How important is it to ‘just begin?’ It’s vital!
Why? Because it initiates process.
Last week I wrote about serendipity – that happy juxtaposition of connected or topical events. I drew my interpretation of Mont St Michel from its connection with The Bayeux Tapestry and a documentary.
I love working with brightly coloured houses.
A few hours of work and the outcome is an image I could work with. More importantly, though is that I’ve begun. So what’s so special about that? It encourages more ‘doing.’ My mind is thinking while I’m drawing, offering up new ideas and new designs.
Process needs momentum to generate new ideas and outcomes.
If you look at The Bayeux Tapestry each part of the narrative is divided by either a tree, a grouping of trees or buildings. Now I love working with buildings using my usual palette of solid, bright colour, but those interlaced, elegantly woven trees add wonderful contrast, movement and interest.
I’m always on the look-out for contrast, it’s one of the most underrated design devices. Those mesmerising, swaying trees are reminiscent to me of Celtic and Viking designs – appropriate for The Bayeux Tapestry and the time it was designed and definitely worthy of further investigation.
I use the interrupted line design device frequently.
Another design device I love to use is the interrupted line – that under-over-layering of lines where the eye is left to interpret and fill in the gaps. That sends out little sparks of interest. So simple, yet so effective.
How I would love to sit down with the designer of The Bayeux Tapestry and just talk. There’s such value looking back to what’s been done before – and the beauty of that is that I can utilise that work as a stepping stone to inspire new work, steeped in historical meaning. Now that’s fascinating.
But it has to start with ‘doing.’
