"The advice I like to give to young artists, or anybody who will listen really, is that inspiration is for amateurs.
The rest of us just get in there and do the work."
The internet will fill in the rest of that quote from Chuck Close once my personal part connects, but that bit is the point.
I don't know if I have any advice for young people these days, they have a vastly different world to take hold of than the easy one we lived in.
I have been writing the intro to this last group of stones, where I finally stopped that (shorter) madness, for four days.
It has gotten longer and shorter and changed again and again. The intro I mean.
And I have just cut it completely into a new document.
Because it wasn't about this work really, rather about steemit.
I am often guilty of casting my net too wide to be able to catch up people in my special world view.
It's probably not easy to get where I am coming from, and I have not practised my writing skills at all.
I had the whole mental block thing going on that front, and I am so thankful to steemit for being the catalyst for that transformation.
Don't get me wrong, I don't believe I am a great writer. yet!
I would be foolish to think so, even though I love some of my stuff, I obviously have a long way to go.
Yet, I now believe I can be, once I put in the bum on seat hours.
Damn that sedentary tendency, I hate it, but my artwork is the same. Hours, in their tens or even in their hundreds, sitting right here right now, making marks on paper.
I should go back to being a performance artist.
daily crucifixions with dogs
or somethink
Anyhow, now I have no intro to the post that I have had on the go for days and days, the last of the series of five showing the anti-penultimate project before steemit came along and hooked me in.
And this new intro, that started being a non-intro is going in the same direction as the aforementioned previous intro
So maybe, I will just do a little song and dance about what follows.
this was going to be my saviour project, the one that would finally, slowly put me on the map.
I was literally calling this a trial run, and had rather specific, or, indeed, very specific plans for the actual project.
I really thought I would be able to do it, but I only made the halfway mark of the pre-project trial of thirty days.
and that, only by cheating and fudging.
As soon as that happened I had to abandon ship.
Here then, are the last group of three stones, and their respective texts from Saatchi, that were written on the day.
I haven't edited the texts from there, just a couple of typos that I caught after all this time.
Links to each work on saatchiart.com in title under the main image for the work
Day thirteen
scotty's stone daily 123, 6 mar 2017
Scott Hollingsworth
Spain
Painting
Size: 34 H x 24 W x 0.2 cm
Ships in a cardboard boxPainting: Watercolor and Acrylic on Paper and Cardboard.
I am not even sure what this mineral is. Maybe it's galena. Was given to me by one of my favourite couples who are no longer a couple.
Difficult to portray such a dark and yet shiny mineral with Schmincke May Green, one of my favourite opaque pigments in my life as an Abstract Pointlessist. But, of course, being opaque, it doesn't matter how many layers of it you pile on, it just doesn't get any darker. So very challenging, and I was so tired last night that I was almost on the nod, and had to put finishing it off till the morning.
My keyboard is dying so it is difficult and time consuming to write.
Schmincke May Green on acrylic gesso on coloured acid-free Art card. All archival materials but needs framing under glass for display.Keywords: pppp, stone, bright green, sds, ssd, unpainting, cubic crystal mineral, Schmincke Aquarell , May Green
Subjects: Nature
Styles: Figurative, Fine Art, Conceptual, Documentary, Realism
Mediums: Watercolor, Acrylic
Day fourteen
scotty´s stone daily 124, 7 mar 2017 (1 hour version)
Scott Hollingsworth
Spain
Drawing
Size: 29.7 H x 21 W x 0.1 cm
Ships in a cardboard boxDrawing: Ballpoint Pen on Paper.
Thought about making today the day that it all comes to a halt, as real life gets in the way, but in the end decided to just change styles, and do a time limited version.
