Some of you have asked me to tell a little more about myself, so I am
going to try to do that a little more. Today I am going to discuss my thought processes and what "painting intuitively" means to me.


Firstly, I tend to think a lot, and am a person with many and varied interests.
I do a lot of research on religious ideas, world events and history,
and anything else that interests me. I also read and write a lot, and
have hobbies like cooking and fishing. I can typically read a 300 page
novel in one sitting, usually an afternoon, and I tend to have several
books on various subjects open at any given time. That amount of brain
activity can result in a lot of mental clutter, and I believe that
painting meditative landscapes helps me organize my thoughts.



When I paint meditatively, I am on a completely different level of
thought- that "little voice" in my head is often silent. I can't really
explain it except that color, line, shape, etc. become their own
"language". I don't think things like, "Gee, wouldn't a little more
blue here work better". Usually it is more like my eye sees something
that stimulates it, and my hand does something in response almost by
itself. I am often surprised by what happens. The interaction happens
so fast that to "verbalize" it in my head would belabor it and slow it
down too much. As a result, I have started paintings only to have them
turn out completely different than what I have imagined I was going to
paint. It just sort of happens. I prefer to paint my meditative pieces
either digitally or in traditional oil, and I prefer to paint in
complete silence, when no one else is around. I drag the paint around
on the surface and allow my eye to control my hand as a reflexive
action, without the process going to the mental monologue level.



On the other hand, when I paint portraits or commissions, my brain acts
similarly, but it feeds off the reference materials instead of an inner
connection. I can be painting, and someone can speak to me, and I
sometimes find that I really cannot comprehend what they have said to
me- it is like they are speaking a language I don't understand. I stare
blankly at them for a minute until my mind "switches gears" and then I
ask them to repeat themselves so I can get what they have said. That is
another reason I don't like music or people noise in the background
because it tends to keep my mind on the "mental monologue" level where
the 'little voice" is chattering away. It is hard for me to paint when
my brain is creating a new recipe, or mulling over some issue I have
studied, or thinking about the grocery list, and I find that is where
my brain wants to go when I am painting with a lot of sound or visual
distractions. That is probably why I find it difficult to do more than
reference studies on location.



When I paint in watercolor, since it requires so much prior planning, I
find that I have to work out all my colors and ideas ahead of painting
each passage, instead of as I go along. Then, once I actually start
painting, it is never smooth going. In fact, it is usually a series of
"fits and starts" where I plan a long while, and then paint a passage.
I used to paint watercolors in an open gazebo at my parents' horse
farm, and frequently people would come up and see me staring at the
paper. They would notice that I stared a long time and did very little
painting. My eyes had to see and record what was on the paper and then
my brain somehow figured out what was still missing, and my hands added
in the colors in the right places. I have never really thought in
terms of "add a little more red" or "this shape here needs to be
larger"- again there is no mental monologue- it just sort of happens.



Pastel works in a similar way as watercolor, and that is why I find the
computer such an aid to my work. I can create freely and intuitively on
the "virtual canvas" and then print out a "reference" that has all the
bugs worked out. I can then paint automatically and intuitively using
my printed image as my preliminary or thumbnail sketch.

Once an intuitive painting session is over, I find that my mind has organized itself and there is less "chatter" from the voice in my head. I am relaxed and ready to pursue other interests.



I would be interested to hear if any of you have unusual painting
styles, or unusual creative habits- maybe you don't paint, but you sew,
create your own recipes, design things, or whatever. Everyone is
creative in some way, and creative styles interest me, so please email me or comment here about your own creative styles or rituals.

Thanks,
Misty