richly deserves

Disclaimer: My left hand has not yet done a painting all by itself but it continues to be a great team player.

What weird and wonderful techniques do you use to bring interest to your art?

How do you disrupt what you know?

I would love to hear some of your ideas, so let me know!

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