"Lying in bed"

I feel such a brain wave today to lay my words on paper, 'cause I consider them impotant. First, I start with my new drawing which seemingly doesn't look outstanding. The woman is lying in bed, apparently smiling. The picture gained the least votes on Flickr which sort of let me down but each drawing teaches you someting, each has an impact on your overall inheritance. Each is meaningful, though it doesn't look like it. If you see it as precious, it will be precious to you no matter what others think of it. I'll come back to the film "Eat, pray, love" which I told you about last time. I remember a curious scene in the film where the heroine meets her guru on Bali and he tells her the following thing: "Always stand on the ground as if you had two pairs of legs and judge everything by your heart not by your mind.' This maxime is worth remembering. If something doesn't come out, judge it by your heart and remember that it was a small but meaningful step to excellence. It applies to art as well as life. That's it . I hope you enjoy it. Bye.

"Study of hands on the knees"

This is the most feminin picture of this set. The hands are stunning. Additionaly, the ring provides a new meaning to the work. I'm simply proud of it and if you ask me which picture I would sell most eagerly it would certainly be this one. Besides, the colours seem a bit darker.

When I think of this photo and the film of which it could be an advertisement it would certainly be "Eat, pray and love" based on the novel by E. Gilbert. I saw that film yesterday and again draw helpful conclusions. The heroine of the film J. Roberts desides to set out on a journey of her lifetime. Everyone says it's stupid, she must be out of her mind, though she remains persistent and the story of the film is actually the story of her journey.

I won't tell you the content of the film I only want to let you know that if you feel that you should do something, or follow the path nobody walked before, or meet someone everyone is against, just do it and don't listen to anyone's advice, be intuitive. That's my conclusion from the film.

It is my remark as long as my "art" is concerned. I should follow that path, even when everyone tells me it's a cul-de-sac. That is my gut feeling that it is the right way. And maybe I will help you somehow, when you have some doubts. I recommend the film to those who like J. Roberts and her play, beautiful sights of Italy and philosophy present in the movie.

Have a nice watching, Ela.

"Balet slippers"

Remember, I told you last time about luxury and everything that is connected with it. Ballet slippers to me are attributes of toil, passion, hard work and the above term. To me they have only positive connotations. First of all they represent feminity. They are pink however the pink is not unified but its shades are numerous and it provides a 3 dimensional shape of the ballet slippers.

By the way pink is often ascribed to women and many times chosen by them as their favourite colour.

Unfortunately, I started writing this post and due to omisson I forgot to press the correct button and everything was lost. Recently, I've been a great fan of films and everything I watch I try to explain in artistic terms. Yesterday I saw The film "A touch of love" with M. Sorvino and V. Kilmer. There is lots of things to talk about this film however I want to focus on art which is somehow present in it. The film is based on a real story. The man V. Kilmer is blind and meets a young , female architect M. Sorvino. They fall in love and live with each other. He decides on an operation of his eyes. He undergoes it, recovers his eyesight but not for long. In the end we find out that the man though blind starts painting his impressions as a heathy man. The same is with M. Sorvino who marries him and also starts dealing with art.

What is my conclusion from this film is that art has healing properties but not straightforward. It let you be yourself no matter what value it has got in other people's eyes. It is a kind of theraphy for you and for those around you. It cannot be done for profits only. The aim of art is self-creation and self -expression. That what is all about.

Have a nice watching, Ela.

"Red hair covering her breasts"

It's hard to admit that I was drawing this picture from "Playboy". I've always thought that it is a magazine for men, however sometimes you can find inspiring nude acts there. (By the way what is wrong with flicking through a men's magazine?) The one here was in fact selected as one of the most representative. I like it for naturality, feminity and modesty. From the time I started drawing nudes , I pay attention to natural beauty with normal size breasts, where a figure is more hidden than it is shown with her intimate parts. On that basis I chose the above picture to work on. I've always had problems with drawing hair and here they are well depicted.

It's not that I immerse myself in pornography, cause it looks like it. The point is that I don't have any models and all is left for me is looking for photos in "special papers".

Have a nice watching, Ela.

"Female with a calla"

I came to the conclusion that each post I begin in a strange way. There is no proper introduction, I change topics too quckly, so now I'd like to sort of change my attitude and say a few things more.

Colours-how important they are in art , in the life of an artist. I found out that each artist has his own unique palette which is eather changeble during his lifetime (for example he has his green or blue periods) or the palette remains constant for example Frida Cahlo was using striking, bold colours which were sort of typical of her Mexican culture. Historians then decide which period was the most fruitful, however your opinion can be outrageously different.

I'm sort of interested in art but not in a very serious way. I'm looking for outstanding artists, rather contemporary, not professionals. Recently, I've been searching paintings according to one thema: luxury. It attracts me and it doesn't necessarily mean gold and golden china, money and so on. Luxury for me is callas, a glass of wine, apples, well painted still lifes, a hat, a high-heeled shoe.Those things make a picture look abundant and rich. The person who introduced me to that topic was T. Lempicka, I'd say she overexaggerated the idea. I like her still lifes with china plates ornamented in gold, apples or pearls. She was especially fond of callas and here I pay homage to her with my modest drawing. The woman is holding the calla. For me it is a substitute of luxury.

