Going Gentle: Out of the Ashes

12/30/2024

Going Gentle: Out of the Ashes

Read Now

Out of the Ashes with Art Journaling

Hello friends! Like I promised in a previous video, I have completed the art journal spread that I have titled, Out of the Ashes, that I started in Late 2023. This spread is more than deeply personal; it is somewhat of a demarcation point due to the life change this spread has helped me work through.

My father passed in January of 2023 and my mother passed in January of 2024.
So my grieving process has included the very intuitive and spiritual practice of my art journal.
As I have worked through my loss, I have expressed those emotions through gouache paint, fabric, stamping, collage, oil and water soluable pastel, plus embelishments such as sequins. So many layers have gone into this particular spread.

I started with an idea of using a floral motif in the center of a night sky with moonbeams coming out, as a way to express Coming up out of the ashes (which symbolize the passing of my parents) with the idea of growing through the process and learning to live anew with my parents in spirit.

So I cut strips of fabric (which you can see in the first video below). Then I had the idea of putting splashes of paint on the substrate (see next video). Then I started collaging papers, both brown paper, and paper from dream notes I take in the morning) and adding layers of gesso in between.

I also used several stamps in the process: one was a small floral stamp to unify the floral in the center adding green highlights with oil pastel crayon; another was a clock/watch stamp which represents the passage of time, from childhood til now; then I used letter stamps to spell out Ashes across the page in between the fabric strips (which I did toward the end of the process.)

Once I was satisfied with the layering on the substrate, then I put down the fabric strips that feature a night sky with moon and stars. I see the strips as moon beams.

Then I hand lettered the words "out of the" using oil pastel and water soluable pastel crayon in black and white on brown paper. I did the same with ASHES, hand lettering. And then adhering.

Then I used silver, black, white and green pastel highlighting the fabric strips, accentuating the idea of moonbeams. Lastly I added green sequins as an embellishment. I wanted to brighten things up a bit. (I've had these sequins in a jar mixed with beads and buttons for many years! It pays to gather supplies when you see them since you never know when you'll use them!)

I wanted to finish this spread, Out of the Ashes, by year's end, to have closure with my parent's passings and move into the New Year with a fresh start. I'm glad I did. I have had 4 sessions over the holiday season, following my intuitive nudges with each session, noting what was working and what wasn't working. (I decided against buttons which was the original idea with my design and instead used sequins to accentuate the design elements.

I really wanted to share the finishing of the project with you as I have given you glimpses of my process with videos over time so you can see the ins and outs behind the scenes.

It is important to me to share this process with you so you can be along for my journey. Thanks for warching, reading and subscribing to my YouTube Channel in support of my work.

Your presence here means the world to me; I wouldn't want to do this without you!
So thank you for being here.

My delight is to continue sharing my artistic/spiritual journey with you in the coming year of 2025. I hope to see you here!

Happy New Year And remember that Gentle is Magic!