In the next few days, the We Are All Artists free art project turns 50. The next art drop will be the 50th consecutive week I have made and given away art in our neighbourhood. The project continues to provide surprises, enjoyment and learning in so many ways, thank you to everyone who supports it.
This 50th milestone is being noted with a special collaboration, featuring the singer and guitarist, Chloe Ray. Chloe releases a new EP on March 17th, and we have agreed to make a double art drop together. One of the tracks on Chloe’s new EP is titled ‘Not Giving Up’, which as well as being a great song title, is coincidentally a really neat way to mark 50 weeks and going strong on the free art project.
I’m going to paint ‘Not Giving Up’, and the painting, and a copy of Chloe’s new EP will be hidden together for someone to find, somewhere in the local community next weekend.
Chloe and I would like to ask you for some inspiration and help with the painting please. When you see and hear the words, ‘Not Giving Up’, what imagery comes to mind? Please message me your thoughts and ideas and I hope to use some of them in the artwork which I’ll be making this week.
My image is of myself running over the small holdings. I quit smoking a number of years ago, and it’s a really tough addiction to get through. It takes two years for your brain chemistry to get back to normal. Creating mantras are part of the process of breaking free….I’m not giving up smoking, I am gaining life, I am gaining freedom….freedom to run.
A second image from this same time is Freddie Mercury in drag running a hoover around the living room (I want to break free)
I think of the image I was sent of a frog which is throttling the crane trying to eat him- the frog’s upper body being in the crane’s beak and it’s hands around it’s neck
Homelessness and countryless, forced to flee by mankind. When am safe I think about those who are not.
Hi Doug
When I was a wee lad both my parents worked full time so I spent a lot of my time with my paternal grandparents. My Nan always used to tell us “Put can’t in your pocket and pull out try”. I now give my kids the same advice. Thinking of that made me think of Robert the Bruce and the spider: “If at first you don’t succeed, try, try and try again.” Those three ‘tries’ made me think of threes in art and specifically triptychs. And then onto the notion of a triptych that shows the progression of a newly learned artistic technique or style. You often say ‘draw for the bin’ but why not show your working in an iterative three piece artwork.?
Thanks Simon – a lovely story and a lovely idea. I will take some time to consider how I can do this justice. I definitely want to make something which reflects your suggestion.