Where do stories come from?
I ask myself this all the time. Or, rather, where will the stories go? And how will they end? And what will make them useful, loved or memorable? I really wish I knew. It would make life (seem) a lot easier. I am primarily an artist but I make these pictures that strongly hint at narrative potentials. The pictures come before the words right now. It's the insanity that keeps me sane …I think!
In this sketchbook* entry (finished this morning), the heron and the bear are peering over the sheer cliff to the ocean below. The small white tern is perched on a ledge far below. The situation doesn't seem too scary although there is an approaching bank of fog in the distance.
- Do the bear and heron see the tern? Are they even looking for him?
- Is tern hiding from the other two animals? Maybe he just wants some "alone time".
- Has tern made a narrow escape? Realistically, terns can fly from the Arctic to the Antarctic, surely escaping from a lumbering bear and an awkward heron wouldn't be so difficult.
- I think Mr Tern is just tired of his companions (and maybe they know it too!).
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a painting in my sketchbook
mixed media 4/13/2012 |
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| detail |
In the next picture, we see that Mr. Tern is back in a rowboat. This is similar to
the boat we saw him in back in February 2009 when this whole business started ("
Owl & Tern"). Things are different now but he seems to want to quest on; his wings get itchy. He wants to fly and see the world. And he wants to share it with others.
Maybe. …t
o be continued… definitely.
Bonne journée à tous!
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Mr Tern all alone in his boat
4/13/2012
mixed media |
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| detail |
* both images are a combination of media: collage, crayon, watercolor and acrylic paint, charcoal, pastel, ink and pencil and then poorly photographed with a cheap point & shoot digital camera.
