Just Imagine…

Unleashing your Creative Potential in the Promise of the New Year

As we approach the new year and the creative possibilities that lie ahead, it’s a great time to reflect on our ideas – where they come from and where we want to take our art, how we lift our streams of thought and visions to the next level, how we express our internal being through our creative endeavours and how we develop our imaginations. 

An artist doesn’t just explore a new realm, they’ll often create it. If we delve into our unconscious, what journey will it take us on and how will that journey be documented and visually conveyed? We’re curious about this connection – the way we express ourselves in an artistic form filled with stories, meaning, and depth, and the manner in which we expose an aspect of our inner universe to the outside world.

STEVE CHMILAR

“Everything does matter. Things are important if we make them important.”

How would you describe your artistic vision?

My paintings are an invitation to think, ask questions, dream, imagine, feel inspired, feel uncomfortable, to analyze and to wonder.  I’m obsessive about invention and the almost alchemic challenge of making unlikely combinations work: light but dark, serious but playful, rough but smooth, sophisticated but naive, and so on. A born contrarian, it has always been my goal to fit between categories, pulling together influences that may be both complementary and conflicting. Through uncomfortable or unlikely combinations, new elements are created, and those can become the blueprint for what my finished work can become. In the end, if the viewer approaches one of my paintings with a slightly confused look on their face, I consider it to be successful by having made them want to approach – or click on – my work in the first place.  I want to draw people in, provoke thought and incite conversation.

What techniques do you employ to draw inspiration from your unconscious mind?

I have always been a daydreamer and wired to create, so I would say that the act of drawing inspiration from my unconscious is a natural state of being. Because I spend so much time in the “thought experiment” mindset, I have hundreds of ideas that do not end up as paintings. I believe that my ratio of good to bad ideas would be the same as it is for anyone else. I may come up with a hundred ideas and keep two, while someone else may come up with three ideas and become discouraged if they all miss. We have to keep following the one hit and forget about all the times we missed the target. Thought experiments are free, unlike arrows.

When I have an initial idea, I start with tiny thumbnail sketches. These sketches are usually so small (1 or 2cm) there is no room for detailed representation. Because the size keeps things vague and low pressure, I do many. When I fall in love with the feeling of one of the tiny sketches, I know I have something to build on. Even before I know what or who is in the piece, I have a successful composition that will at least be aesthetically appealing and draw viewers in from a distance, i.e. the way tiny jpeg images appear online such as a gallery page or Instagram feed or how a 1 meter by 2 meter-sized painting would look from 50 meters away. That is a somewhat more tactile aspect of my thought experiment.

The more “thoughtful” side of my thought experiments would be asking myself, “Now what is that character doing and what are they sitting on?” I then write a ton of little notes beside my thumbnails to ask myself questions like, “Holding a flashlight?”, “Holding a hammer?”, “Holding a hammer and a zoning stake?”, “What does the zoning stake symbolize?” Then I might write an entire paragraph in a tiny font about what the zoning stake could symbolize. It is my form of journaling in some way. It is private and pressureless. If that idea doesn’t end up going anywhere, on to the next. 

How do you develop and nurture your imagination?

I believe it is important to hold on to our inner child. Children are inherently imaginative. My mind was naturally always in the play or creation state, so introducing the “responsible adult” was the push for me. For the responsible types who are always thinking about the clock and the calendar, it could be risky to get “lost in time”, but that is where we need to be. We need to create space – both physical and mental – for our ideas to translate into finished artwork.

I suppose it is an “art is life – life is art” consideration to design our lives to make more space for art. That can be difficult and take time, but it is necessary. I have done this for myself by simplifying my life rather than adding more. The time required to dive fully into my process is like water, it fills all the potential space around the daily responsibilities. When the space is there, we can reach the “zone”, and we know we are in the zone when time is not on our mind. This is the place where patience, focus and imagination germinate to full bloom.

Is there a fundamental principle in your creations? What inspires the imagery and how do you convey meaning? 

This is tough to choose one, but if I had to say, perhaps it is the opposite of nihilism. Everything does matter. Things are important if we make them important. There is so much to learn, to fix and to understand in this life, we should never be bored. As artists, we are culture’s first responders. We are responsible for shining spotlights for the rest of society, to show others how important one particular lesser-known artifact, topic, person or place can be. 

