Red Barn across the Creek.

©Robin Edmundson, 'Red barn, creek', watercolor, 10 x 14 inches.
Framed to 16 x 20 inches.  $375

I don't have lot to say about this one.   I'm practicing water and reflections and grass on the edges of the creeks.

Artists problem-solve a lot.   Each time we begin a piece, the first thing we learn is what we don't know how to render.

For a watercolorist like me, that means that the first draft is usually destined to become a fire starter.  Some time around the 3rd or 4th draft things fall in place - which means I've learned how to paint the things I didn't know how to paint when I started.   It takes time and persistence.  And even a well-rendered subject can make a poor painting if other factors such as color, value [light/dark] and composition are not well thought out.

[So when you see someone whip out a gorgeous watercolor in 20 minutes, remember that it took weeks and years of learning, along with hundreds of failures, to allow her/him to do that.   Never ask an artist 'How long did it take to paint/make that?'   It took years.]

There are some things I really love about this piece.  You'll be able to see it at my upcoming show at The Venue in Bloomington, Indiana in April, 2020.

Ekphrasis IV - So much fun!

I was so very happy to participate in this year's Ekphrasis IV event at the Venue in Bloomington, Indiana on October 20.   Nine painters and nine poets came together to share their inspirations. I met some wonderful people and heard many inspiring stories from them.   Art is often a solitary thing and it was good for my soul to hear other artists talk about their process and inspiration. 

It worked like this:  Artists were invited to deliver a painting to the gallery a few weeks in advance and then the poets were invited to come in and select the painting that sparked a poem for them.  Once a painting was selected, the poet had a few weeks to write, then on the night, we came together to hear what inspired the painting and to hear the poem inspired by the painting.

The painter spoke first about what inspired the painting - and this was the first time the poet heard the story behind the piece - and then the poet read a couple of poems to allow the audience to become familiar with his/her voice, finally reading the poem inspired by the painting.

There aren't words to explain how deeply this event touched me.  Something about the collaboration between artists, the known, the unknown, the magic of color, form and words.

I love words.  I am a certified, card-carrying linguist.  I have a Ph.D. in linguistics with a focus on conversational analysis and pragmatics.  For many years, words were my bread and butter.  It was wonderful to come back around to the art of words and hear some of the most talented wordsmiths in our area recite their work.

It was also gratifying to hear other artists talk about their process and to find that the ups and downs and quirks of process are common to many of us.   I am new enough to art - and it was such a departure from my old career - that there has been a part of me that was afraid I 'was doing it wrong'.  It's a comfort to know that I'm not.  Process is just process and the goal is to keep cycling through it.

This event is held every fall at the Venue [114 S. Grant St, Bloomington, Indiana].  I am looking forward to the next one. 

p.s.   I was paired with Nathan Schmidt, a poet grad student in the Indiana University English Department.  [He had to leave before the photo was taken].  I thoroughly enjoyed explaining my inspiration and then listening to his poem and then hearing how it came about.

© Robin Edmundson, 'Goose Pond #530', watercolor, 10 x 14 inches.  $375

Nathan's poem discussed What if Frank Lloyd Wright looked out his window from his studio and this was his view?