Layers

Are you ever afraid to start again, to change your plans and goals? I was soaking up a blog post from Juliette Crane telling the story of one of her paintings. The final piece little resembled neither the original, nor presumably the intent but it was perfect.

My own style of painting too is slowly heading in this direction. I'm no longer so precious about sticking to an original plan or idea - I cringe less when I paint over paintstakingly crafted layers. I let the work flow and tell its own story. There's almost something comforting in knowing what's underneath the layers - parts of the process - beginnings, lessons learned and past history. When I'm brave and paint over my creation it's often a tough move. What am I thinking of? What am I destroying in trying to create something better? Inevitably though, just like Juliette, I find the results worth the pain and mental anguish.

It's life really. We set sail with a destination in mind, but the winds shift and off we go in a different direction. Should we panic and fret over what we thought should have been or embrace the adventure? I know what I prefer!