Inspired By A Bowl of Paua
- Private Collection in Golden Bay
The artist must raise the cup of his vision aloft to the gods in the high hope that they will pour into it the sweet mellow wine of inspiration. Paul Brunton
My dear friend, Lesley McIver who is glass artist extraordinaire, shared with me the beauty of the Paua Shell! Lesley is of Maori descent and these shells hold a special place in her heritage. After some time of me ohhhing and ahhhing over the beauty of these shells, she sent me a huge bag of them! I keep them in a bowl and continue to ohhh and ahhhh!
I often find inspiration when I least expect it and it is true with the paua. I was working on some other paintings and, as usual, wondering where these things were from which were appearing before me. As always I kept working along and later on caught a glimpse of the bowl of paua shells from Lesley. They looked like one of the paintings I was working on. So I decided I was going to see what the paua might do for some small pieces, because the shell bits I have are small. I used these 5 x 5 inch canvases and set to work. The three small canvases you see above are the results. Of course, I had to call them Paua 1, 2 and 3 and they left here as a triptych. I hear by the grapevine they are well loved in their new home.
We never know when inspiration will hit. Sometimes things have to be around for years before they are ready to come back out of us. Sometimes, they come back almost instantly. I am not someone who recognizes these things quickly, however in this case the paua came back around to play once again. Truly artists are forever grateful for that full cup of sweet wine, but we also remain open to the possibilities of where it might be filled. Do you have a special place to go to get your wine cup full? For me, those places are everywhere sometimes they just don’t make themselves known right away.
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There are 10 Comments to "Inspired By A Bowl of Paua"
Kim….finding inspiration is constantly around us but in our busy world we pass by without a nod. In order for me to be open to those wonderful moments of knowing I go into silence. When I am silent I can see and hear more. When I am silent all the insignificant pieces of life fall to the wayside. This is when I see the unique shadow that spurs excitement, see a flower filled with transparent color that screams…use me!…..or smell the light mist of rain that allows peace to enter my body and remind me that the quiet colors in a painting are the ones that provide strength.
Hello Gwen, I completely agree with you, and silence is a big part of my world as well. It is amazing what we learn we already know when we find that silence and have an opportunity to actually hear ourselves. I love your insights and look forward to more.
I agree about the silence which is also a way of slowing down. When I walk, I see so much more than when I drive. I love those little pieces of life that fall by the wayside and when i was a writer they were the driving force for this is what writer’s do. Look for the overlooked. A friend wrote a story titled “The boot by the side of the road.” We see that boot but don’t see that boot unless it catches our imagination and makes us slow down and ponder. Kim, as always, you think about such intersting things. Just a practical note: do you mean you glued on pieces of shell to the canvas?? I love these three paintings, just gorgeous with a wonderful texture to them.
Hello Suki! I love this expression of how what writers do is “look for the overlooked”! Yes, we do have to slow down in order to be creative and we have to be aware and thankful for the gifts which come our way. I am very much still into the SLOW movement which makes a ton of sense. Slow Food, Slow Art, Slow Life, you know? Speed gets us in big trouble!
No, I did not put the shells on the canvas, although I have considered how I might work that in sometime. With these I was truly inspired by the colors these shells share! They are shimmery and full of jewel tones. Apparently, they are used for lots of jewelry as well as in hand crafted items such as furniture!
I am glad you love the paintings, Suki! I am so enjoying this process which is taking me on a journey which is very difficult to express in words! I feel as though I fly every time I work on them!
Thanks so much for stopping by, my friend. It is an incredibly busy and exciting time for you…I am so very excited about what is going on with you now. Talk about a story (and you are STILL a writer)!
No wonder the collectors of this work love it so!
My cup is often filled by watching the light on the brick floor of my living room, or on the walls. But also a little trip–even just down the road–makes me see things with fresh eyes.
Thank you, San. It is the smallest things which stir us, I agree.
OHHHHHH, these little pieces are sooo precious, they are quite like those wonderful shells, I can see it. And I can see the analogy in the creative process, these shells needs a long time and a lot of influences from the water, the salt, and so many other things. You “sculpt” your paintings like that, with many layers of substance, which you put on according to a plan only you can know and feel. Wow, see the inspiration which comes off your artwork here, together with Mother Nature’s artwork of the shell. I’m amazed!
love
Andrea
I love this analogy of how the shells need a lot of time to become as do the tiny paintings. You see things so clearly, Andrea. This is just how it is, although I haven’t put these words together expressing it that way! I also love the idea of working slowly and with a lot of influence just as nature works! Oh, how we need to have more respect for this earth…thank you so much for reminding me of so many wonderful things.
Oh, I can’t believe that I missed this post!
I am the lucky owner of this beautiful triptych – and I just love them! I think you have to see them in real time to appreciate the texture of the works – they are quite shimmery and almost waxy.
Andrea, I love your reference to the time that it takes for the paua to make the beautiful colors in the shell – I know that they are determined by the minerals in the seawater that they live in and that they take a long time to build this iridescence, though even the tiniest little shells (I have some complete shells that are only 20mm long) have a shimmer about them, though they are still quite pale and thin.
I understand that Kim spent almost as long as the paua to create these many layers if colour – and depth that she has achieved is simply amazing!
On the subject of inspiration, I mostly take mine from nature – walks on the beach and among trees fill me up – not always with direct ideas for projects, but as long as I keep noticing the small miracles around me I am inspired.
Arohanui.
Hi Lesley! I was a little sneaky putting this in here just after I knew you had received the package! Tee Hee! I am glad you love them so much. When your package of the paua shells came a few weeks ago, I became inspired again and delivered another one to France. You are so right about Andrea’s insight and we need to consider how patient and creative nature is in her work, as well. When we take inspiration from her, it is a positive thing to acknowledge the creativity of the original creator of a work!
Speaking of taking inspiration from nature, you have a paua inspired work of your own! I do love that bead and wonder if you will be expanding on it with a series? Your work lends itself perfectly to nature, and I find with each piece I bring a little bit of New Zealand and whole lot of Lesley into my home!
Yes, as Suki says, the writer notices things which are passed by others and expands on those things. That is true of the visual artist, too!
Thanks Lesley! You are a true inspiration, too!