The Messy Studio with Rebecca Crowell - Episodes Tagged with “Influences”

Episode 269: Influences and Copying

Rebecca Crowell — Tue, 07 May 2024 11:30:00 -0500

All artists are influenced by others, but when an artist has an authentic voice, their influences are well-integrated with their own unique vision. But sometimes the influence from another artist is so strong that the boundaries between the two are blurred. Today we’ll talk about being influenced by other artists -- when it is too much, and what it means when another artist is being copied. We’ll also mention ways that influence can constructive and positive and part of an authentic creative voice.

Influence itself isn’t a bad thing—in fact it’s a given as part of creativity. Creativity doesn’t exist in a vacuum, and as artists we are naturally inspired by other artists past and present, and interested in and inspired by what they do. But there is a point when influence is too much, and you are taking liberties with someone else's work. While over-influence is somewhat expected when you are in a learning phase, as you mature as an artist it is expected that you move into your own territory.

Some strong resemblance to another artist's work can be understood as unconscious and even as parallel development. But if you want your work to be distinctive, you need to confront the possibility of being mistaken for the other artist or vice versa. And if you're consciously copying, it's not fair to you and your development, and not fair to the artist whose ideas you are replicating. You may rationalize this as being less well known than the other artist, or even as flattering to them. There are other problematic reasons such as not wanting to put in the work necessary to develop your own voice or wanting to ride into the art market on someone else's path.

To avoid having your work resemble someone else's work too much, it's helpful to have a large mix of influences rather than taking too much form any one artist. In that way, your influences can be compared to the various flavors you combine when cooking a complex dish, which has a unique taste as a result. You can also work with ideas that you perceive or interpret in an artist's work rather than adopting the look of their work as a whole. This is an important way to synthesize various influences so that you avoid too much visual resemblance. And most importantly, remember that your strongest influences should be the most personal, coming from your own thoughts, interests, and experiences.

Thanks to everyone who has been sharing the show and donating! If you would like to donate to the Messy Studio Podcast donate here.
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When you buy art supplies at Blick remember to use our affiliate link to support the podcast! Bookmark this link and then you don't even have to think about it again. This is one of the best ways to support the show. It takes a few seconds and costs you nothing! The Blick website works exactly the same way, but we earn 10% every time you buy art supplies.

www.messystudiopodcast.com/blick

What's new at Cold Wax Academy?
What's new at Cold Wax Academy? You can now join the membership program on a month-to-month basis with full streaming access to all the great features offered, including Rebecca and Jerry's full-length video workshop and Jerry's Mentoring Messages and 12 Essential Lessons. Monthly memberships mean lots more flexibility for you--you can try the program out for a short time, or take a break when you need it. Live sessions will continue twice a month--and along with favorites like painting clinics, critiques, and guests, and as always, everything is recorded and available in the Member Library.

And there's more exciting news! Rebecca and Jerry have just announced the first ever online international exhibit of work created with cold wax medium. All styles and formats are welcome. The juror for the show is Dan Addington, of Addington Gallery in Chicago. To learn more, go to www.coldwaxacademy.com-- and click on the Call for Art button. While you are on the website, check out all the information abut cold wax medium and how you can join the monthly membership.

Please visit http://www.coldwaxacademy.com for more information as well as basic information about using cold wax medium.

Here is what a member named Sandy has to say about her own experience with Cold Wax Academy:
"Rebecca and Jerry have presented the most professional, authentic and structured approach to a creative activity I have ever come across. Their selfless sharing of all their knowledge and encouragement is a gift in my life unsurpassed."

Also-- please visit https://www.espacioart.org to learn about Rebecca and Jerry's newest project, Espacio, dedicated to providing beautiful living and working spaces for artists and writers. Espacio's first offering is Casa Clavel, a modern, fully equipped house opening this September in the beautiful cultural city of San Miguel de Allende, Mexico. A few booking openings are still available in 2023, so please incquire if you are interested.

