Create Momentum

Story Summary

Create Momentum was painted just after teaching an organization class about building momentum. As my 10th work for a solo exhibit at Blick Art Materials in Tempe, it visually stacks the word MOMENTUM rising upward and CREATE anchored below. Inspired by Christmas lights and festive color, I layered greens, textured gels, teal, orange, and rich surfaces. This piece embodies the compounding power of small actions and the energetic flow that painting regularly in 2020 brought into my life.

Story

Hours before painting this work, I taught a class on organization where the discussion was centered around creating momentum. I decided that would be the inspiration for my 10th work I was preparing for a local artist exhibit at Blick Art Materials, in Tempe, Arizona. The show began Dec 7th, 2020 and ran through January, featuring 10 of my works. It was the first community show given completely to one artist so I was honored to display my art. I decided as I laid the stencils down, when I added the word momentum that I would emphasize build and stack the word momentum visually. When you view, you can see “MOMENTUM” is higher on the right side, and the word “CREATE” is lower on the left side. I painted over the name of the piece with a translucent white so it would still carry throughout the piece. For the next layer, I was looking to add more color and more texture. Christmas decorations were all around and my Christmas tree lit in the background while I painted. I was looking at the festive colors and decided on green. After I laid out the stencils and allowed the green to dry, I began mixing up colors with Golden’s Coarse Pumice Gel. I began with a darker flat grey, green, blue and white. A beautiful teal blue developed and I began applying the textured color. I applied something new with layers of texture and decided to use Golden’s Soft Gel Matte to complement the texture. There was so much texture and before another treatment of paint was to be made, I allowed time to dry. I highlighted the teal with an orange that showed up as a vibrant complement. I completed the piece the next day with a lot of texture. I had painted over 20 works in 2020 and the momentum of painting had captured my life and while recapping this work, if felt appropriate to call it “Create Momentum.” I hope this piece shares the inspiration and motivation to create momentum. Enjoy!

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