It has always fascinated me that you can have a room of creative people and one subject to paint, draw, or write about and at the end of the task, each will produce something different on the same subject. I was reminded of this when someone asked me, 'where do you get your ideas from?' There are many sources for ideas and it is the development of those ideas that produce original work. Is there any truly 'original' idea? Probably not and that may seem a controversial statement! It is, perhaps, more about what makes your treatment of that idea new and different. My ideas often have a long 'gestation' period before they actually appear on canvas or paper. They gradually take shape in my head before ever getting into a sketchbook.

During Winter 2016, when planning my Spring trip to Shetland, I poured over maps, looking into the geology of the Shetland Isles in search of inspiration. I was amazed to find that the Isles had never been attached to Scotland, but started out in the Southern Hemisphere. The continental drift sent them northwards, eventually causing a collision with the continental shelf that Scotland sits on. Some of the oldest rocks on Earth can be found on Shetland. It has a diverse range of rocks, layered and mingled with the movement of the Earth's crust, periods of ancient volcanic activity and climate change.

Through this exploration. I painted with watercolour and added line to create loose interpretations of contoured maps. Once dry, these sheets of paper were cut into strips and treated in different ways. The most interesting was when laid against a black background. The strips were raised and undulated across the page and then photographed from a low angle. Once transferred onto the laptop I printed them off as both, colour, and black and white images. They were then added to my sketchbook for future exploration.

By coincidence, this subject came up on 2 further occasions. The first was the 'A Shetland Series; rocks and skerries' exhibition at the Shetland Museum and Archive in Lerwick, an exhibition of pen and ink work by artist, Gemma Graham. Gemma had 'zoomed in' when looking at the landscape of Shetland and broken down each cliff face and area of stony ground  into lines, that not only described the size and bulk of these land forms, but the texture of individual facets of the rocks. (link to website below) The second was an exhibition at Gracefield Arts Centre, Dumfries, where there were sketches by the artist Wilhelmina Barns Graham, where contour lines with watercolour washes had been used. (Link to website below) The same theme had been explored and developed in very different ways.

This week I looked back in my sketch book, revisiting my own 'map' ideas and have begun work on a new triptych piece. The theme is 'Rip up your maps and walk your own path,' which sounds perfect for exploring original directions with your artwork and your life!
 
With good wishes,
Liz

Cherish your journey.

​visit-www.gemmagraham.co.uk
visit-www.wbg.emuseum.com/view/objects/asitem/528/24/dateBegin-asc?t:state:flow=98cf462f-8b12-4dc6-bb8d-8d8dfa7fc535