Have an art related product, service, or event you would like to advertise on the Messy Studio Podcast?
Email Ross at rticknor.core@gmail.com for current mid-roll advertising rates.
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For more from The Messy Studio:
www.messystudiopodcast.com
www.facebook.com/messystudiopodcast
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For more from Rebecca Crowell:
www.rebeccacrowell.com
www.coldwaxacademy.com
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The Messy Studio Podcast is a Tick Digital Media Production.

Episode 227: The Gift of Days: An Artist Residency

Rebecca Crowell — Sat, 29 Oct 2022 16:00:00 -0500

We’d like to begin today with some words from John O’Donohue, the Irish poet, author, priest, and philosopher--who wrote in his poem, For the Traveler:

May you travel in an awakened way,
Gathered wisely into your inner ground;
That you may not waste the invitations
Which wait along the way to transform you.

May you travel safely, arrive refreshed,
And live your time away to its fullest;
Return home more enriched, and free
To balance the gift of days which call you

O’Donohue’s poem-- from which this excerpt is taken-- reflects on the impact of travel that is done in an aware and thoughtful manner. Taking part in an artist residency program is one way to experience a new place on this deep level and to experience its influence on your work. In today’s episode, Rebecca reflects on her recent 3 weeks of residency at the Obras Foundation in Portugal, and the challenges and rewards of this experience.

We talked last week about the duality of familiarity and novelty that you can experience when working with the idea of place and in your response to unique aspects of an environment. There can be novelty in what is familiar, when you tune into your daily environment, and there can also be familiarity in what is new, as you seek out what you know and are comfortable with even in a completely foreign environment. When working in a truly new and unfamiliar place, it can be a challenge to find focus and continuity with your ongoing work. Allowing your responses to being on a residency to evolve organically in your ongoing work may be the best way to integrate your new experience.

website for Obras Foundation: http://www.obras-art.org

Thanks to everyone who has been sharing the show and donating! If you would like to donate to the Messy Studio Podcast donate here.

When you buy art supplies at Blick remember to use our affiliate link to support the podcast! Bookmark this link and then you don't even have to think about it again. This is one of the best ways to support the show. It takes a few seconds and costs you nothing! The Blick website works exactly the same way, but we earn 10% every time you buy art supplies.

www.messystudiopodcast.com/blick

What's new at Cold Wax Academy?
Rebecca and Jerry have just launched their Fall quarter of live, online sessions with a special focus this time on member participation, plus informative sessions on a variety of other topics such as photographing your art work and using Procreate. This month also marks the beginning of Cold Wax Academy's 3rd year of teaching sessions, meaning that the member library now has over 80 recordings and other instructional documents available for members. To access this wealth of information and to take part in upcoming live sessions, please visit the membership page at ColdWaxAcademy.com and sign up for one of the two levels of membership available.

Please visit http://www.coldwaxacademy.com for more information.

Also-- stay tuned for information coming soon about Rebecca and Jerry's newest project, Espacio, dedicated to providing beautiful living and working spaces for artists and writers. Espacio's first offering is Casa Clavel, a modern, fully equipped house opening this September in the beautiful cultural city of San Miguel de Allende, Mexico. You can learn more and make a reservation by emailing info@coldwaxacademy.com. A dedicated Espacio website is coming soon!

Here is what a member named Sandy has to say about her own experience with Cold Wax Academy:
"Rebecca and Jerry have presented the most professional, authentic and structured approach to a creative activity I have ever come across. Their selfless sharing of all their knowledge and encouragement is a gift in my life unsurpassed."

Have an art related product, service, or event you would like to advertise on the Messy Studio Podcast?
Email Ross at rticknor.core@gmail.com for current mid-roll advertising rates.

For more from The Messy Studio:
www.messystudiopodcast.com
www.facebook.com/messystudiopodcast

For more from Rebecca Crowell:
www.rebeccacrowell.com
www.coldwaxacademy.com

The Messy Studio Podcast is a Tick Digital Media Production.

