an artist's musings Archives – Celebrating Color

Thieves Among Geniuses – Miro and Gaudi

October 14, 2019 By Carol McIntyre 18 Comments

Have you ever had a life experience that includes the good, bad and the ugly all within days, if not hours? I wasn’t going to write about Bob’s (husband) and my vacation to Barcelona, but the impact has been far greater than I could have predicted and it is also art related.

It is called the Miro Foundation, because it is an educational institution as well as an exhibition space. It is the only museum specifically designed for one artist.

A month ago, on a sparkling sunny morning, I drove our rental car down from the Pyrynees Mountains of Spain into a western suburb of Barcelona. I parked on a main road directly in front of the Joan Miro Foundation, locked the car with our luggage and went in to experience the profound artistic life of the renowned Spanish artist Joan Miro (1893-1983).

Before entering, I confessed I knew only a cursory amount about Miro’s artistic influence. Within minutes, my mind was markedly expanded. Britannica describes Miro as: a Catalan painter who combined abstract art with Surrealist fantasy. His mature style evolved from the tension between his fanciful, poetic impulse and his vision of the harshness of modern life. He worked extensively in lithography and produced numerous murals, tapestries, and sculptures for public spaces. These sculptures below show his whimsical side. I loved wandering the exhibitions spaces and experiencing his genius and diversity.

He was a breaker of artistic rules as he constantly pushed the boundaries of painting and sculpture. In fact, he created what he called, “anti-paintings.” Below is an example. We watched a video of him painting and then burning his canvas with a torch from the back. He then painting more on the front. This quickly demonstrated how he did not treat his work as ‘precious,’ which is something so many of us do. I also saw a sense of fearlessness that I have not witnessed before, which was good for me to see.

We left the museum moved by how Miro’s art impacted the world. Because I was embarrassed that I had not studied him or his work, I was inspired and looking forward to journaling about what I had learned and reflecting on my own artistic journey through my visit with Miro.

Upon arriving back at our car, our world was rudely turned upside down and inside out. The lights for unlocking the car did not blink and I immediately knew something was wrong. Our car vent window had been smashed and all of our luggage and a computer bag were gone. It was gut wrenching. Oddly, we had read several articles about the rampant stealing and pick pockets in Barcelona and had taken several steps to protect ourselves, but this was completely unexpected. Even the Spanish were shocked to hear about the significance of this theft.

The vacation that we had been planning for months with high expectations, came to an abrupt halt. Plans of celebrating our 34th wedding anniversary further up the Spanish coast and then over into southern France to spend time with friends was over. We felt stripped and violated.

With nothing but the waist pouches and clothes on our backs, we then spent about 3.5 hours in the Barcelona Police Station. I will not bore you with the crazy details of that experience. It was 7pm on a Saturday evening when we arrived at our hotel in the heart of the tourist area. What to do next? Where do we purchase something to sleep in, a toothbrush, other clothes, prescription drugs, etc??!!

Then we had to decide if we should try to continue on our trip or not. Given several circumstances, it was best to return home. We were emotionally devastated. The next few days were spent obtaining new passports, returning a damaged car, purchasing necessary items, figuring out new airline schedules, and trying to recover from the trauma of the event. In retrospect, both of us were in a state of shock for several days.

Fortunately, I proclaimed, “I will never return to Barcelona, but I will not leave without seeing some of Antoni Gaudi’s (1852-1926) work.” Oh my! We were in for another profound eye opener. I knew that his influence was evident throughout Spain, in particular Barcelona, but I was not aware of its significance. Because of the theft, we were not able to take advantage of tickets we had purchased in before leaving the US. However, we did walk by the Casa Batllo. What a fun and funky apartment. He was a genius way ahead of his time much like Da Vinci. I encourage you to learn more about Gaudi.

We then went to his magical and magnificent La Sagrada Familia!! On another beautiful day, we approached this basilica in awe.

It encompasses an entire city block. Hence, photos do not begin to give it justice. Nearly every architectural decision Gaudi made was symbolic and mathematically calculated. The Spanish began constructing this world wonder in 1882 and intend to have it completed by 2026, which will be miraculous if they do.

Below, the stained glass windows create the gradation of green to orange via the afternoon sunlight. It was something to behold. The Sagrada Familia is a sacred place. I could feel its beauty and spirituality. We are grateful for having experienced it as words cannot describe it adequately.

We arrived home with mixed feelings. We were safe and yet we had to begin putting our lives back together again and dealing with insurance paperwork, replacing items, etc. I experienced days of depression and minor anxiety attacks as well a moments of anger. Finally, I asked a good friend to tell me to “Go and paint!” I wasn’t really motivated, but I know that painting grounds me and often takes me out of negative spaces.

