Art Tutorials Archives - Page 2 of 28

Fluid Art Journaling Pages

07.27.2018 by Amy Johnson Maricle // 3 Comments

Dear Wonderful, Creative You:

This week I had the pleasure of spending some time with you on Facebook Live to create some fluid art journal pages. I wanted to show you how I used mark making and layered paint to create intuitive images on this fluid art journaling spread. I love this process because everything I’ve done here in this video is simple. I’ve used “x” shapes and lines that look like roots, as well as some more layers of messy paint.

Working intuitively with high flow acrylic paints is a soothing experience for me, and an adventurous one. I know it does the same for a lot of my students. Here’s the 5 minute speedy version and my commentary about the process. You’ll find the supply list below the video.

Resources for Fluid Art Journaling:

Moleskine Watercolor journal
Golden High flow acrylic paint, White
Golden High flow acrylic paint, Indigo
Golden High flow acrylic paint, Teal
Golden High flow acrylic paint, Nickel Azo Yellow
Micron pen in Sepia
White Posca paint pen

Want play more with high flow paints?

If you loved this fluid art journaling process, you will LOVE my class, Fluid Art. We make mini masterpieces in the most playful, low pressure way that helps you weave this gorgeous art practice into your life, and into little accordion fold journals. You can take a peek at a video here: Fluid Art E-Course

Here’s a gorgeous piece of work by one of my students, Cheryl Razmus:

Creatively Yours,

Amy

Intuitive Art Journaling

07.06.2018 by Amy Johnson Maricle // 10 Comments

Dear Wonderful, Creative You:

Intuitive art journaling is one of my favorite ways to work through feelings, let go of stress, and play with art. It’s a journey that started for me in graduate school, as I learned to use my journal not just to write, but to process my feelings through a combination of words and images. I find that I can breathe again after I get things out when I’m stressed or confused. There’s often a sense of adventure when I’m open to the mystery of what can unfold on the page instead of trying to manufacture and control the images. For me working intuitively is like a mindful prayer. It’s contemplative. It’s present. And for those reasons it’s both grounding and inspirational.

In today’s video, I’ll show you how one intuitive art journaling page unfolded. You’ll see how I combine writing about my feelings with an open-ended painting process. Sometimes it’s important to just focus on something simple, like color; that was my focus with this page.

5 Tips for Making an Intuitive Art Journal Page

Start by writing about your feelings.
Cover your writing with a color that feels good to you. Dry your paint.
Make shapes in a contrasting color, and let them vary a bit in tone and size.
Collage with scraps or tiny pieces of your own art.
Stand back frequently to see what your work might want or need and follow your instincts, even if the idea seems “weird,” those are usually the best!

Fluid Art Journaling Supplies:

High flow acrylic paints

Strathmore Watercolor Art Journal

Strathmore mixed media board, cut to 2 inch squares

Art brushes

Water

Paint rag/ paper towels

Parchment paper or wax paper for protecting other pages from paint run off

Intuitive Art Journaling with High Flow Paints

If you are looking for more guidance on how to use high flow acrylic paints in an intuitive, playful way in your journal, Fluid Art can help you find artistic joy with these playful, addictive paints. Learn more about Fluid Art here.

I’d love to know how your intuitive process unfolds in your journal. Will you share about it in the comments?

Creatively Yours,

Amy

*The links in this post are affiliate links. That means that if you choose to click a link and purchase something, at no extra cost to you, you’ll support the work of Mindful Art Studio to empower the artist in all of us. Thank you!

*Mindful Art Studio and Amy Maricle provide information on using art and art journaling for personal enrichment. This is not art therapy. To learn more about art therapy, and find an art therapist in your area who can help you with mental health concerns by working through art, visit: https://arttherapy.org

Trusting the Process: Notes from an Intuitive Art Journaling Class

05.31.2018 by Amy Johnson Maricle // 8 Comments

Dear Wonderful, Creative You:

I’ve been having the most wonderful spring, spending time with my students in the Diving Deep intuitive art journaling class. As often happens, I’m learning almost just as much as the students as I teach. I’m so excited to be able to share some of the Diving Deep process with you. Trusting the process is a big piece of the puzzle in intuitive painting, so I’d love to share with you about what that means for me, and show you how many transformations it sometimes takes before a page reaches its final iteration.

This piece started as an abstract watercolor page with pinholes.

I didn’t ultimately feel the page had reached its potential, and it’s in the Strathmore watercolor journal I like a lot, so I decided to use it to do a smoky background. I was quite pleased with the result, especially the light. However, I did not care for the mark on the left page, so this spread was a good candidate for further work.

Getting started can sometimes be hard. Where to start? This is a place where a lot of people get hung up, and never get started. I work on backgrounds all the time so that I always have something to start with.

I like to look at pictures I’ve collected and works in my own journals for inspiration. Starting with a background such as this one, and an inspiration photo or two helps give me a starting point. After looking at the mysterious, green background, and many ocean themed and pattern driven inspiration photos, I had a sense of wanting to paint cellular shapes in gold. Soon I added a circle of yellow, but I soon covered in teal, and started to really enjoy the colors that were developing before me.

Something seemed to be emerging near the bottom, and I thought it was some sort of nest or cocoon.

I added something that I thought might be eggs or berries, but they soon disappeared. Can you see how I let the process lead me rather than trying to be so in control of it? I try not to force anything too much. That beautiful green background was practically gone, but if I was going to work intuitively and trust the process, I had to be willing to let it go.

I wasn’t sure what I was seeing or where the piece was going. I think this not knowing stage is a place where a lot of people give into the anxiety of the unknown and give up. Sometimes they put the work away all together, and other times they settle for something trite and safe. There’s nothing wrong with that if it fills your soul. But if you are looking to dive into the depths of your inner landscapes, I find it usually takes a willingness to dig deeper.

Sitting with the anxiety of the unknown in our art has deep parallels to our lives. Not everything we feel is pretty. Not everything we experience happens on a liner path. Not all the outcomes are clear from day one. We can’t possibly know what’s going to happen, so we have to walk through our lives with a certain amount of faith in the process of putting one foot in front of the other.

To do that, we all have routines that help organize our lives. We trust our routines, they make us feel safer. It is the same with our art. My art routines help me tolerate the uncomfortableness of not knowing if my efforts will result in a piece I don’t like.

I think part of why the Diving Deep class is so powerful is that within an intimate, supportive group, artists have the chance to experiment with techniques, but also find the habits that help them trust the process and translate their intuitive voice onto the page.

After a lot of back and forth, looking, listening, and waiting, I ultimately realized that this piece was all about the enjoyment and celebration of color. This became a guiding force in each decision I made moving forward.

And despite this realization, I did get stuck again, but each time it happened, when I sat back, I’d return to looking, waiting, and listening, and the art reminded me of where I was going.

It’s funny how we need so many reminders about what matters, isn’t it? And with our art, it’s the same. It’s the process that matters. Art is about you taking time to listen deeply to yourself and the world around you. It’s about an exploration of what is, in all it’s color and depth.

Is IS all about the color. And the diving in. I hope you dive into your journal today. You can get some help getting started here.

Creatively Yours,

Amy

*The links provided in this post are affiliate links. That means, at no extra cost to you, if you decide to click the link and purchase something, a small fee will go towards the work of Mindful Art Studio to empower the artist in all of us. Thank you!