Meaning in Randomness

Pink Embrace, Pen and Ink, Acrylic. 4" x 4" 2014

I was lucky enough to take a couple of classes at the Artisan's Expo at Buffalo Thunder (near Santa Fe) last week. The class that really piqued my interest was Kumomi: Finding Meaning in Randomness. The title says a lot, doesn't it? Kumomi roughly means "cloud watching" and is meant to be a contemplative approach to mark making. But I also think it is exciting to be making connections out of chaos on a page!

Sunrise, Pen and Ink, Acrylic. 4" x 4". 2014

The basic technique begins with making free and colorful paintings on cards (or gesso board- we used both; all about 4" x 4"), with no particular direction in mind. It's harder than it seems to just let the paintbrush swipe across the page without a plan... I couldn't help but attempt a certain balance in color and shape, but the idea is to let go and let the paint just be on the card. Moving quickly, most of us in the class got through over a dozen cards in a short amount of time. The paint we were using was new to me- but, WOW do I like it. It's a super high-flow acrylic, so it goes on like ink or liquid water color, keeps its color intensity, and is waterproof. So much fun!

Interestingly, we all had different interpretations of the methodology, which I suppose is to be expected. One woman, working across from me at the table, seemed unable to let go of the control during the painting. She took significantly longer to complete the painting step, managing in the end to have little paintings already created, before adding the pen drawings. They had a beauty, of course, but my own interpretation of the philosophy behind this technique is to learn to let go of that level of control, and know that it will turn out beautifully in the end (without a plan) anyway. And on the same token, another women working across from me was particularly harsh in her criticism of her own work, calling her paintings, "ugly little things," and cynically "hoping for the best" when she started drawing. To shoot down her own random paint marks was rather self defeating at the outset, I think, and not at all what the intention of the workshop was about.

After allowing the freedom of random paint, including dripping and melding and flowing– or even using a straw to blow the paint into spatters and wild shapes– to open up the blankness of an empty piece of paper, we took to it with pen and ink to fill in the white space. With no preconceived notions, the pen transforms the negative space into something with presence. An artist (or practitioner of any sort) can leave a certain ambiguity filled with shape and line and beauty, or she can find some sort of meaning in the random shapes and colors. In my experience with Kumomi thus far, I can't help but have my own thoughts and images sneak through the apparent chaos. Developing a concept in visual form from what appears at first to be meaningless is quite empowering, actually!

Kumomi Monster and Tank by Rhys, age 8

Of course, part of the beauty of this technique is that anyone can do it. My son, 8, jumped right in and illustrated one of my cards, including finding a monster in the middle. He was satisfied with leaving some white space, which was something I was finding hard to do. We can all learn from each other!