Symmetry - Painting on Note Cards: March 31-April 7, 2022
The Mission:
This week's theme: symmetry.
This week's medium: the "paint" of your choice (That old crusty tin of water colors? Tiny tubes of oil paint you bought and never used? Your tepid morning coffee? A leftover Tupperware of tomato sauce? Interpret "paint" as you wish).
This week's "canvas": three to five 3x5 note cards or four to six 4x6 note cards. I figure these are easy enough to come by, but if you need me to make a special delivery, let me know.
Use the paint and brush of your choice to create a series of vignettes (again, 3-5 or 4-6) on the note card size of your choice. Bonus points for clever visual display of the completed paintings.
The Submissions:
by Espy la Copa
A few nights ago I watched Room 237. What I hoped would be a documentary was instead a stream of nutso theories about The Shining playing over a bunch of Kubrick clips (they must have gotten a package deal). Out of all of Kubrick's work I have only watched The Shining...but now I'm in love and need to see more. So here is an homage to the king of symmetry in film (but just focusing on The Shining because I adore it).
To finish these in a timely manner I decided to only use the colors from the iconic carpets found in the halls and in room 237. Considering I only had 5 colors of paint in the closet, this not only kept me from going crazy but also turned out way neater than I expected. And if we want to dive into it a bit, the dark, sickly greens and purples set the stage for Jack's disturbed, haunted mind, while the reds and oranges cast a foreboding light on the victims and the horror they are trapped in.
“Rorschach’s Nightmares” by Captain Quillard
Five 3x5 cards
(What I was aiming for. Nailed it!)
One of the first things I thought of when considering the concept of symmetry was the old Rorschach Test inkblots and watercolor shapes used in psychological tests. I attempted to evoke that here, but my lack of skills with watercolors left me with something that looks more like some kind of horrific mothman or bat carcass. At least it does to me, which probably opens me right up to some form of psych evaluation.
Weird image aside, I liked the idea of creating something symmetrical, but painted on cards that were arranged in an asymmetrical way. Bonus points for concept, to counteract the points deducted for execution?
“Intercondimental” by Captain Quillard
Six 4x6 cards
Things got weird in my “studio” (kitchen) this week. Despite the ridiculousness of these images, there were at least a few minutes of seriousness as I went down a rabbit hole about the use of symmetry in flag design. But, I was also intrigued by the funny idea presented in this week’s mission about using tomato sauce as paint, and… uh… that’s where the seriousness took a hard left turn.
There are many more interesting flags out there that use symmetry in more intricate designs than these, but I was limited by the sauces I had on hand in my fridge and pantry, so you get these instead. The mess in my kitchen right now looks like what I imagine the office cafeteria to be like at the United Colors of Benetton.
by Heart of Darkness
Digital “painting.” Four 4 x 6 inch notecards, manipulated accordingly
“Spring Fade” by Soldier Clinging to Helicopter
by Jane Flair
Allow me to introduce myself: I’m Jane Flair. I know I get bonus points for an Apocalypse Now name, but I watched that movie in a literature class in college, and it wasn’t for me. Jane Eyre, which I read in a different class, was. So here we are.
Now, about the art. My husband and I had a daughter in May, and I have spent most waking moments since she was born considering all the ways of raising a daughter. Several outside forces this week, one in reading and one in real life, required me to think about how the choices I am making now will influence the person she will become. Thus, this art was born. I could add more commentary, but think the “paintings” should stand on their own.
by North of Canada
I don’t expect points for presentation. I do expect points for cheating. I didn’t have the patience for all those colors and watercolor on the third card.
Next Week’s Assignment:
ek·phra·sis
/ˈekfrəsəs/
noun
the use of detailed description of a work of visual art as a literary device.
your next mission
ex. “I’m not much of a poet, but that tiny painting by Soldier Clinging to Helicopter straight-up moved me to ekphrasis.”
An ekphrastic poem is a vivid description of a scene or, more commonly, a work of art. Through the imaginative act of narrating and/or reflecting on the “action” of a painting or sculpture, the poet may amplify, reinterpret, or expand its meaning.
Using a painting other than your own from the previous mission (or photo from the one before that), write a poem embodying a voice, theme, description, etc. inspired from a fellow creator’s work. Structure (or lack thereof) and length (or lack thereof) is up to you.