Jennifer Noxon

Great food, art, architecture, smart urban planning, walkability, and intriguing would be my words to describe our recent urban holiday in Barcelona. Even in November? Yup. In fact, the weather was so perfect I can’t imagine it being better…except that perhaps in the spring there’d be more flowers and the trees would be greener.  The city is welcoming, accessible, loaded with things to do if you want museums and art galleries, fascinating for destination-less exploring, safe (except it does have a reputation for lots of pickpocket), and fun. The people we encountered were polite, gracious, and laid back for city dwellers.

Then, there’s architect/artist Antonio Gaudi, Gaudi, and more Gaudi if you choose. I was left totally speechless after visiting the church of La Sagrada Familia. The expiatory church of La Sagrada Família is a work on a grand scale which was begun on 19 March 1882 from a project by the diocesan architect Francisco de Paula del Villar (1828-1901). At the end of 1883, Gaudí was commissioned to carry on the works, a task which he did not abandon until his death in 1926. Since then different architects have continued the work after his original idea. Though I’m sure certain some buildings and works of art have suffered at the hands of too many generations of ‘cooks’, I think this is an exception. I would like to think Gaudi is smiling in his grave, and proud of the accomplishments of all those who have contributed to this massive construction project.

The church should be considered one of the great wonders of the world. La Sagrada Familia moved me more than any other cathedral, temple or church I have visited. I often feel a sense of foreboding, detachment, and sadness in these buildings, but the jaw-dropping blend of geometry, design, imagination, craftsmanship, and attention to detail in La Sagrada Familia left me inspired, uplifted, hopeful, and humbled. The web site is very informative in case you can’t get there to see it any time soon. It’ll take a few more years to complete – so there’s no rush. The elevator trip up into one of the towers is well worth the wait – and the walk back down the narrow staircase, complete with views of ongoing construction is a must – especially if you’re a sucker for seeing the guts of how things are put together.

"Being creative," says Twyla Tharp, "is an everyday thing, a job with its own routines. That's why writers, for example, like to establish a routine. The most productive ones get started early in the morning when phones aren't ringing and their minds are rested and not polluted by other people's words. They might set a goal--1500 words or stay at their desk until noon--but the real secret is that they do this every day. After a while it becomes a habit......This is no different for a painter finding his way to the easel or a medical researcher returning to the laboratory. The routine is as much a part of the creative process as the lightning bolt of inspiration (perhaps more). And it is available to everyone. If creativity is a habit, then the best creativity is the result of good work habits. They are the nuts and bolts of dreaming."

It was this quote that led me to buying her book The Creative Habit: Learn It And Use It For Life. I was curious to see what a master choreographer/dancer had to say about the creative process. I figured she would use a different vocabulary and offer different kinds of exercises - more focused on movement. Though this was true, she writes in a universal language that artists from all mediums can appreciate. And it was refreshing to read about her process - in the context of dance - different references and examples kept my attention and kept me 'translating' into my personal language. In one chapter she writes about the 'spine' of a piece...I particularly loved that metaphor for what she describes as "the statement you make to yourself outlining your intentions for the work."  One of the suggested exercises is to look at a favourite piece of art and try to determine the spine of the piece. Sometimes I can 'find' it...or 'see' it, or 'get' it. Sometimes I can't. When I can't, I am left asking what is it then that draws me to the piece?

This book is loaded with exercises that follow her thoughts on process and challenge the reader to explore and expand their own process. Some involve movement, others writing, some a visual task. And geez....and then there's her name. She tells a good story about that too.

I just have to share this bit of news about a software application for the iPhone called Brushes. It allows you to literally create a painting on the screen. The luddite in me shrank a little and whispered, "Oh no, is this the beginning of the end of handwork and 'sketching' as we know it?" The voyeur in me squeeled with childlike wonder, "I wanna try it, show me more!" The paintings looked fantastic online.....the detail amazing considering they are done on a small screen. It fits in your pocket. You can use it anytime, anywhere. You can draw in the dark AND there's no clean up. In fact, this month's cover of The New Yorker magazine displays an iPhone painting by Jorge Colombo. To get an idea of how flexible the tool is take a look at American artist Susan Murtaugh's work.

Also, you can open your .brushes paintings in Brushes Viewer, a free application for Mac OS X. Brushes Viewer allows you to replay your paintings stroke for stroke, export them at very high resolutions (up to 1920 x 2880), and even export them as QuickTime movies.

I couldn't give up on pushing around paint altogether. I like the dip, paint, push rhythm of painting but wow. I've thought of quite a few reasons to get an iPhone but none good enough to send me running to the store. It looks like things are about to change.

      Spent the winter painting scenes from summer – rich in colour – and now that spring has sprung and summer is teasing me with her new growth, I’ve started using a lot of white. Who would have guessed? Could be a way of cleansing my ‘palette’ – like pickled ginger between bites of sumptuous morsels of sushi. Getting back to basics before branching out again to further develop a visual thread.

While manning my booth at last weekend’s New Art Festival in Ottawa, I had quite a few conversations about colour and choice of palette. I tend to stick with a pretty minimal palette – cyan blue, cad red med, cad yellow med, black and white. Once in a while I spread my wings and try other blues – cerulean or cobalt but often end up back with cyan. It seems to have the ability to be warm or cool depending on what it’s mixed with. Colours stay clean, clear – not muddied. Use black and white quite liberally if I want more/less intensity or more contrast. May add some dioxazine violet to deepen blacks – maybe some red sienna to soften the cad red. Overall I find most colours I want can be mixed with he three/four colours above.

Connie Smith Siegel’s Spirit of Color – A Sensory Meditation Guide to Creative Expression is a very accessible read. Her chapter The Inner Language of Colour provides several exercises for those who want to experiment with colour combinations using a meditative approach rather than a purely theoretical one. She speaks of colour ‘chords’ – and refers to colour and music as universal languages. Yay.  Smith Siegel integrates “the intuitive and objective aspects of color into a comprehensive guide to expressive color – uncovering the inner source of color through meditation and carrying its evocative power into drawing and painting media.” There are very good pictorial references to illustrate her points - both from the great masters as well as from her contemporaries.

For those overwhelmed with colour and all it’s possibilities – and for those interested in the intuitive aspects of colour – you’ll find this a chewy read.

'Twas a warm spring night and the gallery was all abuzz. Ottawa's Artguise Gallery owners Brandon McVittie and Jason Vaughan stay true to their words, 'for artists, by artists' - and made the pre-show and vernissage experience a real pleasure. Lots of familiar faces from Almonte and the Ottawa music community, as well as a healthy dose of art appreciators that I had the pleasure of meeting for the first time. The only frustrating thing was meeting interesting people, starting conversations, and having to abort them a few minutes later due to a new 'Well, hello daaaaaaarrrrrlinggg". Thanks to all for the support. Dave Scrimshaw, man about town, wrote about my necklace and posted some pics of the event.