It's been awhile since I showed you some of my faces..... My faces began as a challenge I started when I was doing art in the morning in the van before work about two years ago. Since then my ritual for drawing faces gradually found their way on to my daily morning pages which I write between 430-5am every morning. Many people have commented that they like the way the writing shows through under the faces but they cannot quite read what was written and was it my intention.
Morning Pages, as some of you know, is a tool, in which Julia Cameron has written extensively about. Most of us were introduced to this concept in The Artist's Way, but she carries it on in many of her books after that. Morning Pages, is a steady stream of writing.. writing what ever comes to mind.
I have always kept a written journal, but, I have done Morning Pages for at least the last ten years pretty consistently. I have had all kinds of journals for this. Hard bound, blank paged journals, lined journals, fancy covered, wire bound notebooks and cheapo composition notebooks, which is what I have been using for the last several years.
When I write I am in a sort of half awake, half asleep state, pillows propped up, pen in hand and I just begin to write." Blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. God! I so do not want to get up this morning. Must be it's going to rain today as my head hurts. Blah, blah, blah, Damn neighbors were playing their music so loud blah, blah, blah." As long as I can keep the blah, blah. blahs coming, the pen will keep moving........although sometimes I am aware that I am nodding off in the middle of the sentence and I will write," keep the pen moving or what was it I was complaining about when I felt myself falling back to sleep with my pen in my hand?" You get the picture.
I will fill the page and then begin writing on top of what I have already written. The idea is not necessarily to come back and read what I've written or for anyone else, necessarily to read what I've written, but that I feel like I have "dumped" or "poured" or emptied what ever I needed to get out, onto these pages. I've whined, complained, dumped, cursed,spilled my guts, emptied my fears and/or anxieties all over the pages. And some how, it feels right. I feel right.
If I don't do my morning pages, I feel something missing. My day doesn't quite feel right. I go get my coffee, come back to bed where I begin to draw these faces on top of these pages. I don't know where the faces come from. They just appear. I am sure that often times the faces will reflect some thing in my mood or state of mind on any given morning. Lately, I have been amusing myself by naming them because they seem to have personalities.
OK. I better stop. You may think me really off my rocker at this point. (lol) I give myself another 30-45 minutes of playing with pan pastels or water colors with my faces before I get up and hit the shower. This is how I start my day. This is how I get in my creative time and this is what makes me feel good even if my faces aren't good.
It wasn't my intention to talk this much about this, however, I found I had to explain where the writing underneath all the faces came from.
On another note........... the ICAD challenge goes on. The bunch I'm showing you were made with the gelli plate to make backgrounds but also the tape transfers. I added my hand carved stamps and washi tape. I hope you like them.
This has turned out to be a long post. I hope you enjoyed your stay today. Thank you and please do visit again.............
I'm headed over to
Glue It Tuesday in hopes I haven't missed the deadline and
Carolyn Dube's place for the gelli print party.
has to pee at that time. I start the coffee brewing, run him out, feed him and give him his insulin, feed the cats, fix me a rice cake with peanut butter and my coffee and settle in on the couch for my writing of my Morning Pages. (Julia Cameron. The Artist Way etc.)Over the years of Morning Pages I have also learned I can create art on top of the pages.
I have previously mentioned that I bought myself some of these for Christmas. 
I have to tell you these are my favorite art supply right now. The color IS intense.
My Morning Pages writing is done on a cheapo composition notebook and the pages are pretty thin. I can easily throw down some gesso on top which not only covers up my writing but gives some strength to the pages. From there I lay some color down and can spread it quickly with a dry brush or slightly dampened. 
No. I did not do these all in one sitting. But I did lay down all of the background in one sitting, coming back on other mornings or evenings to add stuff.
I think the fact that the color is so intense, I can use gesso as a paint to change the color, and that it dries so quickly is a plus when I am wanting something immediate- in a 30-45 minute segment, before I get myself started to start my work day. Yes, my fingers are messy with color before I head to the shower but it's such a nice way to start my day. For several weeks I have missed the partying going on over here where you can find a lot of pretty nice folks and some very cool art. I am also linking here where you will also have a good time. Thanks for visiting.
