Inspiration and Revelation Part 8“It’s Great to Collaborate


May 8, 2008 at 13:20 PST

“Hyperion Above and Below” A Collaborative Painting by Charlene Roth and Amy Davis Roth


Welcome to part eight in my ever-expanding list of how to find inspiration and to get out of your rut. A series of tips and tricks I have compiled meant to help the creative individual when they have a deadline looming or just can seem to find a way to start their next project. This week’s message builds upon something I discussed last week. Some artists have the tendency to shut themselves off from the mainstream and to avoid the work of other artists because they fear it will influence their own ideas in a negative fashion and in turn their work wont be truly original. I think this is a ridiculous notion and that it is important for artists to be involved with a social network of creative individuals and to remain open to social change and artistic movements and trends. It is very valuable to have another artist to bounce ideas off of and to help kick start the creative process and sometimes it is even more valuable to have an objective opinion available to you when you get too involved in a project.

So loosen up the reins a little and find a friend. A fun little project to help you get inspired is to paint a painting with a friend. There are many ways to collaborate on a painting. One artist can sketch the piece and the other artist can block in the colors or one artist can take a photo and the other artist can work from that photo. Another fun project is to have two or more artists paint or draw the same scene. Anyone who has ever taken a life drawing course knows that even though the entire class is working from the same subject each piece of art comes out a little different and its nice to get a fresh look from a varied perspective.

Yet another avenue to travel and this is what the painting above represents, is to have one artist draw or paint a background and then a second artist come in and draw a central figure or simply work above or around the original markings. I did the painting above this way with my mother, Charlene. She worked on the canvas first and then handed it over to me. I added the central figure and various design elements. Her efforts were titled "Hyperion below Rowena" and my efforts were titled “Hyperion above Rowena". The central figure was painted from a photograph that was indeed taken above Rowena on Hyperion and my mother worked from photos taken from below. (Hyperion and Rowena are streets by my parents home in Los Angeles, California.) The piece is a merging of time, space, urban landscapes and nature as well as the combination of two generations of painters. Another fun way to do this same project in a group setting is by getting two canvases and having both artists work for an hour or so on the pieces and then switch canvases. You can switch just one time or more, it is up to you. When two or more artists work together the results can be awe inspiring and it can really help you to loosen up, to learn to incorporate different styles, to problem solve and it can help you learn to work well with others which can be very important in a professional design atmosphere.

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Inspiration and Revelation Part 8“It’s Great to Collaborate

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