“We become painters at some deep level not out of a love of images ? after all, there are many ways to create those. Instead, at some point, we fall in love with the very stuff of our chosen medium. And if that happens to be oils, then our love is with the silky, dense, slippery, and intractable mud we spend our lives trying to master. We fall in love with those materials that speak to our sensibilities and souls; to being lost within the muddle of the mess of it all.”
Sarah Sands, A Palette of Textures , Just Paint, 1 February 2015
And if that happens to be pencil, then our love is with the … shape and smell of pencil sharpenings
And if that happens to be pastels, then our love is with the … sticks of pure colour
And if that happens to be watercolour, then our love is with the … paper
And if for you … share by posting a comment below. One thing I love is the squeezing of paint tubes!
I think, to put onto canvas, a place for the viewer to entertain themselves depending on their mood on any given day, that’s the love and the dream of the artist. Finding the right medium for the artist is part of the education.
I love freshness of water colours
For me, the medium is definitely watercolours – the richer the better and the working feel of a good Brush.
Dont spare money on cheap alternatives, you only get what you pay for. Out of choice, I use a sable/blend (Rosemary & Co) for the firmer
working feel of the brush. The paint itself, artists quality, no particular brand, gives beautiful surface finishes, transparency, granularity and pigment strengths. The paper, properly stretched of the right weight and quality, all need attention but the effort rewards your time and attention. Love it!!!!!
As a writer my medium of choice is words. But thefeelings and the process seem similar to painting. I love the quote at the top: “We fall in love with those materials that speak to our sensibilities and souls; to being lost within the muddle of the mess of it all.? Describes novel writing perfectly if you substitute ‘materials’ with ‘words’.
I paint with Acrylics, and play in Mixed Media (various mediums), though I’m endeavoring to put more “play” in my paintings! My ultimate love is my brushes – the old one for their memories, the new ones for their promise! I display them in nice jars, drool as I walk past them, thank them as I’m using them and never ceased to be wowed at their fine precise lines as well as their crazy dance when flick-flacking with wild abandon across large areas. When showing them off to friends, I invite them to stroke their soft bristles. I even enjoy giving them their after-workout bath in baby-shampoo and reshaping their beautiful mane. Some of the old guys have required neck surgery and some root de-clogging with fine tools and acetone – But they survived and revived! . . . Who wouldn’t with all that love!
Love this! And relate to it completely!