View Ardith Goodwin's Profile on ArtCloud. Find art for sale by leading artists like Ardith Goodwin on ArtCloud.
View Ardith Goodwin's Profile on ArtCloud. Find art for sale by leading artists like Ardith Goodwin on ArtCloud.
View Ardith Goodwin's Profile on ArtCloud. Find art for sale by leading artists like Ardith Goodwin on ArtCloud.
View Ardith Goodwin's Profile on ArtCloud. Find art for sale by leading artists like Ardith Goodwin on ArtCloud.
For many moons Christmas has been a challenge for me, a challenge for as many reasons as moon rises I would say. There have been beautiful moments and difficult moments, and because of this, this Christmas I opted to face this season a bit differently. The Madonna and Child memories of my childhood were all connected to Sunday School or holidays. I knew little history of them, but always found them to be a visual marker of the coming holy season and I loved them. Over the years, I have seen these images more so in uncommon places, stuck in between shelves of chachkies amidst the books and bobbles of antique shops. Occasionally they would land on the cover of a periodical or adorn the vestibule of an entry foyer. I am aware that these places are not what reflect the reverence they call for, but nonetheless the juxtaposition adds another layer of interest for me. With every passing glance, a seed was planted in my imaginative brain that kept a candle lit for their purpose and presence. This Christmas that candle was lit a bit brighter and I chose to spend a focused few weeks praying, pondering, and allowing not only the Madonna and Child to impact my experience, but Motherhood as well and hold my attention. When December landed its first day this month I began to spend time having quiet days of redemption and reflection about the role mothers have with their young. I have considered this in light of being a mother, a step-mother, of having an amazing mother, and watching young mothers work so hard in the business of loving and living. With every sketch and brush stroke, I found myself pulling back tears or memories of amazing mothers, of moments that were hard and dark, and at the very nature of mothering. The experience has been deeply satisfying and restorative. I also considered the stories I was taught about Mary and Joseph, the birth of Christ, which left me deeply curious about Jesus's life as a baby, toddler, and young boy. The paintings below are the pieces I have created using this focus topic to paint through. I am beyond grateful with what they taught me, with what they revealed about my connections and beliefs around motherhood, and about the Holy mother. This Christmas has brought me so many new facets of what the spirit of Christ's birth means to me and how I can in turn love others well. They are each a bit different, representing different types of mothers and moments and full of the emotions and feelings I worked through. Madonna and Child II (sold) Madonna and Child III (available) Madonna and Child IV (sold) The Protection of Wueenmother (sold) Madonna and Child V (available) Painting is my calling, and as I live a life of painter, using my creative gifts to honor motherhood and the Madonna was such a beautiful way for me to bring a bit more healing to the Christmas season. It was also a way to connect my visit to Tuscany with my own personal connection of art history. I hope that you enjoy viewing them as much as I enjoyed painting them. If you are interested in purchasing a print you may visit www.ardithgoodwin.com/prints If you are interested in acquiring one of the remaining originals feel free to message me at [email protected] for details or visit www.ardithgoodwin.com/land-of-ardithian
View Ardith Goodwin's Profile on ArtCloud. Find art for sale by leading artists like Ardith Goodwin on ArtCloud.
View Ardith Goodwin's Profile on ArtCloud. Find art for sale by leading artists like Ardith Goodwin on ArtCloud.
