Purpose of Mind, Eye, Hand #28 #cong22

Reading Time in Minutes

3

1. Meaning
2. Abstraction
3. Visual
4. Hand

I started out in life after school attending Art college. Completed several years to Masters in Fineart.
Later in life I returned to architectural school as a mature student and subsequently worked in various practices and out on my own as an interior architect… I have since ‘cooled the jets’ as they say on my hectic design work and have returned to my art studio where I am presently preparing an exhibition of my art work which will coincide with book launch ‘ the theme the Seasons in a garden and the seasons of grief.
I also have a keen interest in Gardening, music, dance, yoga and Pilates.

You can contact Trish by email

By Trish Findlater

“Purpose is an active expression of our values and our compassion for others, it makes us want to get up in the morning and add value to one’s life and the world’*

The Power of Purpose FIND MEANING, LIVE LONGER, BETTER by Richard J Leider

Purpose as I thought I knew it was snatched away some years ago with the sudden death of my husband…suddenly the tectonic plates of my life it’s purpose, meaning and happiness were shifted severely beyond my grasp.
Painting especially when painting outdoors is slowly reigniting an new form of purpose within me ,it’s abstraction only clear to me when painting.
The French use the term En plein air’ to describe painting outdoors.

I was on a recent painting holiday in the south of France, each morning I left my hotel early, pochade in right hand and canvas in left out to paint ‘en plein air’. My mantra for the day playing in my head;

“Be patient, grateful and humble.

Just to have the opportunity to paint is a gift., and especially in this beautiful place Beaulieu Sur Mer, Côte d’Azur.

Stay grateful for the opportunity, humble to the task and, for heaven’s sake, be patient with yourself.

Keep your heart open and your hand sure.”!

En Plein air painting holds tremendous purpose for me, as an artist it allows me to capture the emotional and sensory dimensions of a particular landscape at a particular moment in time. It provides an escape from reality, a wonderful sense of belonging and community with my fellow artists.

Purposely enabling self-expression and self-awareness, providing a means for contemplation and reflection a source of entertainment and enjoyment especially when the composition,design colour and intent all come together to make what is a good piece of ‘ART’.

The best advantage of painting plein air is that all the senses are engaged and like happiness, the purpose of painting is not necessary alway to complete a profound piece of ‘ART’, but rather to practice and journey through shape, design, light and colour.

Finding a purpose is accessible at any age, and I have experienced this meaningful purpose especially painting outside, it demands of one to be willing to explore what matters and what kind of person you want to be and act to become that person if that makes sense ?

I am standing at my Pochade looking at the subject matter; the promenade, azure blue sea, bobbing boats, swimmers, children playing fetch with well groomed pouches, landscape, or a bustling cafe at the market Square, consuming all my concentration so much so a bomb could go off beside me and I would remain engrossed in my painterly 2 dimensional world!

I guess by setting up my paintbox, to create a painting with Sennilier chalks I am essentially making a first-class memory, through mind eye and hand.

I am always reminded of the artist ‘Paul Klee’s essay ‘The Thinking eye’. I read as an enthusiastic young art student ‘a hundred years ago’!