Meet Marlene.
I was invited to be part of a group show titled ‘She’s Not There: The Myth of the Muse’. All the images were to be of the same model, Marlene.
Great. I scoured my photos and decided on several. But when I took them into the encaustic studio they all fell FLAT. I tried three different images. Each turned out worse than the previous. I was beginning to panic. What was I going to deliver for the show? Deep down, I knew it was time for a change. But didn’t know what direction to head.
So I started with what I knew how to do and scheduled another shoot with Marlene. Maybe it was just the images that weren’t working. Now I had new images, but still didn’t know what to do.
I pulled out my inspiration file. During one of my visits to Vail, CO I was introduced to the work of Ashley Collins and was captivated by her imagery. What was it that so inspired me? I loved her bold and deliberate strokes, drips, and color palette. It was time to let go and see what happened.
Now it was crunch time. I purchased a 24 x 24 inch birch mounted board – the largest I could find in-stock at the local art store. I liked the idea of starting with the background first and building up the layers of wax. I had heard about printing on tissue paper and adding it as a top layer, but had not previously experimented with it.
I cranked the music and kept pushing myself to be bold. I fell in love instantly – both with the technique and the finished image.
I had found my new style.
To see more of my work go to www.ClareONeill.com.
Thanks for reading and sharing. Tell me when you had to push through a barrier and what happened to your art in the comments below.
Be well….be creative,
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P.S. Click to learn more about photo encaustic classes, courses, and workshops.