50 fun, simple, creative and interesting art ideas.

As a modern and abstract artist I love and enjoy a challenge especially when painting... But like all artist ( I'm certain) I find that the greatest single challenge is the blank canvas... it literally terrifies me, it is almost paralyzing.  I Set out with all the enthusiasm and energy necessary but as my brush rises to the canvas the fear grows, seizing me, tying me up in knots, my hand shake as a cold sweat brakes out....

Its madness, all the preliminary studies, research and sketches seam to mean nothing. All I can hear is the little voice inside my head screaming at me... What if its the wrong colour? what if you put it in the wrong place? what if you mess it up? what if you are wrong? what if you are right? Its Total madness. Total agony.

I read books on developing a positive mental attitude and dealing with fear and doubts to no avail... I know that there is no such thing as the wrong colour or wrong place, I even understand that there is "No right or wrong,  just dose it work!" and work is what it is all about.! any good artwork or painting that I or any one can produce is about energy. Raw energy that the artist binds within their work. The energy that is bound in every brushstroke, that literally leaps off the canvas and make a painting vibrate with a life all its own.

Fear like all deep human emotions creates energy and vibrancy without it paintings can feel flat and lifeless and no amount of artistic skill or talent can conceal or hide this missing inner energy that all exciting paintings need.  I for one keep this painting to keep me focused... (No matter what I personally feel about this piece) it still posses an inner energy that I constantly seek to capture and reproduce in all my work and paintings.

However if we consider that fear like all emotions add emotional content, and is a vital part in any modern or abstract paintings, despite any understanding we as individuals might have of our deep emotional stance, we, as artist must to some extent live with and encourage extremes of emotion if we are to paint worthwhile artwork that touches the human psychology that all of us have been conditioned with through out our lives.

Finding solutions that work
Faced with this paradox I found myself struggling both to balance the need for fear and to overcome its personal effects.  The solution is essentially simple  "take action" "Just do it" the more you face a fear the more that fear diminishes and recedes, this I can vouch for... as once I have made that first mark all my fear vanishes leaving me buzzing with excitement. The fact is that most fears are not real they are just phantoms that are easily banished.

The more that I have considered this the more I have come to realise that it is not the painting that is holding me back or even the feelings, but rather the value that I as an individual artist I have for the modern and abstract art that I lovingly paint and devote myself too as a slave. I simply value my art to high and as a consequence I'm frightened that I will "cock it up" and make a mess of it.

Art Is Fun ! especially modern or abstract art, even the making of art should be fun and it seams that I have forgotten this…. The solution to this is to get back to basics and start to have some serious fun with what I do and paint. Seams simple don’t it, but How. I sat down and started to write, throwing ideas about and seeing what happened then it hit me.

Make a list of 50 fun and interesting art ideas. Keep it simple, make it fun and don’t take it to serious. By using different media and techniques that are outside the box, radical and even unorthodox, I can play with Ideas, colours, shapes and concepts in a fun and novel way. I know that most of pictures and images produced will probably just get thrown away but that’s OK. I will have fun and explore art as it should be and when I’m ready I will be able to just paint.

The list itself started with a stream of creative ideas, but by the time I got to 42 things started to get a bit more challenging. I have covered all sorts of mediums from pastels to inks, water colour to acrylic, photo and film mixed-media and found objects, even. Dare I say it “Installations”. I have had so much fun with the list alone that I’m buzzing with excitement and energy and cant wait to get started….

I have been making art or modeling in one form or another for all of my life however it struck me that to simply dismiss the product of this project would be remiss of me... Lets be honest the success and failures of any artwork are of value not just to me but to any that have an interest in art and painting. What I should do is make a record of this body of work recording the Good, Bad and dam right Ugly, how it was made, the media used and what was learnt or gained in the making of it...

Now all I have to do is decide how best to do this ? Do I put the work on this Blog ? Create a new Blog dedicated to to this ongoing art project ? or something else ? what to do ? If you my readers have a suggestion I would welcome your input immensely.

the best Hubpages article... how to paint a better picture

Making better art is as much about how you see the world as it is about what you do within It. I have just written my best Hubpages article to date. The article, entitled "How to pain a better picture" is despite how the title sounds not about painting skills or style but rather how I as a modern artist deal with the problem of focus and objectivity.

