Art By Tali Landsman

It rained all night. I woke up to a gray and drizzly weather which really did not brightened up much during the day. In the studio the mood was happy and joyful. I can really see the effect of the free sketchbook style on the energy of the room in which I am working. Since I am painting most of the sketchbook series, on thick canvases, I painted the sides with smily faces, symbols and doodles. It came out really nice, especially on the sides that are painted in a black gesso. I started a new painting today. I drew an exercise of a figure in a dynamic move. The figure did not unfold well, but I persisted. Instead of leaving the studio to look for a diversion, I pulled a chair in front of the canvas and analyzed it. I don’t always have an urge to flee when things don’t work themselves out, only when the diversions are “justified”. Today we had an electrician over to do some work for our new kitchen. “Going to check on him” was my “justified” excuse. Except that Jules was there to supervi...

I remember when we were in Japan, my astonishment at how many business people on the trains, were reading comic books. They come in all shapes and sizes in Japan. From a thin full color magazine format to thick black and white that resemble a phone book. The content varied from silly, mindless to violent, sexual, funny, action filled,artistic, educational and cultural. I an not a big fan of comic books myself. Yes, I can appreciate the artistic talent and skill that goes into creating them, but I find it hard to find the entertainment value in them. But on my path of self recovery, I always remember how much I loved them as a kid. I was not born into the computers and video games era. When I was a kid we played social games in groups with sticks and stones, balls, and skates. We competed with one another in running, jumping and swimming on the streets of our neighborhood, on the beach or in the swimming pool. When I was seven, we were introduced to TV viewing but that was very slim pi...

Today was a rest day. We decided to go cycling, but we only got as far as inflating our tires when the weather turned gray. We delayed our outing until tomorrow. We continued to plan the changes we intend to do in our properties, our strategies for the future and varied ideas we have. Jules baked his fabulous thin crust pizza and we ate it with a large salad with veggies from our garden. I played a little on the computer with cut images from my paintings to try and create a new header for my web site. I love reading what other artists say about their sketchbooks. About why they keep them and how they feel when they doodle or draw in them. Most artists comment about how freeing the experience is, how they use their sketchbook as an inner journal and a playful ground. This is exactly why I chose to work in this style on large canvases. I got tired of judging my art too harshly. I wanted joy and freedom in my art. I want to work with an open heart and allow images to emerge from my subcon...

Today I read in the NZ Herald an article about a TV presenter here in NZ that is accused of “oozing too much self Belief”. I thought about how nonsensical this criticism is. “Self belief” is a well earned attribute, not a minus. How can anyone working in a creative field be blamed for having a belief in himself? As artists and creative people, we have to act on our vision. If we luck self confidence, no one else will ever believe in us. We have to be self motivated in order to bring into the world a new vision. People do not take lightly new styles and ideas. They tend to like familiar things that fits well within their comfort levels. New Ideas, wether they be visual, sonic or written, tend to challenge people’s comfort zones. I do not know this TV and radio presenter or the ideas that he stands for, as we do not watch TV. I am not defending his ideas which I am not familiar with. I simply want to make a point that believing in your self is a great plus In fact I wish I was “oozing se...

I sometimes wonder if an artist would have created better and more authentic art is we were not expose to one another’s art or to the knowledge of what is revered by the art world. If we created art that is only influenced by our imagination or by the events, thoughts and emotions that we experience. Obviously it is different for artists living in cities. Those artists are influenced by other artists, graphic designers, advertisers, store displays and everything that compose a big city, simply by walking the streets. But rural artists can be as isolated or as involved as they choose to be. A rural artist can choose to live a life that is secluded, fully imaginary or in extreme cases, even delusional. Rural artists can create worlds more easily or fall into a swamp of stagnant creative waters. Trends do not come to you unless you seek them and are passionate in your interest to see what is making the world tick. Of course it takes an open mind to identify trends and movements in the es...

Today we took the morning vehicle ferry running between our town of Kohukohu and Rawene. We drove to deliver a sold painting to the courier post. Our local post shop does not really handle shipping of parcels. We also placed a large order to acrylic paints with our local supplier. It is always such a shock to find out how costly paints are when we place a large order We have spent today running errands in Kerikeri. Needless to say that I did not get to the studio today, but I added a photo of the painting I am currently working on. I plan to get to the studio early tomorrow and paint all day.

Today was a very productive day in the studio. In the morning we met with our real-estate broker to talk about the house we are selling in New Zealand. If you are interested in a lovely water view house in a quiet and beautiful village, you can see the details: www.livebysea.com After the meeting, I proceeded to the studio. I prepared some paintings for our upcoming exhibition in Wellington and Manakau. After this I used the break in the weather to photograph some of my art. Then I continued to work on my large painting. I added a nice drawing of a hand and a lot of doodling and symbols. I converted a drawing of a feet that I did not like into a large sneaker shoe. I felt good working in the studio and felt confident again about my sketchbook style.

I woke up this morning to an amazing sunrise. It started with an array of Magenta colors, it soon turned into reds and then cadmium orange and finally bright yellows which gave way to a silvery gold. Unfortunately the weather turned grey and rainy all day. I did get to the studio with strong determination. I drew another foot on my new canvas and then some doodling, but things were not going very well. I felt restricted and I wanted to fly on the canvas, so I created a large car and a very large face on the middle of the canvas. after adding some color, I decided that what really is going on is that I am not very excited about painting today and by forcing myself to work a minimum of four hours, I will end up with a large canvas that I do not like. So I stopped at a point in which I still like everything I see and decided to pick it up tomorrow. On the positive/light side: today I got an acceptance notice for eight pieces to an art show in June at Manakau NZ.