Episode 226: The Importance of Place

Rebecca Crowell — Sat, 22 Oct 2022 20:00:00 -0500

The influence of specific locations on creative work is important among many kinds of artists, from plein aire painters to site-specific sculptors. On today’s podcast, Rebecca talks about the ways responding to certain places has impacted her own abstract work over the years, and specifically how this has evolved in recent years since her move to New Mexico. We hope that her thoughts invite contemplation of your own influences from both your home environment and your travels.

Two aspects of place that influence abstract imagery are familiarity and novelty, an intriguing duality. Familiarity leads to visual language based on repeated observations, repeated experiences, and getting to know a place beyond initial impressions. Knowing a place deeply leads to an integrated approach of emotions and visual observations and can be a very satisfying way to experience your everyday life. Treating your home environment as a rich source of ideas enhances your everyday life and sense of gratitude.

Although you can experience the aspect of novelty anywhere if you pay attention, including in your home territory, it plays into your work in a different way that can be very stimulating and can lead to ideas outside of your everyday realm. The sense of what you see and experience being unfamiliar and strange keeps you curious, reflective, and attentive. This happens especially during travel in other countries. You need special awareness to navigate this unfamiliar territory.

Interpreting a sense of place in your work in a meaningful way can evolve over time, especially when you work from your home environment, as you engage in the process of noticing and understanding the subtleties of your home location. What you know and love about a place has a natural way of becoming embedded and central to your work. But even when responding to an unfamiliar place, connecting your experiences to what is already present in your work is a good way to approach it in an integrated manner. And if your current location is not supporting your work in ways that you want, if you are able seek out a different lcoation for travel, a residency, or even a new home, it is something to consider.

(website mentioned in this podcast: resartis.org)

Please visit http://www.coldwaxacademy.com for more information.

Episode 130: Being Authentic

Rebecca Crowell — Sat, 20 Jun 2020 13:00:00 -0500

This is a topic that we have considered covering for a while. It dovetails nicely with past episodes addressing what inspires and motivates our work. But it seems especially relevant now given the worldwide pandemic and recent social unrest, which have many artists thinking deeply about the meaning and honesty of their work.

Being authentic in your work means being true to yourself, and unafraid in your creative explorations. During this time when we are experiencing massive changes all around us, examining how authentic we are being in our work can lead to new insights and growth. The more challenges we are facing in life, the more important it becomes to bring our whole selves into our work. This results in better work and a better mental state.

It sounds simple, but understanding our true desires can be difficult and confusing, and forces us to be vulnerable. Being authentic in our work may require us to explore aspects of ourselves that would otherwise remain hidden. At the same time, it's good to acknowledge your natural inclinations as strengths. Work with these impulses rather than against them, but try to recognize when they are holding you back.

This doesn’t happen overnight. Like all processes in our work authenticity takes time and an open mind to develop. You may find yourself wanting to explore work that is a complete deviation from what you have done in the past. Going in new directions involves experimentation that doesn’t always work, and can be frustrating. Sometimes, these are important impulses to follow, and other times they are the result of an urge to please others or emulate what we like about another afrtist's work.

Our lives are dynamic and our work needs to change as we do. Being authentic is an ongoing challenge to bring out what is true and sincere. It means being very honest with yourself about who you are, and what motivates, inspires, and influences you.

For more from The Messy Studio:
www.messystudiopodcast.com
www.facebook.com/messystudiopodcast

For more from Rebecca Crowell:
www.rebeccacrowell.com
www.squeegeepress.com

Episode 86: Meaning in Abstraction

Rebecca Crowell — Sun, 25 Aug 2019 13:00:00 -0500

Intro: Many of our listeners know about the book that Jerry McLaughlin and I co-wrote--Cold Wax Medium: Techniques, Concepts & Conversation—and also that, from the beginning we did not want to only talk about techniques (hence the title.) Today we want to talk about why we find the concepts and ideas of abstraction important and offer some ideas about understanding and developing meaning in your own work.

In a recent podcast Ross and I talked about the commonalities abstraction has with other approaches to art as well as its unique aspects. We mentioned then that there are challenges for artists working in abstraction and today we’ll talk more about that. How to bring meaning and individuality to the work?

