Week four of the Documented Life Project's prompts were writing for the art challenge, and words with friends for the journal prompt.
I chose to not use the words with friends prompt this time, but I did follow the writing prompt for the art challenge. It might not look like it now, but there is a lot of writing under all those bright colours.
Over the last couple of months, I read an influential book, influential for me anyway. It is called "Mothers who can't love: a healing guide for daughters". One of the exercises in the book was to write a letter to my mother that would never get sent. The letter is supposed to have four parts, I only wrote a very short version about the first two which were "this is what you did to me" and "this is how I felt about it".
I had to condense what I wanted to say so it would fit on one piece of paper. I used that letter and then covered it in gesso. Once it was dry, I painted layers of bright acrylic paints to do a messy colourful background.
I doodled little white dots with the gelly roll pen. A few hearts and bubbles in acrylic paint, outlined with the white gelly pen finished the page.
My letter is now covered and changed into a bright happy colourful page. A little reminder of peace for me at the bottom of the page. This was a great therapeutic process.
I can see a little bit of the letter still through the paint, enough to remind me it is there.
You can see all the details for the 2015 Documented Life Project at Art to the 5th.
I chose to not use the words with friends prompt this time, but I did follow the writing prompt for the art challenge. It might not look like it now, but there is a lot of writing under all those bright colours.
Over the last couple of months, I read an influential book, influential for me anyway. It is called "Mothers who can't love: a healing guide for daughters". One of the exercises in the book was to write a letter to my mother that would never get sent. The letter is supposed to have four parts, I only wrote a very short version about the first two which were "this is what you did to me" and "this is how I felt about it".
I had to condense what I wanted to say so it would fit on one piece of paper. I used that letter and then covered it in gesso. Once it was dry, I painted layers of bright acrylic paints to do a messy colourful background.
I doodled little white dots with the gelly roll pen. A few hearts and bubbles in acrylic paint, outlined with the white gelly pen finished the page.
My letter is now covered and changed into a bright happy colourful page. A little reminder of peace for me at the bottom of the page. This was a great therapeutic process.
I can see a little bit of the letter still through the paint, enough to remind me it is there.
You can see all the details for the 2015 Documented Life Project at Art to the 5th.
My goodness, Alex, this is wonderful. What a process to go through and hopefully very healing. I should try this - I have someone in mind who is no longer alive but still affects me. I love how you took what you experienced and covered it up with beauty and love. xx
ReplyDeleteThis is so beautiful, what a brilliant idea. And as always, any time I see a picture of you painting our journaling I want to dig out my supplies!
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