My paintings usually start as very simple concepts. It could be as simple as a word combination or philosophical concept I had just learned about. Once there is one pillar of an idea, other possibilities of subject matter can always relate to it, because within one idea there can be reflections of everything else. These reflections can be shown in many ways, blatantly and subtly. How obvious or how hidden we decide to convey our implied meaning is just as important as other better-known art fundamentals like hard and soft lines, dull or saturated colour, in or out of focus, open or closed forms, warm or cool light and so on. Any choice of subject matter can convey endless possibilities when combined with any of these other visual tools. It can be positive and encouraging to think that there are many ways to show something rather than one.

What advice would you give to someone who is struggling to express their inner thoughts through their art?

This question brings one of my favourite quotes to mind: “a country song is three chords and the truth” (Harlan Howard). While I am not the biggest fan of the Nashville country music industry (how it relates to the cultural production of taste), I feel that that quote captures the most important point. It still rings true for songwriters today and so it must be no coincidence that it was said in the 1950s, at a time before the music industry became as commercially influenced as it did in the decades to come. Authenticity above all else. Substance over style. It can be difficult to articulate what authentic art looks or sounds like, but I think we know it when we hear it or see it. Telling the truth is never safe. Telling the truth may not pay the bills in the short term, but it might be more likely to in the long run.

What do you hope viewers will capture from your work?

Like any other art form does when it is successful, I hope to stop time. The longer I hold a viewer the better. I want people to be drawn in to experience different levels. The technique in which I paint must be viewed up close and so a pleasing composition from a distance will help bring the viewer in to see what they cannot from afar. In my larger narratives, I want people to see more and more about how the different characters and pieces of subject matter are connected. As we know, everyone will interpret things in their own way and so I enjoy hearing viewpoints about what my work signifies for others. 

Tell us about your favourite art supplies  – what you use in your work, and what you like about that material.

I have always worked with the best supplies that I could find because I don’t want my art process to be hindered by insufficient materials in any way. Even with the highest quality art supplies, the process is still very challenging, so it helps when the effectiveness of my tools does not distract me from the “zone” that I need to be in while creating. 

Today I have numerous tubes of oil paint from a few top brands which includes Williamsburg and some Gamblin. I have numerous soft hair brushes and generally use round 2s, 3s and 4s during much of the final colour stages of my oil paintings. I occasionally use GOLDEN Fluid Acrylics for building reference models. In 2015, I started working with coloured pencil. I purchased the entire set of Prismacolor. Since then I have begun collecting Faber-Castell Polychromos pencils and look forward to getting Caran d’Ache as well. For reference models, I have also enjoyed using Super-Sculpey polymer clay. Canson Mi-Tientes paper, particularly honeysuckle and oyster colours have found their way into my studio. Just recently, I purchased two more of the Art S. Buck 1:6 scale mannequins for the preliminary planning stages of my model building process. They help me to see how many people I can fit into a three dimensional space. 

CAMILLA D’ERICCO

“As a fan of dreams, I love to tap into the subconscious and bring surreal worlds to life.”

How would you describe your artistic vision? 

I would say my art is an exploration of our emotional journeys and dreamscapes. I paint from the heart, always aware of the question “what does it mean to be human?” And as a fan of dreams I love to tap into the subconscious and bring surreal worlds to life.

What techniques do you employ to draw inspiration from your unconscious mind? 

We are creatures of instinct and emotion so I focus on our connections between the real world and the incorporeal. If logic and physics didn’t exist, what would we look like?

How do you develop and nurture your imagination? 

I don’t edit my ideas. I used to put myself in a creative box – I would paint girls with animals and limit myself because that is what I was known for. Then I decided that clipping my creative wings wasn’t being true to who I am as an expressionist. Everyday I think about the human experience and the planet, so I let my imagination flow between reality and the subconscious mind. In that way, I can be as free as possible with my ideas.

Is there a fundamental principle in your creations? What inspires the imagery and how do you convey meaning?

I have a saying, “express what you feel and feel what you express”. This motto guides me to always paint from my heart. I use various elements in my work like a puzzle. Butterflies can symbolize migration or fragility. Melting rainbows can signify loss of self or the opposite. Each piece has a unique meaning to me, but none of them are fixed – they can say one thing to one person and mean something completely different to another.  I like that emotional reflection. Art is a link to our subconsciousness – it shows you what is inside your mind and not necessarily what’s in mine.

What advice would you give to someone who is struggling to express their inner thoughts through their art?

Stop worrying about the final product. Art is an open link to your soul. What you create isn’t what others would, so don’t compare your art to anyone else’s and appreciate what you can conceive. Artists are often the most critical of their own art. It holds us back, so let go of what you think is wrong and focus on the expression.