An idea that some find hard to grasp—thinking abstraction is simply design or random occurrences. Yet all you have to do is recognize that people have personal voices and recognizable styles to know that there is more going on than that.

Odd that imagery = meaning for many people. Tied to a strictly literal way of thinking and interpreting. Using only a small part of our means of appreciating the world.

Labeling of imagery can lead to a shallow interpretation of any kind of art including realism—ask more questions, why has the artist chosen the subject matter, how is it handled. True appreciation never stops with identifying subject matter even when it is the most obvious component.

Abstraction—usually imagery is removed from the equation, or if it is there it is handled in a non-illusionistic way. We can jump in more readily to the interesting things—what’s behind the work. Labeling does not need to intrude. Abstraction includes the artist's experiences, emotions, thoughts.

We do accept non-literal associations through our other senses--hearing, smelling, tasting.

Our human brains seek structure and meaning-- but literal image is only one type of structure. Look for how the artist has structured the work as a way in. Notice contrasts, how the visual elements are used and which ones.

As the artist, abstract painting requires abstract thinking. Letting go of labels, letting yourself be carried by ideas, feelings, memories. No need to explain, stay logical. We've all founnd ourselves caught in reveries without visual reference.

At the same time give yourself some structure—identify intentions, preferred elements, use of form and content.

Getting away from linear thinking does NOT mean lack of content. Many things bring meaning to our lives that are not clearly defined.

Sources of abstraction include any aspect of experience you care to bring to your work—in any combination. We can be pulled off track into the familiar when "things" appear as part of the process. this can be very random.

Intuition does not mean finding something identifiable things in the painting but rather playing off important visual elements.

Intentions: important to set them to develop and understand yourself and meaning of your work. Your essential character and core values and feelings. They make your work you. They can evolve over time.

Challenges for Artists /personal voice
Idea that abstract artists as need to be more individualized or unique because they are creating their own realties rather than depicting a shared one as with realism.

BUT like other approaches, there are similar appearances. Ex: geometric abstraction, abstract expressionism.

Learn about artists working in these ways and how your work might be seen in that context, the history and cultural connections among people.

You can feel quite lost without these references. Be open to various influences that mix and enrich your work. Influence doesn't mean it has to have obvious visual siilarities. Can be an intrigue with process, background, thoughts.

What other aspects of your life bring meaning to your work? what are you interested in?

Expressing your complete self is an advantage of abstraction. The multiplicity of influences and sources both external and internal can be very rich. Keep an ongoing awareness of these. This can also include spontaneous, intuitive work.

Involves a lot of personal, inner work--a very examined life. An understanding of yourself.
Intentions involve both personal content and formal aspects (such as exploration of color.)

Be willing to examine your own inner impulses, and for ways to communicate those . be able to think in an abstract way, don't over-explain. Difficult but can look easy to outsiders. Analytic phase interspersed with flow. That takes a lot of experience.

trying to sort all this out may require simplifying, finding a structure, talking about it out loud.
Intuition does play a huge role.

www.rebeccacrowell.com
www.squeegeepress.com
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Special Guest: Jerry McLaughlin.

Episode 59: Merging Art and Life

Rebecca Crowell — Sat, 16 Feb 2019 11:00:00 -0600

What activities, passions, or interests do you pursue outside your studio (art related or otherwise)? Do you think they feed your main work or focus? Rebecca and Ross discuss answers submitted on Facebook, as well as their own thoughts on the subject.

www.rebeccacrowell.com
www.squeegeepress.com
www.facebook.com/messystudiopodcast

PODCAST notes: merging art and life

Ross Intro: A while back Rebecca posed this question on Facebook,
what activities, passions, or interests do you pursue outside your studio (art
related or otherwise)? Do you think they feed your main work or focus?
The answers poured in and today we’re going to take a look at some of
them--

Why I asked this question:

Wanted to say something about the wholeness of our lives as artists; artist is such
a large identity/passion that many of us think only in those terms.

But there will always be crossover influences if our art is about who we are

Also we need to get out of our heads sometimes.