So today's drawing is a one hour drawing of a really beautiful stone that I have held off on doing so far as it seems so ambitious for my normal style, that I doubt I could do it in a day. I grabbed the black BiC biro and a sheet of heavy (110 gms) reproduction paper and with the limited time mindset, made up for the lack of results in the paint this day (for yesterday! I am badly out of sync)
I hope people don't mind the different result. Means that that's fourteen days done. What you lose on the swings, you gain on the roundabout. Or something.Keywords: realism, pointlessism, stone, quick drawing, sds, ssd, pebble, black biro drawing
Subjects: Nature
Styles: Conceptual, Realism, Figurative, Fine Art, Documentary
Mediums: Ballpoint Pen
Day fifteen
scotty's stone daily 125, 10mar 2017 two days late
Scott Hollingsworth
Spain
Painting
Size: 34 H x 24 W x 0.2 cm
Ships in a cardboard boxPainting: Watercolor and Acrylic on Paper and Cardboard.
well, admitting defeat on the daily painting project. ¡hasta aquí hemos llegado!
With this insane lifestyle of mine this daily project is not actually possible. I feared as much from the start and did the necessary insanity for the first bit, but I am not young enough to keep that up permanently. And even with that, my dogs have conspired with enough human and real world situations and problems to make it obvious enough, even to me, that I must throw my arms up in surrender. It was too restricting too, meaning I had to keep choosing little tiny stones in an attempt to keep the time under control.
And this last (and least) just resisted for two days and still resists.
Such is life, as a greater man than I once said.Keywords: ppp, rock, shadow, stone, golden ochre, sds, ssd, ocre oro, pebble, Titan Bizancio
Subjects: Nature
Styles: Figurative, Fine Art, Documentary, Conceptual, Realism
Mediums: Watercolor, Acrylic
I haven't mentioned here, but you have seen in the texts, that the keyboard that I had been using since 2004 was on the fritz, or however one says such a thing these days.
I am writing these words on a new dirt cheap chinese keyboard, that was an amazing price and had fifteen five star reviews on amazon.es, but it has it's faults.
I should write a post just about my keyboard.
it'd be a doozy, let me tell you.
Anyhow, a few last things.
I set this up over the previous four posts (five in the end, with the artist statement) posts, linked under these words. And previous works of a similar nature can be seen at the linked page, sticks and stones on my website. These works are there too, all my failures on on display.
I have already posted an artist's statement for the SSD stone works, that's the newer works.
and the first three in the series
and the next three in the series, four to six
and the next three, numbers seven to nine
and the last post before this last post
To paraphrase the great Robert Hughes; What do you prefer? Art that tries to confront the world as it really is and fails, or art that tries to please, and succeeds?
I am not that pure either, I am not permitted that luxury.
I try to please all the time too, what else can I do?
I need to sell artwork or sooner than eventually, die, whether literally, or only metaphorically.
I would not have survived up till this point without my dear old dad, and @menoslobos
There are a couple of others too, that have helped me continue against the indifference of the world to my existence as an artist.
The typical artists lament, and it'll only become worth retelling the whole story if I make it.
Cause it's a good tale.
Not as if I was hiding myself away.
but anyway, I make work that is usually attractive to the eye but they are always trojan horses, and there is still a cellular memory of that treachery in our genes.
People resist.
I have seen a woman protect herself with the holy crucifix after being confronted with a wall of my colourful pattern abstractions.
Other people walk by as if it wasn't there, but whatcha gunna do?
A few fotos from village art show, back in 2013, my first summer in this village. I took half the main room, 'cause nobody else seemed to want too much.'
all fotos by @spaingaroo
In that last photo you can see framed pebble drawings to the right, hung on the pillars between the windows
Oh, and special bonus, anyone who made it to here.
The full Chuck Close quote
“The advice I like to give young artists, or really anybody who'll listen to me, is not to wait around for inspiration. Inspiration is for amateurs; the rest of us just show up and get to work. If you wait around for the clouds to part and a bolt of lightning to strike you in the brain, you are not going to make an awful lot of work. All the best ideas come out of the process; they come out of the work itself. Things occur to you. If you're sitting around trying to dream up a great art idea, you can sit there a long time before anything happens. But if you just get to work, something will occur to you and something else will occur to you and something else that you reject will push you in another direction. Inspiration is absolutely unnecessary and somehow deceptive. You feel like you need this great idea before you can get down to work, and I find that's almost never the case.”
