Studio News, Latest Works & Musings On A Coastal Life

   
"Dolphin Days"   12x16 inches  Original acrylic on canvas

© 2012 Barbara Blair

This stylized painting of dolphins, waves, a beach with sea shells, tropical flowers and palm trees is a joyful celebration of exotic coastal life.  It is the first painting I have done that has positive, affirmative words embedded in it under the paint.

Here's the start of this painting after I transferred the sketch from my sketchbook onto the canvas:

Even though most of my artwork deliberately includes clear lively colors and either joyful or peaceful images, I plan to also include positive intentions in future paintings, both in the form of words embedded under the paint, and also through my own positive thoughts while creating the artwork.  The idea behind this is that positive thoughts and energy in objects radiate outward on a subtle level and affect the spaces they are in, and in so doing positively affect the people around them.

We know from physics that everything is energy.  Color and light, words, thoughts, music, sound, as well as shapes are all different forms of energy vibrations.  We also know from experiments by quantum physicists that human consciousness effects matter.  To quote Albert Einstein:  "Everything is energy and that's all there is to it.  Match the frequency of the reality you want and you cannot help but get that reality.  It can be no other way.  This is not philosophy.  This is physics." 

There is a lot of information available on this topic: the work of Gregg Braden's "Divine Matrix" comes to mind, as does Dr. Masaru Emoto's experiments with the effect of music and words on water.

I was an interior designer for many years, and have always been interested in how what we put into our built environments affects us physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually.  Biologist Bruce Lipton has written a very interesting book "The Biology of Belief" in which he proves that the environment of the cells is very important to health.  If we experience high levels of stress from negative thoughts, feelings, beliefs and perceptions (much of which is running us on a subconscious level), it shuts down our immune system and therefore allows many forms of "dis-ease". 

What does this have to do with our homes and offices?  Everything we put in them is "food" that we ingest through all of our senses, and their energies, whether positive or negative, have an effect on our moods, stress levels, hormones, cellular activity, brain functioning, and therefore our health, happiness and overall well-being.  If you've ever read anything about Feng Shui, which deals with the energies in buildings as well as the surrounding land, you will easily make the connection.  It's very important that the buildings in which we live and work are balanced, harmonious and beautiful.  Colors and artwork are an important part of that equation.

With that said - back to my art:  In addition to embedding positive words and intentions hidden in the paintings, I also plan to create images with words written visibly on top of them.  A custom commision service will also soon be available to include a customer's requested colors and words. More on this later.

Regarding this article's featured painting, "Dolphin Days", what feelings and/or words come to your mind when you look at this image?  I'd be very interested in hearing your comments and getting your feedback as to whether anyone picks up on what I have embedded in it!  Thanks so much.

For pricing and information on the original "Dolphin Days" painting, as well as giclée reproduction prints which are available in several sizes, click on the links.

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Three of my peaceful land, sea and sky paintings are currently on exhibit at the Transcendental Meditation (TM) Center in Encinitas, CA. 

Describing my paintings as "portals into the infinite", James G. Meade PhD, Director of the TM Center reacted this way to the exhibit: "You're walking across the living room, and the next instant you find yourself transported to another dimension. You glance over, and you just get drawn in, and in, and in."

"The Sailboat"    12" x 16"   Mixed Media

"Coastal Meadow"   12" x 16"

"Off-Shore Calm"   12" x 16"

Would you like a tranquil, contemplative painting in your home or office to transport you mentally to a more peaceful place?  It's a great stress-reducing tool that you can use over and over, as often as you need it!

I specialize in custom commissions and can create a painting uniquely for you in just the right size and colors for your space.  Let's talk.  I can be reached at 760-966-1295, or send me an email.

To stay current with my latest work and art activities, become a member of my email newsletter.  I send it out approximately once a month or less, and will never share your information with anyone.