One of the concepts I am focusing on this week, thanks to my Flora Bowley intuitive painting class, is being bold and brave in my work. As I approached this weekend, I knew this conference would be a great opportunity for me to actually put that into practice, so I bravely chose to paint during a worship service in front of a lot of women, to face my issue of not feeling like I 'get' the worship experience. I had never done this before, so the entire concept had me totally out of my comfort zone....thankfully! The word 'beloved' always brings me great pause. It is one of those words my spirit wrestles with because I don't comprehend my relationship with Christ that way....but I wish I did. This weekend I was fortunate enough to spend it with a great group of ladies at the Koinonia conference in Panama City. To be honest, I wasn't sure I wanted to go....not because I didn't want to connect with these women or express my faith, but because I struggle with the concept of public worship and didn't want to feel awkward in this moment. Rather than give into that fear, I faced it, chose to go, and chose to paint through the service as a way to connect with my faith in a process that I am comfortable with...through my art. I started with writing my intentions and prayer for the day on my paper and as my spirit led, my brush followed. I wish I could say there was an easy flow to this but like always, I processed my angst through the moments of prayer. It was an interesting few hours as I deliberately chose colors and lines and marks in response to words said or feelings felt. Though a bit odd at first, within the first few minutes of committing to use my gift through the service, I was totally tuned in and that my friends.....was....the miracle. For the first time I didn't feel like a fish out of water in a church service. I know that sounds odd, especially to many folks who know me and know that I was raised in church my entire life. As much as I love church, love the connection, love the lessons, I just never quite got the worship part of it all until I was allowed to let my paint flow. Being tuned in was great, but it didn't prevent my head from colliding with my heart and there were moments that gave me great pause. After painting a while, creating many layers, and feeling the angst arise, I stopped, took a deep breathe and two visions came into play. The first one was a person with their hands raised high in great praise for their heavenly father....their beloved . The second was much more profound. I saw the image of Jesus, on the cross, hands raised, and the idea that he is the true beloved hit home with me. I can't imagine how Mary must have felt watching her son crucified....her beloved child. It was a humbling thought at the sacrifice of the life he gave. Here are some of the images of the process as I began and painted through the service with a quite meditation time afterwards. I began with a prayer.... Then began to add the colors inspired by words and music.... As Christie sang....I painted... At first, the image of an angel came to be....but much angst followed. At this point I was frustrated...with the ideas in my head and the tug of my heart. Then I saw it....two forms, one in the same and I knew instantly where the painting was headed. "My Beloved" mixed media on paper. Song of Solomon 6:3 "I am my beloved's, and my beloved is mine Though quite abstract, I love the marks, the energy, the tension in this painting. It connects me with the common thread in that my faith is a lot like this...marked up, full of tension, full of beauty, and so worth fighting for. This painting carries that message forward for me and using my gift to share that message brings me great peace. I may not always understand the purpose of why images appear or don't, but I do trust the message and am grateful for it. This experience taught me so much. It taught me that being brave is valuable, not only to me, but it helps others become brave themselves. I also learned that there is no cookie cutter version of what worship should look like. For one person hands being raised is great, for another being still in quiet prayer is perfect, and for me, letting my paint flow is the best way I connect with my faith, and that is beyond comforting. I am grateful to the ladies who hosted this weekend, especially Monica and Flow! Koinonia is a treasure for so many and without the nudges along the way I would have missed out on this BRAVERY! Embrace Your Place and Go With Grace Friends!
Living life as a Creative who chooses to Push Past Ordinary in the most Ardithian way! I am a full time working artist, I travel around the U.S. teaching painting workshops as well as in my own studio, and I teach beautiful humans how to increase their own creative awareness and creativity!
