Fun In The Studio by Leada Wood

Everyday is a happy day when you can spend time in the studio painting, especially with friends. The arts bring people together, it’s a language anyone can speak, whether young or not so young. We are  all young at heART!

I sure enjoy my special time with my kiddos as well as my friends. I hope this new year brings new and exciting things for you to look forward too. Dare to be creative and learn something new! 

And support the ARTS!

I did catch up a bit on my blog and hopefully next year I will keep up. I enjoy sharing the things I am doing with you and I hope you enjoy seeing a little of what I do in the studio. You can find more of my posts on leada_wood@instagram.  Instagram makes it so easy that I find I am using it more and more but I do enjoy my blog, as it is another way to journal.

Happy New Year!



Collage Play by Leada Wood, Texas Artist

I just love paper and have stacks of it. I delight in printing my own with my Gelli plate or using an old book that is ready to recycle and it is always fun to rip and glue my papers into a new design. Here is part of a series that I have made using a limited palette, collage, and a word that came to mind as I created each one.

"Celebrate"  ©2019 Leada Wood

"Shine"  ©2019 Leada Wood

"Balance" ©2019 Leada Wood

"Look at everything as though you are seeing it for the first time, with the eyes of a child fresh with wonder." -----Joesph Cornell



“Blooming Melody” by Leada Wood, Texas Artist

"Blooming Melody" ©2019 Leada Wood

When friends get together to create, there is an electrical current in the air.  On such a day this painting was conceived while digging through my stash of collage papers. Some were Gelli prints I had painted and others I found in my files. Cutting and gluing them into an arrangement of fantasy flowers was music to my heart. Making an intuitive collage is a joyful experience, you never know what you will create!

"Every possibility begins with the courage to imagine."---Mary Anne Radmacher





Family Fun by Leada Wood, Texas Artist

It's a pleasure to be a part of a family having fun. This group were having a family reunion and asked me to host a paint party for the afternoon. What an honor to share those precious moments with their family.

Grandmothers, Grand-daughter, Sisters, Aunts and cousins came together to create. Some of their family members came from as far away as Chicago IL.

Since a Texas theme was requested by Chris, I gave them a choice of Cacti or Sunflowers. They embraced the white canvas with enthusiasm and created their paintings.

Every good party is a work of heART! I couldn't have done it without the help of my Grand-Daughters! They pitched in and helped me set up and worked all during the festivities. I am so blessed!



“The Many Faces Of Eve” by Leada Wood, Texas Artist

"The Many Faces Of Eve" ©2019 Leada Wood

"Tear off the mask, your face is glorious." ----Rumi

This painting has had many faces. I started it in a figure painting workshop with Liz Hill several years ago but it was tossed in the unfinished painting stack to deal with later, when inspiration arrived. I cropped the finished (is a painting ever finished?) version to give it more mystery.

Inspiration finally did come but in phases, as most paintings do evolve in stages. I thought it might be interesting for you to see the process that Eve has been through.

The original had shorter hair, but I wanted it longer. I also painted over her face and  added crackle paste to give her texture.

This is another version before I decided she needed longer hair and a new face, back in the pile of unfinished paintings she went.

"The Masque" ©2019 Leada Wood


One day I saw a mask that captured my attention and decided to draw it. I really enjoy drawing with graphite and it is very relaxing to me. This one action created a reaction and got me thinking about the "lost girl' painting.  I retrieved Eve and started working on her again.

     

This is a very rough sketch on velum to see if the mask idea would work on the painting. I decided it would so I added a face and the mask to the girl.

“The Many Faces Of Eve”@2019Leada Wood

One idea usually leads to another and I started thinking of Eve and women in general and how we all hide behind masks at times. We wear many hats or masks throughout life. We are daughter, sister, wife, mother, grandmother, nurse, nanny, cook, housekeeper, and soooo much more! Some have careers added onto all of these titles and change from one role to the next at the drop of a hat.

All of this brainstorming was how I came up with the name, "The Many Faces Of Eve".  In life, just like painting, we undergo so many transitions and they take time. We are all the Daughters of Eve, the mother of humanity, all different but related and we all wear masks at times.

"Behind every mask there is a face, and behind that a story" ----Marty Rubin