Over and Over Again
Suppose you were in an art school where every single painting you created for the entire duration of your education had to be the same basic design and composition.
You had to create hundreds of drawings and paintings, both large and small, but the only constant was that the format had to be the same.
Would you get bored and leave…or would you take on this challenge willingly with the idea that you were going to explore and test the hell out of it?
Basically, this is what one artist, one of my favorite artists, and one of this century’s greatest abstract painters has done. And not for just a few years, but for his entire long art career of 50 years.
His name is Sean Scully.
Colorful grids and stripes have been his focus throughout. Now you might ask yourself, how many times could you do this type of painting and make it different, or unique, or interesting.
I would like to tell you how he does it, but the best way is for you to see some of his paintings for yourself.
His stripes and grids might be vertical or horizontal, soft-edged or hard-edged or maybe they aren’t filled with color but are just black and white.
Early on in my art career I came across his work and have been fascinated by him ever since. I think I have every book that’s ever been printed about him and his work. I even have a book of his landscape photographs and doorways that inspire him.
If you care to know him a bit more and want to see his work you can watch this recent video where he talks about his paintings: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ECfpr88XYA
This year he is going to have 13 shows worldwide.
But let’s go back to this concept… one basic design, one basic composition. What would that look like? What would you do?
Personally, I like having constraints because it pushes me to think outside the box and push the boundaries.
If you were a chef and you devoted your entire career to just making hamburgers (my favorite food) for years and years, don’t you think the ones you made at the end of that time would be so much more creative than the first few you cooked?
Or suppose you were a fashion designer and all you did for years were floral pants. Just how far could you push the boundaries?
I think when we push past the first few of anything we create and continue to try other unique ways to do the same concept but maybe tell a different story, the more interesting ones come later.
I’ve been thinking about committing to this concept for a while now and haven’t done it. Perhaps I’ll finally do it next year, in 2023, and just paint or draw one thing. But first I have to decide if I want it to be stripes, figurative, landscapes, or something else.
Just for one year doesn’t sound long if you think of Sean Scully’s career, but it could be an eternity for someone like me who likes to change things up all the time. It would be a huge commitment.
Hmmm, I’ll just have to do more thinking on that.
I strongly urge you to take a moment and watch this short four-minute interview. It’s inspiring. I’ve already watched it five times.
P.S. Click HERE to get on the waitlist for my new course coming out in October called “Fun Abstract Painting for the Absolute Beginner.”
* Click HERE to learn about the Art with Adele Academy.
* Click HERE to get my FREE minicourse, “Kickstart Your Abstract Painting.”