Was going to talk about this from my own perspective but too limited.

Curious about people beyond the usual painting postings on Facebook.

What else are they passionate about?

Huge range of answers… volunteering with various causes …making collections
(fountain pens, found objects, old books) …studying the design of Ferraris…raising
bonsais… …storytelling…environmental causes such as radiation protection,
sustainability, working with the homeless…… physical activities including tennis,
horseback riding , weightlifting, sailing, mountain biking, rock climbing, croquet,
;pickleball, fencing, various kinds of dance

Influence from professions—psychotherapy, interior design, costuming for stage
and film,

Also mentioned: synesthesia, the connection in the mind between one sensory
experience and another/ automatic and totally convincing ( a certain musical note
= a certain color. )

Ross points out that synesthesia can occur naturally, but an also be chemically
induced or a product of stress, experiences which have influenced artists.

Not a voluntary interest but one with implications for art making/ part of the
bigger picture of who we are and how it affects our work.

Also some commonalities in the answers, lots of repeats which I will get to in a
minute.

Some people addressed the 2 nd part of my question and some did not—the
connection between these activities and your art.

I assume that other things in life feed people’s work—how much of his happens in
a conscious way?

Could it be helpful to make more direct connections/

Part of making your art personal and unique is mining these passions for ideas

Thinking about personal voice and direction here.

Finding direction and voice is a quest for many people esp starting out
experienced artists might ask themselves, what can I bring into my work
that moves me from the rest of life? New direction and ideas always important.

Connections may be direct or indirect.

Examples of direct connections—from responses

Being in nature: close observation of surroundings, noticing light, detail, feeling a
spiritual connection/content.

Physical activity: (weightlifting) relates to being fit for large paintings and maybe
on a subtler level the physicality of moving paint around ….rock climbing—the
practice of in-the-moment intuitive decision making, being totally present.

Writing: using words to expand creative ideas.

Travel—exposure to different cultures and visual experiences used in art work.

Music—influences from rhythm and mood, improvisational music and jazz as
related to intuitive painting, collaboration in playing with others.

Gardening and clay work.

Looking at art in museums, researching materials, taking workshops-- obvious
connections.

If you don’t think there is a connection--Ask yourself what intrigues, you about
one of your interests and it may lead directly to some new art idea.

Ex: figure drawing group —challenge of rendering form light/shadow, use of
brush.

Ex: collecting stuff—besides enjoying the objects you collect, is there something
about the act of collecting /organizing/arranging that could enter your work?

Ex: birdwatching—movement, patterns, color, delicacy/strength.

Ex: gardening—the cycle of planting, growing, maturing, dying back.

Could your work be enhanced by being open to your interests as a whole?

No need to push, simply set it as an intention.

Summary of the brief and unscientific survey:

Most Often mentioned:
being in nature, hiking in nature
Yoga, meditation’
Photography
Some kind of music connection—participating or listening
Physical activity, exercise, sports
Volunteering
Reading
Writing
Travel

Some help to slow down, get centered/grounded, connect with inner self, connect
with nature have a meditative aspect – feeding the inner self, being present.

Some are stimulating, energizing—being active, playing music, working with
people, travel.

Some directly related to art in obvious ways –photography, drawing,
experimenting with materials.

Many people mentioned a range, aspects of all of the above –

My takeaway -- our lives are made up of many parts, and art has the potential to
be the expression of the whole not any one thing but that general feeling of
possibility and curiosity, some combination of what we make for ourselves and
what life has served up.

Episode 22: Nuala Clarke Interview - Ideas Tiny & Immense

Rebecca Crowell — Sat, 19 May 2018 13:00:00 -0500

Rebecca interviews Nuala Clarke while in Ireland. They discuss the conceptual aspects of her work which is fed by imagination, memory, what she reads, and the natural world of northern County Mayo, Ireland.

http://nualaclarke.com/
www.rebeccacrowell.com
www.coldwaxbook.com
www.facebook.com/messystudiopodcast

Special Guest: Nuala Clarke.