Pages

Thursday, 20 September 2012

Seeing in the dark


When I acquire a new book to journal in - often a decommissioned library book selling for a dollar - the first thing I do is take out some pages if the book is quite thick. Then I cover the pages by either adding a layer of gesso, some masking tape, brown paper tape, pages from foreign-language books, collaged papers or images, or a combination of these things.

Occasionally I use black acrylic paint.

When I come to one of the black pages I often wonder why I did it. What was I thinking? What can I do with this page.

This time I was pleased to see that there were gaps in the black where I could put some colour. I went for a sunny yellow. The black didn't seem so bold then, and the strip of yellow down the middle meant that I ended up with two panels.

I thought about how we often focus on the dark rather than on the light that spills in around the edges, so that became the first panel.

With it being spring here in Australia, I have been planting some vegetable seeds. I thought about how they start to germinate in the dark - how they need the dark to germinate in a lot of cases. When we go through bleak times there is often something that germinates within us during that time. Something that we don't see the fruit of immediately.

So don't disregard the bleak times. Ask yourself where the light is spilling in and what is starting to grow in you.

I'll be linking this to Art Journal Every Day. Look forward to seeing you there!

3 comments:

  1. I just love the post that went with this page...I can't wait to switch to 'books' at some point for journaling...right now...I'm working in a sketch book.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I work in sketchbooks sometimes, too. I have several on the go at once. I like to make my own journals but I haven't sourced anywhere here in Australia where I can get reasonably-priced paper - in England I had found a good supplier. So picking up the books from the library seemed a good idea. I find pros and cons for each. A sketchbook gives you a clean and even background which is sometimes what you want. Enjoy experimenting :)

      Delete
  2. What great words to go with your journal pages. It's so true that we focus on the dark, when there is light to see too. And it's also so true that wonderful things can come from dark times. Great reminders.

    ReplyDelete

Thanks for dropping by. I read and appreciate all your comments.