Here is one of the paintings I created. I had no expectations. I just started applying layers of paint while tapping into my emotions. Given my story, what is your interpretation of it?

Painting did help get me back on track again. Processing inspiring artists such as Miro and Gaudi, while trying to navigate this trauma will take more time…..and painting. Writing this post is also cathartic. Thank you for coming along.

What do you do when life throws you a curve ball? Does creativity play a role?

How do you process seeing artwork that moves you to tears and intellectually challenges you?

Please consider forwarding this post to others who may be interested using the buttons below.

Colorfully and gratefully yours,

Carol

PS I noticed that Miro and Gaudi used color differently. It will be interesting to study this further.

How Does Your Art Make You Feel?

September 8, 2019 By Carol McIntyre

Don’t we all want to improve as creatives? One of the many reasons I love about being an artist is that there is always something to learn and to improve upon. As a life-long-learner it revs my engine. Is this true for you as well?

This post was inspired by listening to a recent Nicholas Wilton video https://www.art2life.com/2019/08/18/where-are-you-looking/ It sparked me to start thinking about my practice as an artist. He begins by asking if we are wanting to improve upon or up-level our art. If so, where do we look to determine how to make these improvements?

There is a logical tendency to look at the end product for answers. After all, critiques are a common occurrence in our profession and they usually happen when a painting is completed. However, Wilton suggests that we look at the beginning of our creative process. I had never thought of this, have you? It’s a great question. [Read more…]

How Do I Prevent a Train Wreck?

June 18, 2019 By Carol McIntyre

Have you ever tried to avoid a train wreck — not literally, but personally?

My body has been sending several unhappy messages these past few months and it’s time for me to acknowledge them. I am mentally exhausted; sleep isn’t what it used to be and there I days I wake up not wanting to do anything. I dread opening my email or trying to think of something creative to write for a blog post. These signs indicate that all is not well.

Instead of waiting for a train wreck to happen, which would force me to stop, I have decided that it is time for me to take a sabbatical. My tank is empty, and it needs to be re-charged. Writing, producing, printing, marketing and distributing my book I Just Want to Paint: Mixing the Colors You Want! has drained my reserves. I entered this book publishing journey not knowing the extent of the time, energy and money commitment required nor that it is like an elderly uncle who won’t leave.

The amount of information and experience I have taken in during the past two and half years has been like a graduate doctoral crash course. Not only do I need to take a step back to re-fuel, I think I would benefit from assessing everything that I have learned and accomplished.

Interestingly, about the time I started to think about taking a sabbatical, the World Health Organization stated that Burnout is Officially a Workplace Crisis. Its handbook International Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems lists burnout as “a syndrome conceptualized as resulting from chronic workplace stress that has not been successfully managed.” It is characterized by three key factors: “feelings of energy depletion or exhaustion; increased mental distance from one’s job, or feelings of negativism or cynicism related to one’s job; and reduced professional efficacy.” This announcement didn’t surprise me .

When I began taking stock of my emotional and physical state, I started journaling and asking myself some challenging questions, such as:

How did I get here?
How do I want to live the rest of my life (I am 68)?
What does joy mean to me? What brings me joy? Etc.

These questions lead me to several insights, the one that stood out the most is:

I was an artist who wrote, who became an author who paints. Ah! Time to switch back to the former.

No regrets as I love the quality and content of I Just Want to Paint! It is doing exactly what I intended it to do as stated by the many testimonials I have received such as this one from Ruth Jansson:

Carol McIntyre has done an extraordinary job taking a very complex subject and breaking it down to its simplest form, unravelling the mysteries of color mixing along the way. Not only is this book very attractive, it is easy to follow and understand and is written in a wonderful conversational style rich with colorful graphics and photographs.

Whether you are a seasoned painter or a beginner, if you want a clear, concise, easy-to-understand explanation of how to mix the colors you want, this book belongs next to your palette.

Best of all, I found a renewed enthusiasm for painting.

I love knowing that my book is helping to unleash the creative spirit.

Another positive aspect of I Just Want to Paint’s is that its evergreen content, which means I do not need to be the hare anymore. One of the challenges with taking a sabbatical will be to see if and how I will shut my book marketing engine down. As a person known for her persistence and high expectations, I suspect that throwing the throttle back might take some time. It will also require learning how to let go, even though it is temporary.

The good news is that I have lots of paint, yummy art materials and blank canvases to distract and re-direct me. Soon, I depart for my annual month-long stay at our remote mountain cabin, which is my sacred place.