What do you hope viewers will capture from your work? 

I hope my art moves people. If it can make people happy or help them through a tough time, then I have succeeded in my message. 

Tell us about your favourite art supplies – what you use in your work, and what you like about that material. 

• Holbein Duo Oils are my all-time favourite paints. They blend with water and are non-toxic, so you can create beautiful washes or impasto art in the same piece. 
• GOLDEN Liquid Glazing Medium. I use it to blend my paints, it’s glorious. 
• Trekell Wood Panels. These are the surfaces I use and each one is so beautifully sanded and prepped it is extremely easy to start painting. 
• GOLDEN UVLS Varnish to seal and protect my paintings. It doesn’t yellow and protects excellently.

WILLIAM HIGGINSON

“My life is art. It permeates every moment of my day; even asleep, my dreams are sketched on canvas, painted voyages of imagination.”

How would you describe your artistic vision?

My life is art. It permeates every moment of my day; even asleep, my dreams are sketched on canvas, painted voyages of imagination.  It is my life force, my passion, my meditation, and my message to the world. Every day I strive to achieve my maximum potential and enjoy every single step of that journey.

How do you develop and nurture your imagination?

I am a sponge.  Every single day I go into deep learning adventures via podcasts, documentaries, art galleries, online galleries, museums, books, conversations with friends, and simply observing everyday life and the issues we all face.  

Is there a fundamental principle in your creations? What inspires the imagery and how do you convey meaning?

The principle that I keep strong in my work is that all problems have a solution.  I like to poke at a worldly or personal issue and have the solution to the issue buried deep in the imagery. The meaning is in many ways built upon my own outlook. Having experienced leukaemia as a young adult, I have come to realize that life is simple and not much really matters.  When I see little things that matter so much to people, I like to break down that thought pattern, create imagery that represents these issues and embed my solution. 

What techniques do you employ to draw inspiration from your unconscious mind?

My favourite way to do this is to grab a cup of tea, find a park bench in a quiet park or in the busy city and let my mind do the rest. It is usually human nature that I am having fun with, and my concepts are built upon every individual and their daily stories and activities. The more stimulation I have around me and the quieter my mind is, the more it allows something new to appear. 

What advice would you give to someone who is struggling to express their inner thoughts through their art?

Firstly, I feel all art should have something to say, as everyone has a passionate stance on one subject or another.  It could be as simple as believing that baby ducks are mother nature’s greatest invention and wanting to show the world in a million different ways why this is so, or as complex as the global economy. Once you have something to say, the next part is research. Look up mythology, history, Wikipedia – anything you can get your hands on – and then build an arsenal of information and thoughts that will help convey the message you would like to tell. It is all about filling your artist mind with every bit of information that it can get its little tentacles on so it can be released onto canvas in your own unique way. 

What do you hope viewers will capture from your work?

I think in many ways art can be like a well-formulated letter to someone you love. The time is given to you to say the words correctly, rather than blurting out something that wasn’t well thought through. My art comes embedded with a deep message that has been meditated on, sometimes for several years. I like to focus the idea around the solution to a problem and then surround that solution with the problem. If someone is willing to take the time to read into their own minds with my work, they will always come to their own conclusions, but hopefully I have opened their minds to new possible answers to an everyday problem. 

 Tell us about your favourite art supplies – what you use in your work, and what you like about that material?

• Winsor & Newton Oils are what I have always stuck with. Once you know a particular tube and it is working for you, it is hard to pick up another brand and expect it to do the same thing. A creature of habit I guess. 
• M. Graham’s Walnut Alkyd Medium. Having spent so many years painting in acrylics, I found that this medium sped up the drying time of oils to perfectly match my schedule. 
• Gamblin’s Gamvar and Gamsol. I can’t imagine a better varnish than Gamvar. The application has to be handled carefully to avoid clouding, but the ability to strip it so easily with Gamsol and rework a canvas is amazing.  
•  Winsor & Newton Brush Cleaner and Restorer has always been my saviour. I’ve never been as careful with brush care as I should be. On many occasions this product has revived some of my favourite brushes. 

MEGAN MAJEWSKI

“In many of my paintings I try to convey a feeling or narrative that I don’t have words for.”

How would you describe your artistic vision?

I’m drawn to images with dark undertones – art that deals with life and death, and stories with tragic endings – but I am also drawn to beautiful imagery and colours.  My work brings in both these elements, which captivates the viewer and pushes them away at the same time. Recently I have been using flowers and symbolism from cryptological communication, to create poetic artwork fixated around haunting figures.

