Abstract Painting

1. What was the experience like?
A: The experience felt messy, sticky, and childish at first. As i smeared more and more paint the stickiness started to bother me less. It felt equivalent to being a kid and playing with my food at the dinner table when no one was watching.

2. Was it easier, harder, or different than you expected?
A: It was harder than I excepted. The notion that I had to post a picture of it online was in the back of my head. I kept thinking I wasn’t using enough diversity in my colors. Imbalance and asymmetry was all I saw while I was painting. I had to keep reminding myself not to paint anything with representation. It was hard to do since all i could think about was how messy and hideous the painting it looked. I ended up closing my eyes and just smearing the paper at the end of ambiguity.

3. How was the experience of making a painting with no subject? Confusing & Frustrating? Liberating & Inspiring?
A: It was frustrating not understanding the task. I wanted to just logically write/draw figures, or even words. My dog watched me struggle painting and i even tried grabbing one of her paws hoping she could help. It turns out she hates paint on her paws and ran off into the bathroom while I struggled.

4. How does this compare to other paintings you have seen?
A: While I was painting I kept trying to remember how the other paintings looked to mimic “abstract art”. Of course I failed, the painting looked too busy, messy and just like a 4-year old’s work. I ended up throwing the painting in the other room to dry. Hopefully, it looks better dried because it looks atrocious wet.