Slaying of Principal Beasts (Print)

This piece, unlike most of my pieces, is not focused on emotional release. Instead, I focused on practicing imaginative composition and design, going back to my foundation taught in art school. I have felt stuck in my reliance on photo references, and lazily haven’t pushed myself into new, scary territory. Fear freezing me in place. The fear that I don’t actually know what I’m doing, that I’m just wasting my time, my work is going to look like trash, I don’t even know what subject to work on, how do I even begin, so many panicked thoughts. I continue to battle that mindset every time I sit down to create. I remind myself, not everything has to look real, some of the best works have come from creators experiences, feelings, and observations. I recognize that the necessity to rely on photo/live references to support creation is at the base of what every artist first learns; observe and record what is seen as accurately as possible, but that is not all that is available to the imaginative creator. I have been attempting to lean into imaginary color schemes, themes, and compositions. Expanding my visual toolbox past the limitations of what is in front of me and attempting to portray something entirely new.  Original is Acrylic on 8" x 11" paper (Print)