Sunday, July 10, 2011

Style File: Chapter 4


Welcome to the 5th edition of The Pulse -- The State of the Art -- a survey in words and pictures of the online artist community. The Pulse is a collaborative project that aims to introduce you to new artists, help you get to know familiar faces even more, and allow you access into the creative hearts and minds of a very talented crew of individuals. More than 130 artists have answered a series of questions which make up The Pulse. Their responses will be presented in a series of online posts which will run every Sunday. 

GIVEAWAY

Thanks to every person who visited The Altered Page last weekend to celebrate the opening of the 5th edition of The Pulse. Each of you who commented became eligible to win a copy of  'The Pulse - The Zine from 2008, which is now out of print and unavailable. Congratulations go out to Teddi from Honey Bee Lane whose comment read 'Great artists. I so wanna win the giveaway.' Well Teddi you did. You are the lucky winner!


Style File is the 1st of 6 projects from The Pulse. Participants were asked: How would you describe your artistic style?

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Dawn DeVries Sokol




I'd say whimsical and colorful and getting a little more edgy. My art journaling is a mish-mash of thoughts and happenings from my everyday life.
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Gail Pierce




I don't think that I have a distinctive style, at least that I'm aware of. Perhaps my style is simply "what if." What if I use this substrate. What if I create texture with gesso. And what if I scrape paint on, and what if...as seen in the example of my work.
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Rachel Whetzel




I had a tough time with this one, because I have a hard time seeing my style. I'm an emotional artist. My art comes and goes in an ebb and flow. I believe that part of the reason for that is because I create my best work when I am truly inspired. An idea hits me with enough force and persistence that I MUST create it. Usually my inspiration comes from a specific moment or emotion in my life. My Beach Comber piece was a good example of that. The painting has a double meaning and was created for my best friend. My nickname for her is coffee, and so the two cups with their steam shaped into a heart.
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Jessica Walthall




My artistic style is all about layers and texture. I've always loved the grungy look of peeling paint, rusted metals and weathered paper. I seek to combine my love of rich, bright colors with a sense of the old and worn. I especially love seeing remnants of previous layers peeking through to the surface.
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Svetlana Spasojevic




My artistic expression is tightly connected with personal experiences, memories and feelings that accompany them. They are the layers that give the texture to my life. (Layers of Memories)
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Stephanie Brouwers




My artistic style is influenced by tribal art, archeology, ethnography, nature, life, death, folk beliefs... All these influences show in the different media I use, be it photography, sculpture and jewelry.
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Laura Lein-Svencner




I'm one that likes to layer the papers and create depth within that process. Building the history of the art piece itself. I have a good sense for composition and design and almost all of my work comes from how I am feeling about things on a daily basis, spiritually and emotionally. Color is another strong aspect to my work and very natured inspired.
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Susan Madden




Spontaneous. I don't plan very often. On the rare occasion when I do try to plan, my artwork rises up mightily and asserts itself. Rarely does it ever match my plan. Sometime I deliberately choose techniques that will force spontaneity no matter what -- like the salt I threw on this piece. You try controlling salt as it spreads in wet paint.
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Judy Shea




I think a word that I, and some others, have used is "eclectic". I try to use diverse pieces in my art, whether it be found objects, metal from a hardware store or my own handmade, one of a kind, art embellishments using polymer clay. Makes you want to reach out and touch it. (Heartfull)
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Lelainia N. Lloyd




For the record, this is my all time least favourite question - I have such a difficult time slapping a label on what I do. Under duress, I'd say my work is humble, honest, has clean lines and is balanced. Next please! (Mangosteens)
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Next 'Style File' will be posted Sunday, July 17th.

25 comments:

Jill Zaheer said...

First- huge congrats to Teddi on winning your drawing- a super special gift to cherish. And as for your Style File chapter 4 today, another wonderful read of artistic descriptions, emotional contribution to ones' art, lots and lots of layers, textures, spontaneity, and wonderful artwork to be inspired by. Thanks again for another great post!

