I don’t know about you, but I’m definitely getting some “just get to the art already” vibes with this whole blog post thing. So let’s skip the lengthy intro and dive right in!

We’ve already covered the catalyst for this new direction (my vision loss) and the inspiration behind it (houseplants + roots), so now it’s time to share the work itself.

I mentioned before that the first few pieces were painted with muted colors and tones, and they featured traditional backgrounds divided into geometric sections of just three colors. While I was beyond excited to be painting again, I was also ready to try something new. After finishing the first two with regular backgrounds, this crazy idea popped into my head: could I paint patterns with this new technique? Something like plaid? I did a quick google search and I didn’t see anything remotely close to what I had in mind. So of course, I needed to know if it was possible.

I decided to start really small to see how I could work out the kinks when painting patterns—and I had the perfect thing to practice in! At the tail end of my year of not seeing and a few months before diving back into painting, we took a brief trip to France. Some of it was to get away from the cold for a few days, but the other purpose was to see if new scenery could help trigger some kind of artistic inspiration/mindset shift after a very long dry spell. I mean, it makes sense right? Throughout history, artists have flocked to France. For good reason too: perfect light, an inherently creative atmosphere, and breathtaking views to boot. And while I didn’t actually paint on that trip, I did pick up the tiniest watercolor sketchbook. Because, well— it was mini and honestly I couldn’t resist. I didn’t know what I was going to do with it yet, but this felt like the perfect reason to finally break it open and get started. (Look for a future post where I cover all the feelings that come up when starting a new sketchbook. Trust me, this is a thing!)

The mini painting was easy enough, and I didn’t run into any major problems. But it turns out, painting on a small scale is very different than working larger. Especially when the larger pieces involve complicated layering! The first few rounds of trying to make gouache “plaid” were a nightmare, and I missed the mark so many times. Including obvious ways, like forgetting to account for perspective. Which, yup, I totally did. But I think the end result is still charming in its own way.

Mini sketchbook for the win! And also, can we just sit with how cool this little travel palette is? I’ll be doing an entire blog post about it. Why? Because it deserves the recognition!

I based many of the paintings on my own houseplants, but also on ones that I’d come across in my neighborhood. Our favorite local coffeeshop in Richmond always has succulents on the tables, so it only felt right to paint one. When I couldn’t see, there was only a handful of places I felt comfortable going to and The Robin Cafe was one of them. In fact, I distinctly remember going in and trying to get my eyes to focus on something, and that day it happened to be our table succulent. At the time, I didn’t actually know if the succulent in front of me had two, three, four, or six branches because, honestly? I wasn’t a reliable source. It could have had any number of branches for all I knew. (Spoiler alert: the painting is accurate!)

In either case, Branching Succulent became the first painting I did where I tried to push the envelope in terms of pattern making. The colors were still muted, but if I wasn’t going to explore bright colors yet, at least I could dive into new techniques. This was an experimental phase, and it paved the way for things I’d later do in other paintings.

I followed up with a checkered floor in one, and in another,  I made the background a squiggly pattern. At one point, I even used table salt to experiment with creating texture and legitimately got salt all over the flat. (Oops.) But the point is, I was having fun again.

And the minute I started having fun, the work changed.

I went from a muted palette, to the boldest colors I could mix. Pinks, blue, yellow… it didn’t matter. Whatever fear I had about playing with color dissipated. And honestly? You can see the shift.

As for right now? Well, I’m currently juggling some pretty exciting ventures—projects that are pushing my creativity and taking me in new directions. New places too! I’ll save the details for later, but trust me, there’s a lot to look forward to. Stay tuned, because things are about to get even more interesting!

x

Manda