How is Bali influencing and inspiring your artwork?
Turquoise water has poured onto my canvas. I rolled out of bed and walked outside to dip my feet in a cool pool of turquoise water, plumeria blossoms floating on the surface. Nothing could be more magical for me. This little flower made my day. I reached for my paints to play. I studied the square tiles on the bottom of the pool and experimented with how many different ways I could paint them. My favorite technique was the first one I tried. Blend white and turquoise paint until smooth, then turn the paintbrush upside down and scratch lines horizontally and vertically to create a grid. I like it because it communicates squares while also still being abstract. When I try painting literally it paints me inside a bit, the attempt at perfection. Perhaps if I were more skilled at painting straight lines and practiced playing with geometry I would discover a love of logic. Alas, I’m happy in the far out abstract.
I couldn’t be more in heaven with the color palette here in Bali. I feel like the country let me do all the decorating. Pink, orange and teal, everywhere. It’s the happiest color combination that feels so vibrant, feminine and warm, tropical, alive, relaxing. I love it! I see it in the landscapes, the clothing, the artwork, the fruit bowls, the walls. Throw away all the other colors and let me paint with these ones. I actually rode a scooter in Denpasar (the “big” city) to the Bali Art Supply store and dropped a couple million rupiah (a couple hundred dollars) on new paint that would perfectly match the Bali palette. I’ll be here for a month so I need more paint to fuel this color obsession. :)
At home In my villa I’m spreading out on the drop cloth and using acrylic paint. In my backpack I carry watercolors. I am thrilled to have a travel sized watercolor kit with a plastic paint brush that holds water inside. This means I don’t have to fill a dipping cup with water to clean my brushes. I just squeeze the brush and water comes out the bristles! Genius invention bringing great convenience and joy to my adventures. Until now I have had very little interest in watercolors. They felt weak, watered down (literally) and bland. I started using them for convenience, giving myself a way (anyway) to create on the go. I’m growing to like them now, seeing the as delicate, elegant, simple, soft, moody. Watercolors are popular for painting landscapes and now I understand why. Bali is lush with gorgeous views to paint and the watercolors blend together easily. Blending is everything; we want the different layers of nature to blend together, everything is connected on a gradient, a spectrum.
As I’m traveling around Bali, I’m learning to “study” as painter. Until now, I’ve been very gung ho, too enthusiastic to make every painting a final product. I was afraid of making something ugly and feeling I’d wasted the materials. I also wanted to feel the accomplishment of completing a project so I could move onto the next one. On this island, I’m enjoying many attempts at the same subject. Let’s paint Tanah Lot Temple ten times! Each time from a different angle, with different colors, on different types of paper, at different times of day, in different sizes. I’m curious now about how the artwork evolves in stages from literal to abstract. The first few paintings I create are very precise for me, I’m carefully drawing lines, looking closely at the live view or picture for reference. Eventually, I’m painting from memory, quickly, loosely, and it’s getting messier with more wild energy and expression. The final painting is reminiscent of the original but disguised in the abstraction, like a memory that has become blurry and yet still feels beautiful.
Love & Rainbows,
Cha Wilde