Bits and Pieces - mixed media with beeswax

Barbara J. Hart, Bits & Pieces #3, 10" x 6" ... Mixed media brushed with beeswax


Collage #3 - another mixed media finished with a layer of beeswax.

Bits and Pieces - Mixed Media - 10" x 6"

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Mixed media on board with a layer of beeswax. 10" x 6"

Bits and Pieces - Constructing a Collage Mixed Media with Beeswax 10" x 6.5"

Bits and Pieces – Constructing a Collage

Over the years I’ve accumulated a collection of old ticket stubs, boxes of maps, beads and shells among many other trinkets. I am drawn to things worn and the mystery of a previous life. I so appreciate smokey patinas and aged surfaces.

Here is one of four collages recently created in the studio. Using torn papers, tattered letters and architectural images, I create a relationship among the various elements. Incorporating fragments rather than whole pieces of found materials provide a sense of intent and accident. Adding a postage stamp places the work in a specific place and time in the world while functioning as an element to balance the picture. Each collage is on wood and finished with a translucent layer of melted beeswax to give it a vintage feel.

"Inspiration exists, but it has to find us working" Pablo Picasso

Clouds Outside My Window

Do you ever go looking for inspiration? Where do you find yours? You can find it almost anywhere, a walk down the street, a poem or right outside your window. I’ve been finding my inspiration with Kelly Rae Roberts’ e-course, Flying Lessons: Tips + Tricks to Help Your Creative Business Soar. Check out the button on the right side of this post!

One of my goals for the class is to begin posting on a regular basis, so what better way to begin than to quote Pablo Picasso.

“Inspiration exists, but it has to find us working.”

One day while working in the studio this delicious cloud appeared (photo above) in my window and I couldn’t resist grabbing my camera to capture its beauty before returning to my painting. By capturing its image I'm able to keep its beauty in sight and feel inspired by that moment.

Kelly Rae writes about “inspiration + passion + commitment” as necessary ingredients as “we chase after our creative business dreams.” She speaks extensively about the importance of making connections and having to start somewhere. Don't you think that the creative process, whether in the studio or on the business side is about commitment and flexibility and allowing things to unfold. Again I think Picasso says it so well:

“I begin with an idea and then it becomes something else.”

So, here are my meager beginnings and hopeful post. I promise I will tell you all about the adventure of having an opening on the Eastern Shore of Virginia during the remnants of Hurricane Ida and a Nor’easter, or as some people call it, Friday the 13^th Storm!