Me in the cabin’s porch last summer hanging-out on the hammock

Fortunately, I Just Want to Paint! sales are going well. Most importantly, I have a fulfillment company that can take care of any sales that come in while I take a break.

I won’t be disappearing completely, though my appearance in your email box and online will be sporadic announcement of events and blogs as my muse moves me. At the time of this writing, I plan to take a two-month sabbatical, but is could be longer.

I do need to return to marketing my book, teaching and coaching, as I have over 1,000 books to get out into the world! Your assistance is welcome.

How might you help?

Continue to spread the word and tell your artists friends about I Just Want to Paint!
Ask your library to carry it.
Write an Amazon Review. Currently I have about ten and I need 25 or more to motivate the Amazon algorithm to give I Just Want to Paint! attention to people browsing the site. Please go to: https://amzn.to/2F4FWZ1 and scroll down a bit. On the left you can write, after you have logged in, how my book has impacted your painting and/or solved your color mixing problems.
Consider having me speak or teach at your art society or art center in 2020-21.
Jot down ideas for appropriate podcasts and other events and send them along to me.

Have you ever experienced burnout? What did you do? How did you recover?

With deep gratitude and appreciation, your support and understanding are cherished.

Colorfully yours,

Carol

What Are the 5 Phases of Publishing a Book? | Part Two

May 17, 2019 By Carol McIntyre

In my recent blog post: What Are the 5 Phases of Publishing a Book? | Part One I introduced you to these five phases of publishing a book and discussed phases one through three:

Incubating and Conceiving the Idea
Writing
Producing
Marketing
Distributing and Shipping

In this post, I will discuss the last two phases – 4. Marketing and 5. Distributing and Shipping. Although the five listed steps imply a linear progression, the journey is never quite straight and/or sequential, as in any creative process. For example, in the book publishing process, marketing activities underly all of the stages, because it actually starts when the first viable draft of the manuscript has been written. This surprises most new authors.

Marketing is the most important and the most complex phase. It is a long and arduous process that is not unlike having a child. I say this because the book needs constant and consistent attention over a long period of time, particularly if your content is evergreen.

[Disclaimer: This article describes my author experience of independently publishing a non-fiction art instruction book to be sold internationally. Off-set printing was used because color is on every page and it is a hard back so that it is durable, lays flat for better usability, and is marketable to a variety of venues, including libraries. Every book carries its unique goals.]

Phase 4: Marketing

What is marketing? It is the business process of creating relationships with and satisfying customers. With its focus on the customer, marketing is one of the premier components of business management.

Given the above definition, to write and sell a book, the author must understand that he/she is starting a book publishing business. Most authors do not fully comprehend this phenomenon, which can cause angst and frustration. I arrived in my book publishing journey having taken classes in marketing and I worked in a marketing department within a medium-sized corporation many years ago. Hence, the principles were and are not difficult for me to grasp. If you do not have similar knowledge, I recommend that you take a basic Marketing 101 course BEFORE taking advantage of the many books and online resources available on the subject of marketing books.

It is important to know who will be reading your book and whether they represent a viable market. Along this line of thinking, knowing the problem(s) your book will solve and providing solutions to this problem is also critical. If these are not completely thought out then your book will not sell. [Read more…]

What Are the 5 Phases of Publishing a Book? | Part One

April 24, 2019 By Carol McIntyre

“Carol, you have written and published a book! Congratulations! How did you do it?”

Writing I Just Want to Paint: Mixing the Colors You Want! has, as many of you know, consumed much of my time and energy the past two years. As I depart the launch phase, I have been reflecting upon the process and I thought I’d share it with you. Some of you might like to hear one author’s insight to becoming an independent book publisher. The latter is sometimes referred to as “Indie.”

Readers of my blog and my book, know that clarity is foremost in my mind when explaining a concept or skill. I believe clarity is key to understanding or learning something new. I also think it is a skill I have worked at developing. Here is my attempt at explaining a complex and time-consuming process.

What are the 5 Phases of Publishing a Book?

Caveat: I write this article solely from my perspective. I am not a book publishing coach or consultant. I have never seen the process described in phases as I have identified. My book publishing story is about writing a non-fiction book — a how-to art instruction book. I outline the phases I have experienced though many nuances and details of book publishing are skimmed, so consider this an overview.

The Phases are:

Incubating and Conceiving the Idea
Writing
Producing
Marketing
Distributing and Shipping

Even though I have portrayed them as a sequence, publishing a book, like any creative endeavor, is not linear and be a bit mushy with lots of overlap. However, I think these five phases represent a model and provide a good framework to take an aerial view of the process.

Phase 1: Incubating and Conceiving the Idea

[Read more…]