I've found there's different reasons art can be painful. Occasionally I feel it when I try something new. It can be the pain of falling short of your vision. Stumbling and falling hard. Creation of ugliness, harsh discord. But with intention, the birth of something new, alive and wonderful can happen. But you have to love all the creations even the ugly ones.
I hated these drawings. Just despised them. I drew them on a day when I felt blocked. A nasty, blocked feeling. A big disconnect. And I hated them for a long time.
Love them now. They are interesting because there's a struggle in them. Also some vulnerability. Perhaps they're expressive of mixed feelings. I'm not sure what they mean but I like them.
Anyway, they led to the development of this character Balloon Girl.
There may have been a few years between the set of sketches and this realisation of the character. Maybe 2 or 3 years but it's hard to remember.
It came together when I realised there was a tension between the body and the head: different impulses, conflicting emotion or internal dilemma, expressed in two parts of the same being.
Browsing on Instagram before bed, I found this AI generated video by @davidszauder - you see a balloon headed woman at the start. https://www.instagram.com/p/DGTVcLIoU_e/ which is unusual - it's not an especially common motif. I like connections.
Post 29 of 365
I've decided to commit to 365 days of social media continuity and publish 1 blog post per day for a year.
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A penny per post, 10p per post or even a pound: every little helps! Thank you.
Head over to my Just Giving Page for Macmillan Cancer Support