Shared Abundance

I recently participated in an inspiring group painting project, Shared Abundance, and just had to share this inspiring journey with you!

A Bit of Background…

I belong to an artist inspiration group comprised of 9 gifted creatives. It’s a modern-day version of the salon. We meet monthly to inspire, encourage, and further our artistic/business development.

Our group is comprised of the following artists: Shannon Grissom, Carolyn Hartling, Mary Beth Harrison, Barbara Liss, Gina Mims, Sandra Lee Scott, Teresa J. Sharp, Lura Schwarz Smith, and Lisa Zylstra.

Each meeting, we pose a creative challenge to one another. For example, during one gathering at Gina Mim’s gallery, Mary Beth Harrison came up with an idea to complete a group painting from a single reference photo. She suggested that each artist contribute an original work depicting a section of the image. Then, we would combine the individual paintings to create a singular work. We were initially going to paint on cradled wood panels, but Mary Beth found pre-cut puzzle pieces from Trekell, and that interlocking surface took her idea to a whole new level. The group agreed the puzzle pieces would be the perfect way to join us all together both physically and figuratively. Mary Beth promptly placed the order with Trekell.

Next, we submitted and voted on images and titles for the artwork until we reached a group consensus. Both the agreed-upon reference photo, and title of the work, Shared Abundance, originated from Lura Schwarz Smith.

Mary Beth Harrison suggested that Alexa select the quadrants for us. We all agreed that random Alexa assignments would be the fairest way to assign the sections, as some areas were more interesting to paint than others.

Here’s our reference photo, taken by Lura Schwarz-Smith, and gridded/printed for us by Lura’s husband, Kerby Smith, who, by the way, is also an artist!

Reference Photo Fruit Still Life in Colander — *Gridded Reference Photo*

Everyone had their own way of approaching the task at hand. Some artists started with a toned ground of various hues. Others used white gesso. Some pieces were painted using acrylic paint, others chose oils. However, we all agreed that we would paint the sides black, and that the final piece would be varnished.

Note: To preserve the funkiness of the artwork, we did not show our individual pieces or consult each other about specific measurements after the initial meeting.

My Approach

I received the lower-left quadrant. It was fun to play with the subtle neutrals in that section!

From the onset, I decided my highest priority was to create a work harmonious with all the other pieces. Accordingly, I kept my color close to the reference photo. In addition, I used a brush rather than a knife, as I wanted my texture to be similar to the other work.

To ensure that my piece lined up with the other elements, I printed an additional reference photo of my section, placed the puzzle piece on top of the paper, and traced the shape. I then cut it out and used that photo to ensure my shapes were aligned with my neighbors.

The Assemblage

We gathered in Lura’s studio for the initial assemblage. Here’s how it looked when we first pieced it together:

Because we painted the sides, we had some difficulty getting the pieces to fit flush. No matter! We decided that we loved the irregularity of the off-kilter sections, and we decided to roll with it.

Artists Surrounding Puzzle Painting — **L to R:** Teresa J. Sharp, Gina Mims, Lura Schwarz Smith, Barbara Liss, Mary Beth Harrison, Lisa Zylstra, Shannon Grissom, Sandra Lee Scott **Not Shown:** Carolyn Hartling

Once we were happy with the placement, I took the artwork back to my studio for reinforcement. That sort of engineering is not my strong suit, but I knew my husband Dwight would properly reinforce the piece. I was not disappointed! Dwight engineered hand-cut wood blocks for each specific section. Then he added an abundance of Gorilla Glue until the artwork was solidly put together.

I then handed Shared Abundance off to Sandra Lee Scott. Scott varnished the finished piece and also entered the work into the Yosemite Sierra Artists 51st Anniversary Art Competition and Exhibition at Circle Gallery, Madera, CA.

I am so happy to report that we won the 1st place award in the Mixed Media Category! I love that in sharing our abundant gifts, we created an award-winning work that is filled with love.