What shows
how little
we know?
What can be is
oft far less than
what we expect.
What is now
has never been
what it was.
07/25/2024 j.g.l.
value beyond
Simplicity.
Is there emotion in austerity?
Humanity?
What do you see when attempting
to define your limited visibility?
Minimalism, abstract impressionism
or incorporeal thought.
Less is more, but is it enough?
Texture, tone, and value beyond
your current scene. If you take it to an
extreme, you will question
what it means.
What is really there?
What line do you cross?
Can simplicity be complicated, or
should it even be attempted?
07/23/2024 j.g.l.
Mondays are just young Fridays
Things will not go as planned. Intentions will be disrupted, even overlooked, in the aftermath of an unexpected reality.
Where you are headed will not be the place you end up, undoubtedly or undeniably. No matter how hard you attempt to make each gesture, brushstroke, promise, prayer, or pastime as perfect as you believe it can be, many times you will not arrive at a perceived destination. All too often your endeavors never hit the mark; at times your work may be better than expected (celebrate those moments), but everything (even your judgement) is subjective.
You are not limited to, or by, the colours in your paintbox or progression of your process.
Imagination is as limited or expansive as you want it to be. Give it time to blossom; in certain instances, you may even have to reel it in. This is all about possibilities, no matter which media, method, or style you are beholden to.
You owe your art (or life) nothing but your presence; the value comes from the practice, as rudimentary or spontaneous as it is or will become.
07/22/2024 j.g.l.
I'm like a pencil;
sometimes sharp,
most days
well-rounded,
other times
dull or
occasionally
broken.
Still I write.
j.g. lewis
is a writer/photographer in Toronto.
Created Without Judgement
Posted on August 18, 2020 by j.g.lewis
Leave a comment
I spent most of yesterday morning painting by the lakeshore and, yes, it was as calming as it sounds.
It was mindful creativity; it was non-judgmental art.
I’m doing that this month: art.
It is, pretty much all I’m doing this month.
Art.
I’ve got several projects on the go and none of them with a specific deadline. I’ve taken artful adventures with and without my camera (I think of them as field trips) and I’m also mindful of random, spontaneous artistic thought.
The painting session was as spontaneous as a painting session could be. I had intended on writing, but painting on a picnic table by the lake sounded more beneficial.
I’d gone to this same spot two weeks earlier and painted, essentially the same scene. But it looked different yesterday, and not only because it was hazy. I know two weeks ago, as I had undertaken this August art immersion, I was thinking more as I was painting. My paints had sat in the wooden box too long, and I was refreshing myself on technique and considering composition and all sorts of things that can clutter the mind.
Yesterday I just painted; seven small sheets of paper, one scene, and several different versions of the same scene.
All created without rushing.
And all created without judgment.
Sometimes you just have to paint.
Sometimes you have to just be.
Sometimes there are mindful thoughts in watching paint dry.
Would you like a small post-card sized painting from the Toronto lakeshore?
If you send me a postcard from where you live, telling me something about your corner of the planet, I’ll send you a handcrafted postcard from my city.
During the month of October, on this website, soultalk will will be celebrating Homecoming Month. In addition to writers I have invited into this space, postcards will be used to help make this world a little smaller. I’ve already received cards from around the world, but I’d like more.
If you’d like to be involved, send a email soultalk@mythosandmarginalia.com and I’ll send you details and my address.
peace
-j-
