Following Intuition When Painting

I started this background with watercolors and acrylic ink.

Next I took stencils, a StazOn ink pad and a makeup sponge to add another layer. I used several colors of ink and multiple stencils. But what to do next.  I saw a figure on the right side.  I decided to leap with some bold color.  Out came the black paint. I took a deep breath and just did it.

I painted around the figure and then made some trees.  Oh I hated it and chastised myself for adding black.  I removed what black I could, covered it with gesso and used some acrylic paint to try and re-created the page.  I didn't really get back what I had, the watercolor was more vibrant than the acrylics.  It was a lesson that you can't go back, can't cover up. So I kept going. I saw two other figures so I painted around them.

Black called to me again. After the three figures I still wanted some trees. The trees I originally made had no shape to them.  Maybe that is what had been missing from my first try. Then I added more stenciling to the black background with a white stamp ink. It was hard covering up that background but I like what resulted in the end.  It really does help to follow your intuition, to not second guess it. These ancestor figures just wanted to appear today. Trees continue to be an image that calls to me.

So what did I learn with this page. Just follow your instincts and go with it. Don't try to go back and put things back to the way they were.  That never works. Just keep working, push on through that yucky stage, magical things eventually happen.









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