Blog
"To Touch or Not"
“Entrance” ŠTom Hlas 2013. All rights reserved. Mixed Media on Paper, 7" x 5"
It's not easy to explain but you know that feeling of sitting around with comfortable people, whether friends, family or a new acquaintance. It's that homey sense of shared conversation, a meal, a drink or the cozy silence between spoken words.
What can be more important than being content with oneself and with others?
It requires a certain amount of vulnerability and openness to let someone into your mental and emotional space and allow them to move around in it freely.
Perhaps that's the difference between art that connects with others and art that doesn't. It's not a question of relating with the multitudes but an issue of quality, a bond with the few and a matter of hearts joined together.
Let down your guard and let your spirit be moved.
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"Yes or No"
“Neighbors” ŠTom Hlas 2013. All rights reserved. Mixed Media on Wood Panel, 18" x 18"
I'm sure we've all at one time or another fallen short of our intentions. We meant well but just didn't quite get that thing finished or even started.
So where do you go from there? What's the next step or follow up?
Beating yourself up or feeling guilty wastes valuable energy, doesn't solve anything and does nothing to create a positive situation.
If the intention is powerful and still with you, go ahead and take steps to accomplish it. But if it no longer drives you, simply let it go.
"Passion Plus"
“Edges” ŠTom Hlas 2013. All rights reserved. Mixed Media on Canvas, 36" x 18"
I recently read an inspirational quote posted on Facebook that talked about how amazing it is to watch a person's eyes light up and see the way they fill with light when they talk about their passion.
You know, passion - that thing in life that wakes us up in the morning, keeps us awake late into the night, fires our heart and breathes energy into our daily life.
Of course a person isn't limited to just one passion. You might be passionate about an all-encompassing activity, a drive or a particular individual.
But if you limited it to a thing or an activity, what is your passion? What is it that makes you most fully alive?
And do you follow its call?
"To Compliment or Not"
“Comfort” ŠTom Hlas 2013. All rights reserved. Mixed Media on Paper, 7" x 5"
I've written about color in my blog before but I guess as an artist I think about color a lot.
When I look at color, I often look at it in conjunction with the colors around it or think of colors that would go well with it. I'm especially drawn to combinations which are known as complimentary colors, pairs of color that are positioned opposite on the artist's color wheel: red and green, blue and orange, yellow and purple. Thoughts about complimentary colors are particularly apparent to me when I'm working in the studio. I'm sure you can see instances in my art where complimentary colors have come into play.
What do you think about when it comes to color?
Do specific colors remind you of something, someplace or someone or do you simply find yourself drawn to particular color combinations?
"Solitary But Not Alone"
“For the Love of Red” ŠTom Hlas 2013. All rights reserved. Mixed Media on Paper, 7" x 5"
It's interesting to me to note that many if not most artists view painting a solitary practice.
However, if one digs a bit deeper, it's easy to see that it's really the specific action of painting and all the mental conversations and artist has with oneself that are the solitary endeavors.
When individual artists paint they usually do so alone in their studio or workspace. Whether they work on an easel, a table, the wall or the floor, they are one with their act of creation.
There are times of community involvement but those moments come in the form of critique, viewing, sales, collecting and enjoyment.
It's the involvement of community that brings painting out of solitude and surrounds the work with a cooperative, vibrant energy, an energy that may last for generations and generations.
Now here's the important part: Your role is vital because artists depend on your participation to help sustain them and the vitality of their work as well as to carry the spark of their creativity to a world larger than their studio.