Intuitive painting comes easily to some and others, not so much. For me, it is pretty much how I begin all my abstracts and I enjoy connecting with that artistic spirit from within. There are times though that my intuition gets cluttered, I stop listening, I get to painting, and I go way overboard when I should have stopped hours ago. For this reason I decided to first, choose which elements I really wanted to use in creating a mixed media painting and two, stick with a specific color palette. Using a framework before I began turned the mental organizer on in my head but it didn't seem to silence my creative spirit which is what I was hoping for. This morning, I set up my studio outdoors, cranked up the Indie Songwriter station on Pandora, and got my paint on. As the process started I made it a point to take many breaks, breathe through the process, and not rush the outcome. Within a few minutes of starting each piece I knew I would love painting this way. I could see my path, I connected with my inner child, and I 'played' through these pieces, which is about as much as painting nirvana as I can get. Below you can see the setup, a few stages of the process, and the finished five pieces. Four to five collage pieces were used on each one and painted papers as well. The framework that I gave myself is listed in this pic. Elements I love, simple enough to follow, but lots of freedom to explore color, line, pattern, and texture. I am going to paint many of this type of abstracts for a while as I tinker with more monochromatic color palettes and neutrals, which is something I struggle with and I hope to paint in this style using BIG elements, because it just lends itself to a celebration of it all on canvas or paper. Setting up my outdoor studio. Working in a series is easy on a round table. Adhering collage elements and building layers. Finished pieces drying indoors. The titles come from a conversation I had with my hubs throughout the process. It gave me much fodder for thought and humor, ;) "Yes Dear, You Had Your Keys This Morning." 12" by 6" Gallery Wrapped Canvas, Acrylic/Collage (Private Collection) "No Dear, I Don't Have Your Keys." 12" by 6" Gallery Wrapped Canvas, Acrylic/Collage (Private Collection) "Did You Check Your Floorboard?" 12" by 6" Gallery Wrapped Canvas, Acrylic/Collage (Private Collection) "Gee, I Am Not Surprised." 12" by 6" Gallery Wrapped Canvas, Acrylic/Collage (Private Collection) "I Love You Dear, Always." 12" by 6" Gallery Wrapped Canvas, Acrylic/Collage (Private Collection) (ALL OF THESE IMAGES ARE MY COPYRIGHT. PLEASE DO NOT COPY AND PASTE AND STEAL MY DESIGN TO TEACH, REPRODUCE, OR COPY. THAT IS STEALING AND NOT COOL! ) View of them drying after being glazed. Intuitive painting is what I know as painting from the heart of the creative. With a bit of a framework, it freed up my spirit to spread its wings a bit and develop a specific style without being contained within a rules set.
For many moons Christmas has been a challenge for me, a challenge for as many reasons as moon rises I would say. There have been beautiful moments and difficult moments, and because of this, this Christmas I opted to face this season a bit differently. The Madonna and Child memories of my childhood were all connected to Sunday School or holidays. I knew little history of them, but always found them to be a visual marker of the coming holy season and I loved them. Over the years, I have seen these images more so in uncommon places, stuck in between shelves of chachkies amidst the books and bobbles of antique shops. Occasionally they would land on the cover of a periodical or adorn the vestibule of an entry foyer. I am aware that these places are not what reflect the reverence they call for, but nonetheless the juxtaposition adds another layer of interest for me. With every passing glance, a seed was planted in my imaginative brain that kept a candle lit for their purpose and presence. This Christmas that candle was lit a bit brighter and I chose to spend a focused few weeks praying, pondering, and allowing not only the Madonna and Child to impact my experience, but Motherhood as well and hold my attention. When December landed its first day this month I began to spend time having quiet days of redemption and reflection about the role mothers have with their young. I have considered this in light of being a mother, a step-mother, of having an amazing mother, and watching young mothers work so hard in the business of loving and living. With every sketch and brush stroke, I found myself pulling back tears or memories of amazing mothers, of moments that were hard and dark, and at the very nature of mothering. The experience has been deeply satisfying and restorative. I also considered the stories I was taught about Mary and Joseph, the birth of Christ, which left me deeply curious about Jesus's life as a baby, toddler, and young boy. The paintings below are the pieces I have created using this focus topic to paint through. I am beyond grateful with what they taught me, with what they revealed about my connections and beliefs around motherhood, and about the Holy mother. This Christmas has brought me so many new facets of what the spirit of Christ's birth means to me and how I can in turn love others well. They are each a bit different, representing different types of mothers and moments and full of the emotions and feelings I worked through. Madonna and Child II (sold) Madonna and Child III (available) Madonna and Child IV (sold) The Protection of Wueenmother (sold) Madonna and Child V (available) Painting is my calling, and as I live a life of painter, using my creative gifts to honor motherhood and the Madonna was such a beautiful way for me to bring a bit more healing to the Christmas season. It was also a way to connect my visit to Tuscany with my own personal connection of art history. I hope that you enjoy viewing them as much as I enjoyed painting them. If you are interested in purchasing a print you may visit www.ardithgoodwin.com/prints If you are interested in acquiring one of the remaining originals feel free to message me at [email protected] for details or visit www.ardithgoodwin.com/land-of-ardithian
