This painting started when I purchased a book on symbolism around the year 2000. I used the book like a treasure hunt. I would say a prayer of intent, open the pages to a symbol, and draw the symbol I found on the page. It was fun to see what appeared to me about my journey, the world view, and how to find something unique and useful. It was a great way to find content for a painting. The black cat? He was my cat that always was involved in my artwork. He would insist on sitting on my lap as I created and would purr away as I made strokes with my brush. I had read earlier about using four tips for using symbolism in your writing and had decided I could use this idea to create the content for my painting. The four tips are as follows:
- Begin with the story and characters.
- Balance small scale and large-scale symbolism
- Don’t just use standard symbols.
- Use symbolism to add emotional resonance.
- I began my painting with a character: my Black Cat and the book on symbolism.
- I balanced small scale and large-scale symbolism both visually and in meaning.
- The symbols were a surprise. They were all very ancient and from various cultures.
- The emotional resonance touched me deeply as I opened the book after saying a prayer of intent.
As you view the pastel painting, see if you can find your meanings in the symbols that catch your eye or touch your heart. You can purchase the original painting on my site or Instagram. You can also get prints from my new printable store on Etsy called SandraLongmoreArt. Etsy PrintableInstagram