my first video on YouTube!

I made this video yesterday talking about creativity and its relationship with the Divine and the Self. too bad my camera's volume is a bit low, but you can hear my charming accent and eventual broken English more clearly by wearing headphones :P

I pretty much enjoyed the experience (although it's more difficult and tiring than it may seem) and I'm planning to make other videos soon, showing my painting and works in progress. stay tuned!

in progress: Lilith

preparatory sketch:





penciling and first washes:







background and first glazings:









model is my new "stunner", Belinda Leopold (besides being a talented photographer, she is also a true beauty!)

Vali

Mixed Media (Acrylics, watercolor, graphite and a bit of pastel) on illustration board,

15 x 20

2010

$500

A tribute to Australian artist Vali Myers, a true inspiration in my art and life.

In progress: Vali

trying to redeem myself from the Tree of Life fiasco, i decided to forget it for a while and catch up with my list of projects. there was something disturbing me a couple nights ago and that just let me sleep after I grabbed my sketchbook and filled up a page with an almost mediumistic sketch. that was Vali Myers.



this preparatory sketch was made yesterday morning, and during all day long I dedicated myself to the labor of attempting to represent that mesmerizing woman. when Julia Inglis introduced me to her, some time ago, I was preparing material for my workshop "The Sun's Pathway" and recognized the synchronicity, because Vali was the perfect representation of the Sun in its full force (not mentioning that she was a Leo, sign ruled by the Sun.) leaving the comforts of her homeland to follow a remarkable trajectory, she was a true hero and left us lessons on freedom and living according to what our spirit inspires us. this has always been my philosophy of life, and this is the main reason why Vali 's figure touched me so deeply.









i used acrylics for the initial washes. the first idea was to put a mask with stylized sun rays above her head (Vali was a performing artist), but the mask was gradually transforming in the Sun itself. i love this stage showed in the 5th picture, with only the thin washes and the face rendered in graphite.







i felt so energized by that painting that i could get into the night doing it until having it completed. never worked so fast in a 15 x 20 painting before. before going to bed, at almost 1am, I still stayed for many minutes only looking at her, in a silent talk to her eyes. for a while, Vali was myself.

Painting, interrupted

and for the 5th time i rejected my Tree of Life project. the reason: not being able to achieve the desired transparency. i am not feeling secure with acrylics. i am picky, perfectionist. i cannot lift the damn paint off the board. i have to cover it every time I make a mistake, because it dries so fast. after 3 or 4 layers, you have a thick thing that cannot be redone. it creates disharmony with the rest of the painting that came out fine. and there you go try to find a solution for it. and then you have a snowball of problems. and all your vision goes down the drain. is that the end of my love affair with the acrylics?

guess it is time to hold my ambition and experiment more before going for huge 20 x 30 paintings.

my plan: come back to my old technique with watercolors and using acrylics for glazing and highlights.

now a little thing I made yesterday:

Sunflower and Moon

Watercolor and graphite on paper,

5 x 9.5

Sunflower and Moon was created to be the symbol of the Artessence project. The idea was to represent the  inner world, emotions and the feminine polarity (Moon) interacting with the Spirit, expression and masculine polarity (Sun). The sunflower represents creativity blossoming.