The final crunch of Hope Entwined V was an all-nighter. The sunrise filled the windows of my studio as I put on the finishing touches. acrylic on canvas,
30″ x 72″ © lizamyers
I love that quiet moment before the dawn when black and white shadows begin to transform into color. But many people think that I am seeing it from the wrong end… after working into the wee hours, or through the night. I have watched the sun rise after standing at my easel all night long too many times to count.
Why do I stay up into the wee hours? What is the appeal of the dark of night?
“Becalmed”
acrylic on canvas
42″ x 54″ ©lizamyers
Another product of many midnight hours. And a few sunrises as well.
There is no rational logic to it, but it has been the way I work since… since… forever, more or less.
Undoubtedly some of it comes from years of squeezing studio time into whatever time was left after teaching all day. That’s the life of an artist!
It’s also because I’m just stubborn. I’m always entranced by the possibilites of one more shadow to add, One more highlight.
But also there is something liberating about the tranquility of those hours- from about 1 am to 5 am.
Are you a night owl?
Some say that is when women do their work or dare I say their best ‘magic’. You might want to catch a read, Dreaming the Dark, by Starhawke or maybe you already have.
Thanks Sandy, I’ll look it up!
Your paintings are so beautiful and well-crafted. Evidently, working all night is the answer for you. For me, not so much; I need my sleep in order to function the next day. On the rare occasions when I do stay up late working, I get up with a headache that lasts all day. Blaaaaah. Night owl? Not so much.
I like the early morning hours with the change from dark to light, too. But that’s the start of my day, not the prelude to sleep. I have found myself with my eyes closed and brush in hand when I try to push it into the night. I’m also the first to leave a party, and was the first asleep at childhood slumber parties. I hear the robins around 4:30 a.m. waking me. Wonder what my automatic clock would be I’d be like if my name wasn’t Robin.
Hi Lynn… Everybody has different rhythms I guess. I try to be more “normal” but it doesn’t stick with me. Oh well… just so we keep making art!