For Instant Happiness: Just Add Watercolour

I've been an artist for as long as I can remember, making creations from simple drawings to complex line art to mosaics and everything between, but I never found my niche. I've always been a jack of all trades but a master of none until one day it all finally came together...

I had tried pastel, acrylic, pen and ink but nothing ever made me feel fulfilled until one day I started dabbling in watercolours. As an abstract artist, I wanted my finished product to be bold and exciting! I decided to layer it with black ink, using an endless line concept that I have always loved.

What I love about my process is that there's never an end game. I have no expectations for my finished piece. I let it be what it wants to be. This is when it all really began to take flight! I let my brush do the talking...

First I begin by deciding what size my picture is going to be, and I cut it to size, with my Fiskars paper cutter!

I then create my background with a feeling or an image in my mind. I think of a beautiful sunset bursting with rich colours, or of a lush rainforest loaded with vibrant shades of green as far as the eye can see! With as little control as possible, I start layering my colours, filling up the whole page. I layer it a few times until the colours are completely saturated in certain areas. After it dries, I begin with black ink...

This now is where my soul really begins to take over. My mind turns off as it is no longer necessary... I outline shapes and edges where colours meet. I embrace the natural curvatures, and I create more where I see fit. I turn my page around time and time again as I follow these lines wherever they decide to take me... When the black lines are complete, I kick up some of the colours for more visual impact and contrast.

This is a spiritual journey... I can't even explain it, but my soul always knows just what to do! It knows when it is not enough detail, and it knows when my picture is complete.

It always amazes me when I peel back the tape and see the white outline of my picture. I'm shocked that I made that! I feel happy, talented and proud. I feel like I've created something beautiful that I hope will bring anyone who views it a feeling of happiness and whimsy. I see different shapes and pictures. It reminds me of things I wasn't even thinking about when I was creating it.

I don't know if anyone could ever truly understand the happiness creating my art brings me! Obviously, I feel proud of my little beauties, but I feel so much more than that. Like I said before, this is a spiritual process. When I'm creating, it's like an out of body experience! I'm engrossed for hours. I often produce numerous paintings in one night, each one dramatically different from the last. Each representing a feeling, a mood or a vision in my mind. Each one undeniably unique!

Convinced that what I was doing was nothing overly special, I decided to reverse search my art in the Google Lens app. Low and behold, there's nothing else like on the internet! That of course only amplified my pride and my drive to create more.

So I continue to paint, learning and growing through each picture. My soul smiles because I've given it a voice. I sleep better, I feel better, my dreams are more vivid and my paintings are always evolving.

To me there is no greater sense of pride than these visual manifestations of my imagination! I didn't copy anyone else! I didn't see it in a magazine or on the internet! I dreamt it up myself, with my own mind and put it down on paper for the world to see. And this, my friends, is how I create my happiness!