ArtPropelled said...

Your Style File posts have produced quite a few surprises. I've spent several hours following links, new artists and far too many detours to more blogs ..... and more blogs. Thanks for all your hard work to make the Pulse such a good read, Seth.

Artsnark said...

more fantastic work & another fun read - many thanks for bringing everyone together. And congrats to the winner

sharon said...

more lovely work lovely words and lovely blogs.. more coffee is needed for more reading..

Marit said...

I LOVE these Sundays... coming in to see which artists are highlighted and amiring their work! And yet another bunch of names to add to my list... I will visit all the blogs soon, promise!

Anonymous said...

I look forward to starting out with coffee, and ending with a glass of something a little stronger as I while the day away on these blogs...Great stuff, Seth! The Pulse gets better and better every year.

Gillian McMurray said...

Yummy! Some beautiful images here. Loving the colours.

donna joy said...

Inspiring as always-thanks for all your work putting this together for us to see the answers to the questions and peruse new blogs~can i have a re-write? :)

Teddi said...

yeah! i can't wait to get my hands on this bad boy! i just sent you an email seth. :)

Denise Aumick said...

Amazing range of work, styles and techniques. I especially enjoy finding new and exciting abstract and collage artists.

Tumble Fish Studio said...

What a gorgeous collection of diverse and spectacular art to see! I just love being introduced to work I had not seen before - you are so good at that - and I enjoy the "freshness" of new inspiration and instant "ooh, I looove that" feeling. And, it's always so meaningful to read what artists say about their own work. Thank you Seth for a great start to the new series of posts!

Lynn Cohen said...

I truly enjoy reading these artists takes on themselves and their styles. Fun to see this wide variety of art as well. Thanks for sharing.

layers said...

your Pulse questions are always so thought provocative-- and reading artists' own thoughts on their own style is so interesting-- and then to see an example of their work next to their description of their style- it is interesting to see how artists view their own style compared to how others would view their style.

Unknown said...

another great group of artists!

deb said...

a nice eclectic mix of styles this week! Congrats to all the features artists. I wish I was less busy this week, oh well, I will have to check them all out properly when all the madness dies down!

Beverley Baird said...

What great pieces! Loved exploring the websites of these artists! Thanks for sharing them!

Anonymous said...

huge congratulations so the winner -- lucky, lucky!

this is another magnificent post, seth. i am loving all of the styles, colors, textures and prose. all i could think about yesterday when coming back into town from the beach is "ooooh, there will be a new style file waiting for me when i get home!" these posts are fantastic!

Arabella said...

tea, toast, and style file -- my morning wake up. great stuff! and a great way to start the day. . .

Anonymous said...

Fascinating question, fascinating verbal answers, but it's all in these beautiful art pieces. I agree with Lelainia, perhaps because I love her lyric name...but seriously.. why do have to define our work, why translate our visual language into English? Is it really necessary?

Parabolic Muse said...

So interesting to hear what people feel about the question! But for me it seems good to think about such a thing as your style...even if it changes!

Shelley Whiting said...

I really love Judy Shea's work. The textures and layers are gorgeous.

Lisa H said...

Your post made me contemplate my Artistic Style:
Preheat Oven to HOT IDEA
*One large scoop of guts
*1/2 teaspoon Historical Reference-add more if necessary
*Several shakes of focus
*Blend with Hard Work...to taste
*One very very tiny shot of talent.
Prop up and give art a day. If you still like it tomorrow, it's DONE!

Bill said...

I wonder what would happen if I threw both salt and coffee at a painting?

Bleubeard and Elizabeth said...

I've been here for four days, trying to get through all these latest blogs and web sites. I've finally gotten through them all and feel like I've met a few new friends and learned a few new techniques. What a wonderful group of artists you selected for this latest round of artists. Keep up the good work.

Jo Murray said...

There is such an abundance of diverse talents here. Love Style File!!!