I am not sure what Stravinsky would have made to it. I used watercolour pencil, acrylic ink, watercolour paint and gouache on this one.
I would like this positivity group to know that I was racked with anxiety before painting. This happens often as I search for something to paint and worry that the result will not be good enough (but good enough for whom?) Once I am painting, I am okay, but the self doubt and anxiety beforehand can be awful -- to the point where I wonder, why do I do this? My wife and I talked deeply (and sometimes heatedly) about this last night. She concluded that I have to find a way to cope with it, or it might be better to abandon painting altogether.
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BrentW
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It's a beautiful watercolour, Brent and it would be a great shame if you were to abandon painting since you obviously have such talent. I hope you are able to find a way to manage your pre-painting anxiety and sincerely hope you do not give it up. Thank you for sharing.
Hi Brent. Another lovely painting! I understand your self doubt only too well. I think my own reluctance to get back into painting and many other crafts stems back to having a heart attack out of the blue nearly 2 years ago. My self esteem has never been great, but now seems worse than ever. As you say who does it have to be good enough for? I'm my case it has to be good enough for me and at the moment I don't think it ever will be. Still, I am working on my feelings and hope to put brush to paper very soon. There is no shortage of inspiration in my little corner of Wales. Please don't give up, self - expression is very important and you are talented. Happy weekend x
Thank you Jerry and Nettekin for your kind and encouraging comments. I really do appreciate them.
Two things. First, I have had a painting (included in this post) accepted for an exhibition at the Arts Centre in Aberystwyth. This threw me into a panic, as the painting, which I never thought would be accepted, has to be framed and mounted. Jacqui was most upset with this, as she thought it would entail her becoming involved as we trolled the mid Wales countryside looking for mounters and framers.
Second, I had long chats both last night and this morning with my father, who is an accomplished artist himself. He has been able to find a suitable frame and mount among his collection, bought from charity shops (I must visit some to get some frames of my own). We talked about my anxiety. He suggested developing a folder of reference photographs from which to paint, taken on walks using either a camera or a phone. I have one of those already, but somehow looking through it threw me into a panic. His suggestion, which I had stumbled upon while painting "The path to Cilgerran", was to draw a very basic sketch showing only value masses, then put the photograph away and paint from the sketch. I shall take that advice thoroughly on board and start doing such preparatory sketches before any painting.
Does any of this make sense? I hope so.
As for modesty, I do my utmost to be modest, especially in areas where I feel I know little (as in painting). I came across the Kruger-Dowding effect when lecturing at the University of the West Indies. People who know a lot about a subject tend to underestimate what they know, while people who know a little tend to overestimate what little they know. I know only a little about painting, and am keenly aware of that. Now, if you wish to talk about the Cretaceous or Miocene evolution of northern South America sometime, I am your man!
Look forward to seeing your work at Aberystwyth arts centre - will that be soon? Always enjoyed a trip to the centre when life was more normal. With regard to frames, try the second hand shop next to the railway station (won't say the name in case it breaches guidelines, but you will know it!)x
I gather that the exhibition will be from mid June until the end of August. I look forward to seeing it myself. I always get a peculiar feeling when I visit the Arts Centre, though. I attended many concerts there when I was a student at Aberystwyth in the late 1970s. Somehow, it feels like I am seeing ghosts!
Please don't give up . My sister got so much from Arts on Prescription and I feel Covid has so much to answer for as her group is on hold . Can you eventually see your Dad ? I would be a proud parent to see my son painting like this and the common bond you have I think you under estimate . I would secretly get a boost if my work had been chosen like yours for an exhibition as these are independent - not family members or your fan base on here as I love your paintings . I am hopeless at art and appreciate anyone who can paint . We can learn so much about history through art , expressions and feelings . Painting outdoors will be great as we get better weather. Wales has too much for an artist . It would be where do I start -
I think this is beautiful and I went wow on first seeing it. As someone who is 'uniquely untalented' I admire and envy those with talent like yours. Do not give up please.
Please do not abandon water colouring as you are good at it. My son in law has just started as he suffers from anxiety and I asked him yesterday if it helped and he said it does.
After the talk with my father this morning, Crazyfitness, I feel rather more comfortable regarding painting -- for the moment. I hope his talk helps me when it comes to selecting a subject too!
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