It was such a pleasure reading this essay, Jaime! It reminded me of one of Maria Popova's musings from the Marginarian -- always thought-provoking and timeless. Thank you for sharing! It's nice to be inspired to think deeper about the objects and ideas that unconsciously draw us in.
Jaime, A wonderful essay on blue. Below is a passage from Georgia O’Keefe that speaks to the magic, the necessity of blue. Cheers, Pam
“It was in the fall of 1915 that I first had the idea that what I had been taught was of little value to me except for the use of my materials as a language– charcoal, pencil, pen and ink, watercolor, pastel, and oil. I had become fluent with them when I was so young that they were simply another language that I handled easily. But what to say with them? I had been taught to work like others and after careful thinking I decided that I wasn’t going to spend my life doing what had already been done.
I hung on the wall the work I had been doing for several months. Then I sat down and looked at it. I could see how each painting or drawing has been done according to one teacher or another, and I said to myself, “I have things in my head that are not like what anyone has taught me– shapes and ideas so near to me– so natural to my way of being and thinking that it hasn’t occurred to me to put them down.” I decided to start anew– to strip away what I had been taught– to accept as true my own thinking. This was one of the best times in my life. There was no one around to look at what I was doing– alone and singularly free, working into my own, unknown– no one to satisfy but myself. I began with charcoal and paper and decided not to use any color until it was impossible to do what I wanted to do in black and white. I believe it was June before I needed blue.”
It was such a pleasure reading this essay, Jaime! It reminded me of one of Maria Popova's musings from the Marginarian -- always thought-provoking and timeless. Thank you for sharing! It's nice to be inspired to think deeper about the objects and ideas that unconsciously draw us in.
Jaime, A wonderful essay on blue. Below is a passage from Georgia O’Keefe that speaks to the magic, the necessity of blue. Cheers, Pam
“It was in the fall of 1915 that I first had the idea that what I had been taught was of little value to me except for the use of my materials as a language– charcoal, pencil, pen and ink, watercolor, pastel, and oil. I had become fluent with them when I was so young that they were simply another language that I handled easily. But what to say with them? I had been taught to work like others and after careful thinking I decided that I wasn’t going to spend my life doing what had already been done.
I hung on the wall the work I had been doing for several months. Then I sat down and looked at it. I could see how each painting or drawing has been done according to one teacher or another, and I said to myself, “I have things in my head that are not like what anyone has taught me– shapes and ideas so near to me– so natural to my way of being and thinking that it hasn’t occurred to me to put them down.” I decided to start anew– to strip away what I had been taught– to accept as true my own thinking. This was one of the best times in my life. There was no one around to look at what I was doing– alone and singularly free, working into my own, unknown– no one to satisfy but myself. I began with charcoal and paper and decided not to use any color until it was impossible to do what I wanted to do in black and white. I believe it was June before I needed blue.”
From the book: Georgia O’Keefe