What techniques do you employ to draw inspiration from your unconscious mind?

The process I go through to turn a small spark of inspiration into a body of work has changed and become more intricate over the years.  I have slowly created a technique that helps bring my ideas to life, and it continues to evolve. Most of the time, the idea isn’t quite clear in my mind. I need to figure out exactly what it is I am trying to convey.  It’s one of the most exciting parts and I make sure to go in with an open mind. My starting point is usually a loose concept, feeling or something that intrigues me. As I research, I let myself be pulled down different paths to see where they takes me.  

With my current body of work, I knew flowers would drive the stories I wanted to tell, but I wasn’t sure why. Through research I came to realize how much these elements could add. Flowers hold meaning in superstitions, symbolism, history and complicated emotions in our own memories and experiences. Their many secret meanings would help portray the stories I needed. The more entranced the research made me, the more I knew I was on the right track.

I am always very loose in the research stage, writing down and sketching information and ideas that interest me. It is best to cut what doesn’t work with the overall vision in the later stages, but keeping an open mind in the beginning can help me find the information I need to explore my themes.

How do you develop and nurture your imagination?

Whether you are an artist full time, part time or as a hobby, you can easily be stripped of inspiration and your desire to create. That happens to all of us and is fine. For the most part, getting that spark back and finding out how to get excited is up to you. Discovering what activates your imagination can change as the things you are intrigued by evolve. I allow creative downtime, but to get back into it I have to reignite my imagination. This can be as simple as putting on some music, going to the library, wandering through the forest, or even looking through some old trinkets to create something new that’s grounded in my past.

Is there a fundamental principle in your creations? What inspires the imagery and how do you convey meaning?

What inspires me changes over time. You can look back at my work and see me painting very distinct themes, but as you grow as a person and artist, of course what inspires you and the imagery you need to convey your messages evolves. In many of my paintings I am trying to convey a feeling or a narrative that I don’t have words for. The audience may or may not get what I try to communicate. I portray what I want and let the viewers interpret it in their own way. They can bring their personal life experiences and can create their own story, depending on how the art speaks to them.  

What advice would you give to someone who is struggling to express their inner thoughts through their art?

Whatever excites you, trust it and go in that direction. Go off the deep end and fall into a subject that keeps pulling you towards it. Get the ideas out and onto paper, but loosen up whilst doing it. Try collage, writing, or quick experimental abstract paintings on scraps of paper. Allow yourself to make something ugly and use this process to experiment and explore; you might find a new technique, colour combination, or texture that helps you get closer to what you are trying to express. If you are still stuck, sometimes reaching out for a discussion with some artistic peers can help clarify your ideas.  

What do you hope viewers will capture from your work?

The emotional response between my art and each individual is unique. I just hope it triggers some sort of emotional response from viewers, good or bad. My art isn’t for everyone, but I hope it speaks to the individuals it is meant to. I hope my work entrances them in the same way some of my favourite artists capture me.

Tell us about your favourite art supplies – what you use in your work, and what you like about that material.

• Opus Wood Panels – I prefer painting on wood rather than canvas because of the smooth hard surface, which I find good for super tiny details. I have recently been hooked on the new round wood panels.
• GOLDEN OPEN Acrylic Medium – By extending the drying time, this medium has been so helpful when blending my acrylic paints. I like this much better than a retarder, which just makes the paint feel sticky. Since first trying it, I have used this medium in almost every painting I’ve done.
• GOLDEN Fluid Acrylics – I use Heavy body acrylics a lot but I also use fluid acrylics quite often too. Not everyone has had a chance to try them. It isn’t watered down paint – they have the same amount of pigment load as heavy body acrylics – but they’re much smoother to brush on for glazes and super fine details. 
• Watercolour Travel brushes (Sakura Koi Water Brush / Silver Black Velvet Voyage Brush ) – When travelling, I love the little watercolour brushes that have water in the handle. I can pull one out and paint anywhere without having to deal with a cup of water. I also like bringing along a really nice brush for times I can sit and paint, but need it to pack up so I don’t have to worry about ruining it.
• Etchr Mini Palette filled with QoR Watercolor paints – This is my go-to for long trips and travelling when I don’t know what colours I might want. I can fill the mini palette with 37 different professional grade paints to bring with me anywhere in the world. Filling a travel palette with professional grade paints also means that the small amount I bring will go much further, since it is very highly pigmented.