Happiness Project Dy 78: Getting My Soul Fed Through Paint and Sigur Ros

"Headed Towards The Light" (in progress) ©Tabetha Hastings

I'm really trying not to repeat things that make me happy for this 100 day journey, but sometimes it must be done....

I spent this evening painting in my studio, and my soul has been fed. It's strange how sometimes six hours of painting can feel like three, and other times three hours can feel like six. Tonight was the latter, but in a really good way.

I decided to give myself a break from the intricate, detailed painting that I do in my tree bark series, and instead worked on an older piece (big brush strokes is what I was looking for).

If you've been to one of my classes or Paint Club in the past few months you may have seen this painting hanging on a wall, waiting for some love. The truth is that it's been sitting in my back room for YEARS waiting for me to finish it. I finally decided to pull it out and hang it on the wall in hopes of some inspiration.
The picture above was taken after I finished for the evening (and I must say I'm pleased - the picture doesn't do it justice). Conceptually, it was the same before I started painting on it tonight; I just added some more layers and depth and dimension to it.

One of the things that I love about painting is that it is such a great analogy for life. You can drop an issue that you're having trouble with - something you need to work out. Like relationship issues, a friendship, or even a book that you can't seem to bring yourself to finish. Then you go along in life - it could be for a few weeks or a few years. All the while you're gaining life experience and new skills and learning how to deal with things. Then one day you go back to the relationship issue, you call the friend, or you pick up the book, and the same issues are still there. But you are different. With any luck you've gained the skills and life experience to tackle the problem in a whole new way. You're looking at it from a fresh perspective.

It's the same way with painting. I get stuck on something, and the painting waits patiently for me to figure it out. It waits for me to improve my skills, or to purchase the right color or brush. Or it waits for me to see the right sunset, nature documentary, or have the right conversation, to gain the needed inspiration to finish it.
Pretty freaking cool, no?

I listened to several cds tonight, but as I was finishing up, this song from Sigur Ros came on. It felt like my painting, somehow. The name of the the song is Ekki Mukk (Sigur Ros is from Iceland). I just looked it up on youtube to post the video, and in parentheses after the song title it says... Moving Art. Of course it does. lol (And interestingly, AS I was listening to this song, I was imagining my painting animated - and I had no idea the song was called Moving Art!)