There are no rules.
"There are no rules. That is how art is born, how breakthroughs happen.
Go against the rules or ignore the rules. That is what invention is about.”
—Helen Frankenthaler.
Relate to the experimentation Helen Frankenthaler applied to her art as you continue your care giving journey.
Keep learning and asking and finding joy every day.
Helen Frankenthaler (1928-2011) was raised in New York City with her art career spanning six decades. With her approach, “soak-stain technique,” she stretched the concept of abstract painting. A plain canvas was left in its natural state enabling color to flow, serendipity, creating beautiful outcomes.
In the beginning, she used oil-based paint diluted with turpentine thinned to a consistency that resembled watercolors. With this harsh inclusion of turpentine, the canvases decayed over time, and all was lost. She experimented with acrylic paint, again thinned to a watercolor consistency and this time she found her solution. The paint and canvas worked together: pouring, dripping, sponging, using paint rollers to spread the paint, sometimes paint brushes, all the while learning to manipulate the outcome. The art has a spontaneous feel with vibrant colors.
Life Lesson: “What is my responsibility? What must be suffered? What can be changed? What can I know? How can I meet this in a way which both lets me open my eyes the next day and, perhaps, if I’m lucky, can be of service to a changed future?”
Jane Hirshfield posed these questions. She is the author of many poetry books and two books of essays: Nine Gates: Entering the Mind of Poetry and Ten Windows: How Great Poems Transform the World.