Truth be told, my initial plan of scheduling time for spontaneous creativity on a daily basis did not work out very well. But February was not all about heavy work loads at my day job. I also went to a few interesting exhibitions and chilled with some really nice people who made me feel happy and energized and inspired and ready to paint!

The Year of the Dragon

The year of the dragon started on February 10. In Chinese culture, the Dragon holds a significant place as an auspicious and extraordinary creature. It symbolizes power, nobility, honor, luck, and success. 

2024 is forecasted to bring about opportunities, changes, and challenges. If you’re seeking a shift in your current lives, this year might offer a favorable chance.

Studio days

Last month I started experimenting with new color schemes, shapes and themes and to my surprise I really enjoyed it. Since my studio is my happy place where I nurture and celebrate some of the good things of this earth, I decided to bring these joyful experiments further by incorporating them into some already existing artworks.

My master plan for this year includes continuation of a few projects started during lockdown as well as playful testing of new artistic expressions.

This pic shows how I keep track of what’s going on in my studio:

Throwback to lockdown

A few days before Norway closed down on March 12, 2020 our class had started the initial discussions on how to pull off our graduate project. I remember discussing that a crucial part of artistic development is developing your personal style and that looking back on your history might give you some clues. 

During lockdown all students at my art school were left with one opportunity only; working from home. 

Long hours alone in my studio together with my cat was nice, but as days turned into weeks inspiration got scarce. I started to examine what I had collected over the years and pondered about what I liked and disliked about each object. I studied shapes, patterns, colours and textures on tablecloths, vases, urns, bottles, wine glasses, embroideries, flowers and plants.

Read more about my graduate project here

Old stuff, new challenge

This month I pulled out my sketchbooks from Easter 2020 filled with sketches and notes about heirlooms such as furniture, textiles, handicrafts and photo albums. 

Once again I will simplify, stylize and abstract form elements and patterns, and bring my findings into new contexts.

In my art work I strive for progression, not perfection. I emphasize the process of abstracting. I prefer quirky and imperfect, incomplete aesthetics, perhaps a bit wabi sabi like. To me the most interesting part of creating lies somewhere between intuitive play and logical thinking. Here’s a sneak peek (work in progress):

Transforming colours

Colour and energy is all around us. Colours have different energy, some you like and some you don’t. When you mix different colours with each other they transform. Two bright complementary colours next to each other will give the impression of an energy kick, but if you put a bright colour next to a neutral colour you get a different kind of energy, a different expression.

I love working with contrasts, and I love challenging myself. Colour mixing can be really fun, but also very time consuming and frustrating as daylight changes my studio light during the day. 

Studio time includes lots of fun and complex problem solving. If it’s not tricky, it’s no fun! So at the moment I try mixing colour values and presenting them in new ways to explore how this makes a difference to my expression. 

If things go as I hope, I might throw a spring art drop with some brand new works in a month or two. Fingers crossed and stay tuned for more news.

time will show

Celebration time

At the end of February the family gathered to celebrate my Hubby’s birthday at a really nice restaurant with a wonderful view over the Oslo fjord. The food was delicious and the wine bountiful. What a night!