Have a nice watching, Ela.

"Rest"

I'm simply pondering how to start today's post. To make it wise and illuminating. Frankly speaking, nothing comes to mind, nothing constructive. Above you see the nude act which I would call a luxury one. I like the colours which are pastel-like and the body which looks like it. However, the face didn't turn out well. The eye is too big which makes the figure look terrified.

Lately, I've beeen paying attention to hands and here they are correct.( I 've done a few drawings with hands as the main topic. You can see it on Flickr. I consider them very feminine.) I would call this nude bold, I was even afraid to put it on Flickr. All in all, nobody has got rid of me yet so it's allright.

I'm thinking about a new film and how to talk about it, but I'll stop right here. Today it's not the right time to develop the idea.

Have a nice watching, Ela.

"Rest"

Recently, I've felt a hunch for writing. It is so strong that I have an ambition to be a professional writer. Maybe it is because during that break many thoughts accumulated in my mind. Still I'm thinking about art and try to find a reason to keep on doing it. That is my aim and each program or broadcast I listen to, I try to figure out something important about art, what will help me in the future. I cannot necessarily be art as paintings but it can be art as literature, poetry.

Therefore I watched a program with Cz. Milosz a well known poet and an American lecturer (by the way he is one of Polish Nobel prize-winners). It was a soiree with his students and the question was asked: 'What advice would you give to young poets?' And he said: "Never try to be appropriate." That thought stuck me. I connected it with any kind of artist. Never try to be appropriate. Often they say the artist should paint something what is sold well, but then a question arises :What will happen if tendencies will change? What will happen with such artists like Gauguin for example painted still lifes and never went to Haiti? "Be yourself" that was one of the last words of Cz. Milosz. This maxime I make a rule of thumb. But how hard is to stay the way you are when the world is shouting and screaming and nothing is going on around you. All you can do then is to stay optimistic and believe in your luck.

Above you can see one of my first nudes in pencil. It is as imperfect as it could be but it's mine.

Have a nice watching, Ela.

"Pariah"

I'd like to start from the description of the drawing. In fact it is done on A3 size of paper, so it's quite small. It depicts a small boy who is doing two things: either he is laughing or drinking water in his palms. I did the drawing from a calendar about children. It reminds me of an Indian child therefore I called it "Pariah". The colours are warm, sunny, suntanned.

Now, about a film which I saw yesterday. I was waiting for it quite a long time. The title is "Paradise Found" and it is about the life of Gauguin. What I like about such films is that they show the figure of the painter himself and their scenery is connected somehow with the artist's paintings (I mean the colours). You can see a good example of it in the film "Frida" produced by S. Hayek who is also starring in it. What captured my attention was that Gauguin was not understood by the people of his epoch. They laughed him off, picking on his 'pink dogs", striking and ripe colours. He was thrown away by his wife who called him "amatour". Only he knew what his aim was. What is curious about Gauguin is that he gave up his prosperous job on the Stock Exchange to follow his vague and blurry impression, something he knew, won't give him any profits (at least in the beginning). What leads him in his journey throughout his lifetime was the words of Pissaro- his friend and one of his teachers: "You have a talent". In the film the person of Pissaro impacts Gauguin a lot and his words sink in my mind. Here are they:

"Whatever you do, never give up",

"If an artist has a vision and struggles to achieve it, he will finally achieve a success."

"The artist changes the universe with his art."

His words bring consolation to those who experience failure too many times, though they keep on trying. After the film I was envigorating. I realized that no matter what people say about you work, it's important to be though, and stubborn in reaching your goal. In reality, if people see a success they will start praising you for what you are doing.

Have a nice watching, Ela.

"Motherhood"

Hi again. It was quite a long time since I was on my blog. Many thoughts ran through my mind during that time. I didn't stop creating , though I have still no buyers for my "art". Art is a big, huge, I would say, word for the thing I'm doing. Sometimes I ponder I don't deserve this kind of special word. However, it doesn't mean what other people call your art. It's up to you what you call it. All in all, most of artists where unknown as long as they stayed alive. What raises my spirits is what Gauguin said: You have your graver given by your fate and you have to work as hard as you can in order to achieve something. (It's not the exact quotation.) In the case of an artist is his or her works.

I gave a lot of thinking to Gauguin or Van Gogh. Both of them were not professionals but art was their passion, something they couln't live without. They were constantly on the go as long as their art is concerned. They were searching and delving into the topic. They have their own style, unique. Sometimes they created works in a childlike manner, not like classic painters. Recently, I've read a shot introduction to Van Gogh's paintings. What astounded and consolled me was the fact that Vincent didn't reveal any special talents for painting when he attended certain artistic schools. The same is with me, I hardly have any skills while in public, I prefer to deal with art on my own, away from critics and their criticque.

I think that what art is all about is that it lets you be yourself, express yourself, let you be free in a way. It appeals to me strongly. I love freedom.

Today I present a picture, an old one showing motherhood. From some time I'm fascinated by that idea, especially pregnancy.

Have a nice watching, Ela.