Seascape daydreams
© Amanda Reilly Sayer
Colorful meetings
Ocean, earth and sky
Perpetual movement
Eroding dunes
Yesterday
These pictures
Salt-misted crests
Breaking waves
Reveal
In moments, now
Stillness
And progress
All is in motion
Just wait
New snowfall through starless night
© Amanda Reilly Sayer
Laden trees with cotton tufts
Now, luminous tendrils
Against the dawn sky
“Snow Day!” cheers rang through the house
As kids, alert in their still warm pajamas
Danced with anticipated snow forts
And other forbidden weekday play
All whilst their parents, bent over for boot lacing
Felt their backs groan, remembering
The last storm, which wasn’t the last
Not nearly the last, after all
If they noticed anything
Beyond their full shovels
The rhythmic, industrious scraping
It wasn’t apparent to anyone
Until the laughter of their children
Rattled the glass panes
And impelled them notice
Breath-stained windows, mindful nudges
Look up and see!
The vast sky of carefree days
Your perception
Malleable as wet snow
Witness the very moment
When fading midnight embers
That blue-lit, sparkling tree line
Those inky nighttime remnants
Become the new day
I’m still discovering the fun surprises blogging has to offer, including this speculative fiction style writing prompt posted by D. Wallace Peach.
Here’s my response to the photo prompt above:
You can’t risk it! They said,
© Amanda Reilly Sayer
Anything could happen out there
Exposed in that dangerous blue light
The illumined darkness
Stay here, safe in Shadow!
But she wasn’t the sort
To use fear as her talisman
To mistake shelter for freedom
She was ready for more
Thus crouched in the hidden doorway
She cautiously looked both ways
Watched as the moon eclipsed the sun
Then stretched herself to fullness
As her small body expanded
She strode, near danced
Into the silvery center
That infinite space of the unknown
And found herself reflected there
I thought it would be different
©️ Amanda Reilly Sayer
Peace and stillness, perhaps
Buoyant rest on polished velvet
Instead, the quiet tideline beckons
Foretelling the pendulum of crescent surf
Of storms and variegated skies
Pause, notice
The sound of stillness in motion
Vibrating stars on a summer night
Waves against the rocky shore
Then the whispered reminder:
You are the boat and the water
Sanctum and sea
Some of my favorite paintings have been made from the passenger seat of long car rides. The time with nothing else to do and the light that streams into the car from every direction surely inspire me. But the absence of expectations and the willingness to improvise are the secret ingredients that make these paintings different, I think.
Folks in my life have wondered how I can paint in the car: Don’t you get carsick? How can you work with all the motion? How do you not spill the water or ruin the painting when you hit a bump?
Yes, I get carsick when I am not in the front seat. And I can only paint (or read) while highway driving. The paintings I make in the car are small, so the water is pretty well-contained in a cup holder. My travel paints sit on one leg; the paper pad rests on the other.
And the bumps? Well, they definitely happen! But, especially with abstract painting, the unexpected brush marks can usually be incorporated into the landscape.
And what a great metaphor! For when we keep our expectations loose – as ideas about form in a piece of abstract art – the surprises may add interest. The unintended marks might even inspire a major change in composition, impetus to create something better than we could have imagined.
The uncontrolled elements, and my unplanned response to them, may indeed be what makes my car paintings special. Maybe I like them best because they evoke the sense of freedom and flow I experienced while making them.
What frees you up to find creative flow?
Flower in darkness
©️ Amanda Reilly Sayer
Hold the light while you embrace
All the shades of gray
Not uncommonly, my perception of a painting changes depending on my proximity to it, not just the viewing distance, but with the passage of time. Sometimes I love a painting more the longer I look at it, sometimes less. Enduring appreciation of a painting might be one definition of merit, I suppose.
And then there is this painting, which I love best in the first moments of looking at it, when the palpable energy shouts to be heard over my notice of the imperfections. This isn’t my favorite painting for a lot of reasons and may not be yours either. But it evokes an approximation of how I felt when I made it.
Mexico is such a colorful country, a place where the warmth of the people matches the strength of the sun. There is evident hustle and work, but also an abundance of playfulness. And not just when the tequila is flowing.
Yes, there a dark places – crime, drugs, and corruption. But I’d venture to guess our impressions of those cultural elements are largely overblown.
I remember watching this painting evolve while hearing the sounds of the ocean. And, as is true with many paintings, a creative backstory is hidden in the final image. This one could be a tale of alternating ground and sky, of keeping perceptions fluid, of going with the playful energy.
Many thanks, Mexico.
When I think about my creative process, I can be admittedly fussy. The light isn’t quite right. Inspiration is lacking. Words aren’t flowing. The excuses are easy to find.
It’s not that quality doesn’t matter. But I wonder how often the insistence on the right conditions to approximate beauty is really an excuse to avoid the vulnerability of imperfection.
There is something to be said for spontaneity, for making art simply to engage in a creative act, to express something in resonance with our best energy, our loving heart.
Destructive energy can be easily found, but collectively we can choose to shift the tide. One way to do that is to practice and celebrate simple creative acts. Whether it be a sand sculpture, a poem, or photograph, let’s make art where we find it!
Oceans connect us
©️Amanda Reilly Sayer
Strong currents carry good will
Or trash. You decide.
Do anything, but let it produce joy.
Walt Whitman
Joy [joi]: 1. A state of happiness 2. Playful application of paint on paper
A fellow blogger reminded me about the importance of playfulness when making art.
Critical thinking has place in painting, but a considered break from striving is a lot more fun.
Painting Poetry in Motion 