Tag: Collage Art

Expressive Flowers

Artist Tips of the Year

Mireya

Practice for Flow Not Perfection

Blue Flowers in a Blue Vase

Practice isn’t about getting good or great. Practice is about letting go. At some point, there’s this voice and you realize it’s there, always has been. I have sat and sat for hours trying to paint something. Nothing happened. On this occasion, I had one color, one damaged brush, and five minutes.

Paper Collage is a Great Way to Learn About Color

Collage pink flowers and lettering the words free soul in Spanish

I’m putting together a creative exploration course with a paper collage. Sometimes I go into the process knowing that I’ll be creating flowers but it’s nice to just use random tools to stamp and blend colors. Then I’ll get an idea and start cutting and arranging. The idea blooms right before my eyes. That’s what happened with the letters M and L.

Social Media needs my attention and consistency

Various papers painted with vibrant orange and pink tones

I like to experiment and paint. I occasionally post on Pinterest. When I do the results are awesome. At one point I had 80k monthly views. I had no plan but to share my work. It worked. I am still learning about SEO. I have ideas. Here’s to more traffic.

Focus on the Moment

I know I’m the artist and I get attached to my work but I shouldn’t. I should only be that spiritual connection that comes as I create. I’m not the end result of my work. Nor am I entitled to the fruits of my labor. My best ideas come when I focus on the moment. For example, I many times have the opportunity to paint with my students. I set up the paint and brushes and wonder what will come of the dried-up dollar store palettes and beyond-bent shapeless brushes. These thoughts have nothing to do with me, my spirit. What is me is curiosity? I’m always curious about what everyone will paint? And every time before my eyes, the children mix up interesting colors, and awesome textures and they are artists. No one gives them permission. They just pick up the brush and go for it.

Expressive Flowers

Mixing Vibrant Color

Mireya

I finally have the pink tones I’ve been searching for.

Various papers painted with vibrant orange and pink tones

I came back from a walk filled with white and pink roses. I don’t know what to say except I can’t wait till spring. Now here I am writing this post. Seeing all those colors made me appreciate my flourescent painting exploration even more.

I squeezed fluorescent pink, red and indian yellow onto a palette. I was looking for my notes from Etta Vee’s post. I decided to be the artist I am and play. All was calm and quiet. My spirit painted and dare I say it, mixed the perfect pinks. I had vibrant orange. Vibrant colors, we are going places. Oh, and adding titanium white made a dreamy orange cream. I let the paintbrush glide on the page. In the texture, the words you are your own hero emerged. Yes! I was in the moment. I usually have one flower on one page, maybe two. The message is written on each flower.

yellow collage flower with the words let's written inside

But what if you turn the page five times to get the full message. Each page’s bloom is more vibrant than the last. I can do a test run with an idea pin! The ideas are always here. It’s only a matter of being in a quiet place so you can hear yourself think. It’s the best place to be, right there living.

Now for the collage work. Next time I go to Blick I’m going to buy a newspaper pad to paint on.

Siempre,

Mireya

Expressive Flowers

One brush blue flowers

Mireya

I forgot to upload the photo to yesterday’s post. Fixed it.

I’ve been arriving at my art sessions with an idea. Then I start creating. There’s no is this going to sell? Will I write about this project? All I do is create and it’s good. The blue blooms for example, are imperfectly beautiful!

Can I paint flowers with one brush? A blue shade I saw in an Anthropologie ad was on my mind. I mixed a little orange with yellow ochre for the centers. I added a little orange to my green for the stems and leaves. Now these are the colors I can work with.

My spirit is free and has been this entire week. I like sketching. I love painting. Today I painted paper and created wild thoughts collage flowers. I’m going to post the video on Pinterest tomorrow.

I’ve been making idea-pin videos on Pinterest. This is my get-friendly with the camera phase. I’m going to publish a collage course. I need practice. I keep thinking am I ready to publish a collage course? Should I wait? I should publish the course anyway. Pinterest is a good starting point. I’ve been doing nature walk videos and idea pins.

As always thank you for reading, please follow me on Pinterest. Subscribe to my blog. You can find me on Instagram too.

Have a good week.

Siempre,

Mireya

Expressive Flowers

Growing With You and for You

Mireya

five pink and orange collage flowers

These blooms were inspired by a few flowers on my pinterest board. I do keep a collection of flowers, trees, culture and of course color. I’ve been feeling extra appreciation for nature. Nature is always with us. It’s in every breathe.

It’s July and time to begin the self love project. The ideas will come from my self love pinterest board. Good timing on creating these heart petal collage flowers. I should do the Anthropologie paper flower next. I will. I’m going to have such a great time working on the collage course. For now let the self love projects begin!

Siempre,

Mireya

Expressive Flowers

Smile Bloom

Mireya

Painted paper always feels like painted paper. As I begin cutting and pasting, the paper turns into a beautiful bloom. I’ll observe the paper and choose a texture for a leaf. Yes, I’ll see the leaf and cut the paper around it. Michealangelo defined sculpture in the same way. You take away all that doesn’t belong. The art process, my art process is about the same idea. Isn’t it? The idea, the masterpiece, the bloom, it’s always there. We simply have to chisel away the doubt, the voices…and focus on the making.

With each stroke, I get closer and closer to the art that is neither good nor bad. I can constructively look at my art. I keep cutting. I keep pasting. I keep painting. What do you think? Not sure why I’ve been thinking about Michelangelo’s idea but I’m going to think if that as I look at a blank watercolor page.

With Love,

Mireya

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Expressive Flowers

Listen to the voices of the mountains collage.

Mireya
voices of the mountains quote collage

Another wonderful example of how painting random strokes leads to interesting texters and beautiful mountains. These mountains will be in The Magic of Color. Not sure if it’s the color or the formations but driving along the Colorado Mountains was breathtakingly peaceful. It’s both. I think the key to happiness, or a meaningful life is to flow with this rhythm.

Collage Art

I Am Collage Blooms

Mireya

These blooms were inspired by Dr. Seuss and Eric Carle. I was thinking rhyme, but I wanted a few words. I AM seemed like a confident wacky way to say be yourself, have fun and just paint what you’re going to paint.

The blue letters and pink and purple blooms create the vibes I want to convey. I was going places with this design but didn’t know what to do. I laid out collage paper, let Truffula trees inspire me and cut and arranged according to my eyes. I like it!

Creative Exploration

Different Is Beautiful

Mireya
This is a hand painted collage art animal book about self love. It's dedicated to us.

Have you read this book? This is books has a special place in my heart. All of my projects do but this book, this book is filled with my swagger. When I was a child I would think about everything in nature. Why a fish is a fish. How extraordinary that their water is what breath is to me. What’s it like to swim in the dark depths of the ocean? Do dogs talk like we humans do. Everything is exactly as it’s meant to me. In this book I explored the ocean, insects and my favorite horses. From the horse who reminds us to be wildly free to the small bees who make a world of difference in spite of their size every single animal, flower and the universe all of it is a reminder that we each have a color, a talent or a skill and where would we be without that love.

A dark side? Yes there are dark forces who tell us or treat us other wise but let’s focus on us. This year I became a Star Wars fan. I am still surprised by that. Everything is connected by a force and energy that binds us all. Every time I go for walk and breath in the breeze and the beautiful peach pink blooms I feel it. Wait a minute, Star Wars has been me all along.

Once again I thank you all for subscribing. We are growing! I have so much planned this year. New course, courses! New books. New blooms!

I thank you for your lovely feedback. Please use the link to get Different is Beautiful in Ebook form for free. You can also purchase the paperback. Please leave a review. That would help me out so much. I love reading your kind words!

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