Continuing on from my previous blog post (Peaceful Water Paintings - Part 1) about my learning process in painting water, I wanted the third canvas to be larger, so here it is:

 "Peaceful Water, Turquoise"   24x24"

My goal for this piece was to be somewhat abstract without a lot of brushstrokes or detail, and use my established style of softly blending colors.  This idea worked well for my intended result of a peaceful, non-busy image.  It has less lines and ripples in it than in "Peaceful Water, Blue" (previous blog post).

My biggest challenge in this painting was working with acrylics, my paint of choice.  The colors are lighter in value when wet, and dry darker.  So it takes some practice in the paint mixing to know whether the value is right before applying it. 

This painting needed quite subtle gradations of color and values in order for the finished effect to be soft and somewhat ethereal.  I had to rework some of the ripples and areas of light on the water several times before getting the values that I wanted. 

Overall, I'm pleased with this piece, and plan to do more similar ones in soft colors, some on larger canvases. This is also my favorite of the three I've done so far, because I love all shades of turquoise.  It's my favorite color!

For more information and pricing on "Peaceful Water, Turquoise", click on the title below the image.

If you'd like information and pricing regarding custom sizes and colors, please email me or call 760-966-1295.  This style of painting is perfect for any room in a coastal or beach house decorating scheme, or any space where rest and relaxation is desired.

To stay current with my latest work and art activities, become a member of my email newsletter.  I send it out approximately once a month or less, and will never share your information with anyone.

Is your home a refuge and retreat where you can relax and reenergize?  When you walk through the door, does the stress of the day melt away?  Or if not, is there a special room in your home where you can escape from the pressures of daily life - a space that has soothing colors, soft lines, comforting furnishings and peaceful artwork?

As a former interior designer, I have been interested in the psychological and healing possibilities of the built environment for many years.  It is my main motivator for painting coastal, tropical and water images, beside the fact that I've had a love affair with the ocean all my life. 

• Paintings of water provide you with a serene energy for your home that is soothing, calming and stress-reducing. 
• Hotels and spas around the world focus on water elements to reinforce the rejuvenating, refreshing purpose of a resort.
• Research shows that peaceful paintings of water and landscapes in healthcare facilities promote healing and reduce the length of patient stays.

This month I’ve been adding to my Serenity Collection of coastal water and landscape paintings which are very minimal in design.  Here are three of my new additions in soft, muted colors:

"Coastal Calm"    12" x 12"

© 2011 Barbara Blair

"Distant Shore"   12" x 12"

© 2011 Barbara Blair

"Tranquil Coast"   12" x 12"

© 2011 Barbara Blair

Although these pieces are a smaller 12x12" size, I welcome custom commissions in colors of your choice in larger sizes such as 18", 24", 30" or 36" square.

These images are ideal over a living room sofa, in a dining room, a bedroom, a meditation room, or anywhere in the home where you would like to create a peaceful, soothing retreat for rest and relaxation. 

You will find them on my website here.  They are very reasonably priced.  If you would like pricing on larger sizes, please call me at 760-966-1295 or send me an email. 

My next project is to paint larger sizes with these themes, and they will be posted to my website soon, so please check back.

 Here are some sobering facts about stress:

• Stress has become an epidemic in our society, and many people have accepted it as part of their daily lives without realizing the toll it takes on our health and well-being.
• Stress is responsible for 90% of health problems.  Almost every major illness has been linked to chronic stress.
• Stress is a flight or fight response.  It creates completely different chemicals in your body than joy and love.
• Everyday you lose and have to repair and replace hundreds of billions of cells.  Stress hormones shut down the immune system, and inhibit growth of the body so that the body breaks down, ages and gets diseases.
•  Stress is the #1 cause of depression, and one in 15 Americans are depressed.
• 40 million people in the U.S., or 1 in 7, are under some kind of anxiety or stress that is draining them.