Chuck Close
source
If anyone would like to see an extensive, although unfortunately by no means complete, collection of SpaiNgaroo artworks, they can visit my main domain
There is some work for sale at Saatchi online gallery
and a Redbubble print on demand shop
and a fabric and wallpaper shop on Spoonflower too although many of the designs are still not available for sale.
sorry
Blame it on the sunshine,
blame it on the moonlight,
blame it on the good times,
now blame it on the steemit.
video bicho hmmm... sometimes
don't really use twitter, but robots do
the facialbook, if you must
Well, as usual thank you for coming by anyone who is reading these words, and don't be afraid to show your appreciation, or criticise the hell out of me.
if you would like to help us survive send
bitcoins
to
37R8CJBsizPvThmDzu7GT24zZ6DYv9C2Gq
dogecoins
to
DFy5VD4ohEntW6nc84Dfh2SwdELDiepnZK
all the steem you think we should have to @spaingaroo
ask about buying my artwork for steem
whatever you think is a fair thing. We'll talk about it.
keep watch out for the launch of my crowdfunding campaign
.
.
.
lol
maybe this is common place,
tomorrow.
remember where you saw it first.
The blockchain doesn't lie
images by @spaingaroo, artwork by @spaingaroo, incredible chewy goodness by @spaingaroo
Wow. Truly mesmerizing works. Keep on painting.
Thanks ever so much @passthepopcorn.
I am in that dilemma, where I haven't made more of these works, because of the blow of not getting through the project.
Setting myself up for failure.
The follow on project also got abandoned when I joined steemit.
But it's a learning process, I am so close to some sort of return to daily painting work.
It's been a tricky few months to top off a tricky few years.
but your words of encouragement really help. Thanks for leaving them here.
Greetings @spaingaroo I find your texture and patters most interesting the green you so enjoy is delicious to my eyes. artistic reflections of time carries the energy you put into it, neglecting inspiration can lead to less energy stored in the play of creation. I hope you find more FUN and step out of your comfort zone now and then to enjoy the beauty and and inspiration life has to offer.
Creativity flows in the waves of now.
Allowistic Artist
Vincent Strader
#allowistic art for your voting pleasure
Your invited to the Allowistic islands
First of all thanks ever so much for your comment @allowisticartist
I saw it here the other day, but I have been having a tricky week with doggy, life and internet problems.
So please accept an apology for the time it has taken to get back to you.
That Schmincke May Green is so insane. I have but one tube, now dried out and opened up, but I have literally been using it for years.
It was a big tube!
I got it from a bargains table, along with a whole heap of different shades of gray Schmincke designer's gauche, about twenty years ago, from Oxlade's in Fortitude Valley in Queensland.
I have carried that all with me throughout the years. I got several browns too, many of which are still unexplored.
haha
not that I dislike browns of course.
I was a little surprised at how you put your finger on the problem.
lack of fun in that project.
That sort of mimetic art is not much fun to actually do, although it's a lot of fun to have done.
If you get what I mean.
I like looking at the result, but it's hard work.
The abstract work is so much more fun.
And when I am having trouble getting up again after falling down, it is so much easier to start anything but this work.
I liked all the eyes in your work, you know what they say when things are full of eyes it's a sign we are insane.
I also have some works with plenty of eyes, of course, so not to be taken personally
Yes some works in art are difficult and tedious and worth the result. It is this that others adore about works they may not know how it is done but they can appreciate that it is beyond them at the moment.
Eyes insane or sane from within hmmm
This post received a 1.6% upvote from @randowhale thanks to @d-pend! To learn more, check out @randowhale 101 - Everything You Need to Know!
So much to parse here. First let me say, I think you are a great writer. There are many writers who are technically "good" but what they write is not interesting. Everything you write is interesting, thought provoking both in content and form, and I hope you don't lose some of the idiosyncrasies of your writing style as you continue to practice and hone that craft.
The rocks - they rock man! Day 13 spoke to me here, but I am glad I visited the artist statement post and saw them together as a whole - suddenly the entire project took on a new life. I think your use of the space around the rocks is terrific.
Also a really fantastic quote to bookend your post, and yes I made it to the end to read the full thing. The cool thing is that in the doing not only do you find the inspiration, you find the satisfaction. Life is about doing. Thanks for sharing what you are doing, it is inspirational to see the various wrinkles and ripples and tears and loves and fears of your life coming out bit by bit as you keep on doing
(happy to resteem this post)