Finding new paths

I am taking Juliana Coles class Initiation which is a great class. In one of the many assignments I did this image.

Pathfinder image

I found a beautiful picture of a woman (I think) standing looking into the distant in an old National Geographic magazine about some American indians. I decided to re-draw that image on the page and when I did I suddenly realized that "I'm a pathfinder". Not in some serious kind of way, I don't believe I have been an indian in a present life or anything like that, but I enjoy taking long walks in the woods nearby our home. 

I constantly seek out new trails because I'm curious where they might lead and I discover waterfalls, caves and big rocks etc. I never get lost because I have some sort of map in my head and unconsciously notice things in the surroundings that I navigate out of.

So if I had lived among the indians back then I might have been a pathfinder!?! Today obviously such abilities are not useful for the bigger community with GPS and smartphones etc. but to me personally it serves a purpose.

I think I'm a pathfinder in other senses too. I used to be an engineer for 15 years but never really liked it and after going back to the university to study journalism I quit my job to become a freelance journalist. I am a curious person and love to learn new things so that suits me very well. However media is a though business and I constantly try to find new ways to be an entrepreneur. It is sometimes stressful and I use making art and especially in this art journaling form to release some of that and stop all the ideas and thoughts that swirls around in my head.

(I shared another piece I made in the Initiation class here.)

How to make a selfportrait (that doesn't look like you...)

Selfportraits can be fun to make. But in many cases not. Well, to be more precis; they are fun to do but what comes out is often a surprise, and not always a fun one, at least not if you are vain.

My selfportraits usually shows me +10 years. That's what I say to myself. Maybe it is how I look right now, but the simple truth must be that I'm not very good at sketching (me that is).

This weekend I did another kind of selfportrait. I'm taking Juliana Coles class Initiation (you can find out more and sign up here) right now and one of last weeks (many) assignments was to do a metaphorical selfportrait in mixed media. This is what I came up with:

Metaphorical selfportrait

It isn't actually me or look anything like me but I pretended it was me. It was fun and I don't have to be sad that I'm REALLY that old (or anything). 

I made it in the journal I have chosen to work with in the class and this is how I went about it.

Step 1: I painted one spread with pink and skin colored acrylic paint. 

Step 2: After that I made quick sketch of a face but not really of me because I didn't have a mirror at hand. 

Step 3: Then I grabbed an old Vogue magazine that I had and looked for pieces to add to my sketch. Without thinking too much I cut out eyes of the right size and added to my sketch. Then I cut out some hair and added to the  right. I found a picture of Jennifer Aniston and stole her left side hair and her mouth and added that. The hair-parts didn't match on the top of the head but my plan was to add paint and cover it up.

Then I found a nose, but it was quite big :-)

Step 4: With white and skin toned paint I tried to make all parts blend in and I also tried to fix the hair. I also added the turqoise and penwork on her body. The title says A lot of pieces to keep track of, refering to the pieces that the picture was built up by but also all the things I try to juggle in my life right now.

If you are curious of Juliana Coles classes I think you should sign up. She focuses more on process than the actual outcome. It is not about making pretty pictures but to look inside of oneself and find ways to put your own pictures and word on paper.

It can be intense if you want it to be, or you can use it as an excuse to play. I'm somewhere in between. I like to play with it and see what comes up. Sometimes, or really always, things comes up that relates to what I struggle with right now (like the title in the selfportait). I enjoy the process and I do recommend it.