While creating your home as a supportive retreat is a start, here are more suggestions to help you reduce stress: 

• Identify the people or circumstances that cause you stress, and learn to manage or avoid them.
• Reduce the amount of television watching, and banish noisy video games to a secondary room of the house.
• Listen to peaceful music combined with soothing sounds of nature.
• Learn to say “no” when asked to do things that you don’t want to do.
• Laugh more.  Laughter heals.
• Practice a meditation technique every day.  Transcendental Meditation (TM) is excellent.
• Exercise regularly.
• Get enough sleep
• Eat a healthy nutritious diet.
• Forgive yourself and others.
• Start a daily “Gratitude” list.   
• Be aware of your negative thoughts and emotions and focus on the positive instead.  As you release negative emotions you open the way to experience more joy and peace of mind.

The focus of my work is to create paintings that are stress-reducing, rejuvenating and uplifting, and I’m currently working on a series of “waterscape” paintings inspired by my love of the sea and coastal areas. I’ve personally always found the ocean or any large body of water to be very calming and balancing.
                                                       

 

I especially enjoy long walks on a beach when the tide is low and there’s a wide expanse of sand, either in the early morning or early evening hours when there are only a few people around. “Solitude” seems like the perfect name for this ocean painting, which provides a visual escape to a peaceful meditative place – an experience that begins with the eyes and expands to the heart and soul.

Find out more about "Solitude" here.

 

 

"Off-Shore Calm"   12" x 16"  Acrylic on Canvas
© Copyright 2010 Barbara Blair

                                                                                                           
Imagine drifting in a boat on a balmy summer day, not far from the shore. Feel the gentle motion of the water rocking you as you lie in the warm sun. There’s no sound except for the peaceful lapping of the water on the side of the boat. All is calm. Life is good.

My coastal and water paintings are intended to provide you with momentary “joyful escapes and peaceful retreats” for you to experience in your home or office.

Find out more about "Off-Shore Calm" here.

See more pictures in the waterscape series.

"Coastal Meadow" 

For several years hospitals and medical facilities have included art in their buildings to help patients in their treatment and healing process, to calm fears, speed recovery, as well as reduce stress for staff and visiting family members.

Several studies have been done on the benefits of art in the healthcare field.  Positive healing art images affect the autonomic nervous system, hormonal balance, brain neurotransmitters, the immune system and the blood flow to all organs in the body.  The most healing images are of expansive nature scenes, calm water, trees and flowers.

Healing artwork also has a valuable place in the home and office.  We are living in a very stressful world.  Many people are experiencing anxiety, sleep disorders, high blood pressure, depression and many other ailments as a result of stress, as it takes a heavy toll on the body and immune system. 

Your home can be a powerful tool to create health, happiness and well-being, if it is filled with positive impressions and images.  You could think of art and everything else that you place in your environment as food that you ingest through your senses, and that affects you on a cellular level.  Your body functions at maximum wellness surrounded with sympathetic compatible frequencies that create harmony.  It is therefore important to make choices that resonate with you in a positive way.

By placing images in your home and office that allow you to experience a moment of quiet reflection, or a sense of joy or upliftment at any time of the day, it will help you to combat stress and stay more balanced.  Think about what images and colors feel good, make you happy and inspire you.  For many people this involves pictures of nature, as the studies indicate.

What is hanging on your walls?  If you have dreary old pictures that you inherited from your grandmother as “family heirlooms” and feel obligated to hang them on your walls but have never liked them, give yourself permission to take them down. 

The painter Henri Matisse said that art should be “something like a good armchair in which to rest from physical fatique.”  Surround yourself with what you love (this applies to everything in your home, not just the artwork) and get rid of what you don’t love. 

Then notice how your home or office has transformed into a joyful life-affirming space.

Image shown above:

"Coastal Meadow"  12" x 16"  Acrylic on Canvas

© Copyright 2010 Barbara Blair

Click on the link for more information about this painting.

See more pictures of waterscape paintings.