Being an artist requires a lot from me and painting I have realised is only one small part of what I do... Reading, learning, understanding and growing as well as writing are vital to producing fantastic modern art. Hubpages is just one of a number of places that I invest my time and energy as well as this blog I write several others and contribute articles and comments across the internet all of which allows me to channel my thoughts and I believe and hope is as much a benefit to others as it is to me.

Thank you for contributing to this community I deeply appreciate your valuable time as I realise that all comments allow us to learn from our mistakes and build on our successes

Art is a universal world wide language

I believe that Art is a universal world wide language.. I is not that pictures speak a thousand words its just that we understand the words spoken. last night while drifting around on the web I came across a shot video file for CHANGE an artist action group in Montréal called the ATSA that help the underprivileged there.

As an individual I am not a big supporter of charities although I do make regular payment to CARE International and I do buy poppies in November, in fact when ever I see the stand I empty my pockets of all the change I have (sadly my pocket are not deep) however I was so struck by the video I left a comment and decided to have a closer look at the ATSA and there CHANGE initiative.


I have to say I am impresed and have included links so you can get involved or just have a look as I have done ether way the world is a better place if art can and is used to help and not just as a soap box for radicals..

change website
ATSA website
CARE International 

update on MJo-ART's web-site and studio improvements

Time has a way of flowing like the flood of a river, at one moment is sedate and peaceful or at others a torrent of force and surging energy that threatens at every moment to carry me away or engulf me. So it has been with me and my recent endeavors.

Since just before christmas, time has been my foe and adversary, however The new web-site is taking shape with better content and a more comfortable lay-out. I can now say that within a few months I will be able to set a launch date which I expect to be some time in the summer or sooner if I can find some quiet time to reflect on those niggling wordings that still don't quite sit right on the page.

The improvements to my studio are also going well now after I have solved some problems with damp and moisture during that cold week or two of snow and ice which got into the plasterboard and brought the ceiling down. Mmmm...More expense and effort involved but it is now all painted and I am moving forward with grater purpose than before.

I seams that it has been so long since I last painted but that is the joy or bane of being an artist in today's modern world You must at times devote your self to the mundane of Marketing, self promotion, web-design, writing and business planing along all manner of other things rather than putting paint on Canvas.

Modern art in Barcelona

I gave two friend a lift to London the other night, so that they could go and see Moby playing at the Palace theater. On the way home we soon all got chatting about Art and Barcelona as it is a place we have all visited at one time or another. I spent 5 wonderful days in this city with my girlfriend a couple of years ago. While I was there I managed to visit a number of art galleries and exhibitions that where going on at the time which was brilliant. Although the Picasso Museum was fabulous and is so well known I am however always surprised that the museum of modern art in Barcelona MACBA is hardly talked about. Not only is the building a brilliant example of modern architecture, the collection of painting, art and sculpture is stunning and well worth the time spent immersing your self in for an hour or two....
the beautiful photo from: MorBCN

Adding and Improving links

I have not been feeling very well for a while "got a cough to my cold" as Forest Gump put it so eloquently in the movie. However I have not been Idle and sitting around feeling sorry for myself (with "Man Flew"), instead I have spent my time doing research and adding or improving links to my website. Content might be the flesh on the bones of websites but Links are the life blood of the Internet allowing users to follow threads and develop or gain new knowledge. This is all part of my plan for the new and improved website which is slowly taking shape with lots more new content, paintings, information with HTML coding and all fully Search Engine Optimized to enhance my visitors experience of the site...

I have added links and uploaded pictures to places like My Space, Local artists, Digg, and Devaint art to list just a few I have also put together a new free website on snappages as an experiment both to test the simplicity and applications of the platform, as a number of people have asked me for different ways to develop a web presence that is free and easy to use. Clearly this is not the only place you can get a Free website but many sell advertising space or have banner advertising which in my opinion down values any site. This Snap Pages site took me an afternoon to put together and I have to say that it is simple and effective, although it lacked the flexibility that I have become accustomed too...Anyway give it a look and let me know what you think.  


A link to: My site on Abstract and Modern Art 
A link to: Snap Pages for Free websites