I have created a series of paintings which feature a character whom I have named “The Sleepwalker.” This body of work which will be ongoing, can be hung on a wall individually, or grouped together, especially because of their thematic linkage. In these artworks, the Sleepwalking sojourns of the character meandering through his day or night dreams, allows for many interesting and varied displays, depending on the space available. Your own internal vision or hunches will help guide you through the selection of just how to combine these paintings or other paintings on any given wall.
“Sleepwalking in Colorama” is an example of one of the paintings in this series. I used mixed media to create them, namely, acrylics, oils, oil pastels, and oil-based ink pens on 100% archival, cotton fiber paper.. I spotted and dotted the rolling, mountainous landscape in order to create an energetic and scintillating effect.
I love painting the Sleepwalking series and therefore, will continue to do so! I will accompany my character on his journeys to unknown and wondrous places. I discover my art and my ideas as I create the settings for him. A combination of the what ifs and the joy of discovery, occurs when I paint, or when I write, or when I do a combination of both. Similarities and differences can combine in unexpected ways!
Creativity is about connectivity, surprises, and venturing into areas yet to be known. In the Sleepwalking series of paintings, I connect dreams, beauty, mystery, and humor.
Sleepwalking in Colorama
By Ellen Palestrant
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https://ellenpalestrant.com/product/sleepwalking-in-colorama/
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Let me start with humor: The Sleepwalker, always attired in his red dressing gown, amuses me. Wherever I take him, or wherever my intuition tells me to take him, he obligingly follows and I, obligingly follow him, or rather, I feel compelled to follow him. I allow my painting to take me to wherever the creative process wants to go and wherever my imagination takes me.
Humor is an essential ingredient of creativity. It helps creators when they take chances, are reckless, or make creative leaps which might work, or might not, or, become something quite different to what they had initially envisioned. Creativity is all about the unexpected and so is humor. People with a sense of humor see things differently. They recognize the ludicrous in a situation, or the incongruous or comical, and effectively give expression to these perceptions as I have done with my Sleepwalker.
Humor frees us from conventional ways of thinking and allows us to experiment and make unexpected connections. It enables us to laugh at ourselves and frees us to take risks – and make mistakes. I prefer to call these happy accidents because we often land up going in unexpected but better directions. Humor is internal. It starts with us, with our ability to conjure up situations which we find funny – or even, ludicrous.
So, I have fun imagining the Sleepwalker wandering quite nonchalantly into all kinds of dream environments which I paint for him. I continue to find this character amusing and for me, a large part of my creativity has always been humor. Just like with painting or writing, with humor, I make creative leaps and by doing so, I takes chances by allowing my hunches to tell me which combinations work and which do not.
Is the Sleepwalker aware of his dreamworld or is he oblivious to it? Does he actually know that he has left his everyday life behind and wandered into a world of dreams?
Does the Sleepwalker in this painting know that he has entered the spotted, dotted, and beautiful World of COLORAMA?
