POST-TRAUMATIC GROWTH:  Improving one’s sense of wellbeing using art, creative writing, photography and blogging – my journey written by ©Karen Robinson.  Please click here for my latest blog news!

 

 

About Abstract Painting Portfolio 2014 – Painting Nos. 56 & 57:-

2014 – My art journey has been about being able to find meaning and purpose in everyday life.  Much of my earlier art work has been about very personal feelings, emotions and thoughts about loss and grief.  But slowly and surely, art has brought me to a place where I look for joy in each and every day!

 

Painting No. 56 – Title “A Celebration of Womanhood”

 

 

• Acrylic on Canvas
• August 2014
• 97cms Length x 102cms Wide x 3cms Deep

Painting Story

This painting above and its painting story will show that art needs to also be about finding your sense of humour, to have a laugh about yourself, a bit of a giggle – it can put a smile on your face and a skip in your step.  So I am hoping that by sharing what this following painting was inspired by, will give you a bit of a giggle too.  I really wasn’t sure if I was going to share this painting story but after originally promising myself, when I first started painting that I would always be open and honest about my art journey, I realised there should be no exceptions to that promise to myself.

During a recent visit to The Royal Women’s Hospital with the Women’s Health Clinic for a Urogynaecology consultation, I experienced a pelvic floor examination. Now, to my shame, it had been many years since I had such an examination. It is not exactly what every women looks forward to having done. It can be embarrassing but I thought to myself, well I am too old now to be embarrassed and followed through with what was required of me during my examination. All was good until I saw the look on the women’s face, the face of the consultant. Well I was all ‘au naturel’ and perhaps this was just too much of a shock for her or perhaps when you get on in old age, ones private parts are just not that attractive anymore! After asking me a range of standard Urogynaecology consultant type questions, I felt in some regards relieved and in other regards, mildly disturbed.

It brought to my mind thoughts about what women have to go through just by being a woman. First we grow breasts and get periods, we learn about sex, then it is the incredible experience of pregnancy and the birth of children, then it is menopause and then it’s a – Urogynaecology consultation! Our poor bodies do have to go through many changes throughout our lives.

This must have been playing on my mind because on my return home that day, I decided to start another painting. I got the new white canvas out and began to draw directly onto the canvas as per usual for me. During the process, the lines and swirls began to form an image to me – it looked like a vagina. I thought yes – it is a vagina! I decided that I wanted to paint with all new colours, bright, happy, joyful and beautiful colours; colours that would celebrate women’s womanhood – this strange and interesting journey we embark on throughout the course of our lives...

Written and Painted by Karen Robinson – Abstract Artist/Blogger/Story-teller/Photo-taker

 

Painting No. 57 – Title “Of Golden Sands, Sun & Sea”

 

 

• Acrylic on Canvas
• September 2014
• 97cms Length x 102cms Wide x 3cms Deep

Painting Story

Early in 2014, my husband and I went to visit my sister at her Broadbeach home, which is just south of Surfers Paradise on the Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia. Broadbeach has beautiful surf beaches that stretch for miles in either direction of the shore line. It faces onto the great Pacific Ocean and has a big blue sky that saws up into the heavens and beyond. It has a subtropical climate and most of the year it favours warm temperatures and has a summer wet season. All this makes it a major holiday destination.
It was a real privilege to be able to spent days enjoying its sun, sand and sea. My Sister was a great host and ensured we enjoyed our stay. I have very fond memories of my time there with my husband and my sister. The painting is dedicated to that memory. In the top left and right corner you can see a representation of the sun; below is the Pacific Ocean and then its golden sands. The Frangipanis, the palm and other flowers and subtropical plants shown in the painting can be found in her garden. Staying with my sister brought back fond memories, I had as a child growing up in Northern Queensland and the wonderful childhood adventures, we had as children in the sun, sand and sea...

Written by Karen Robinson – Abstract Artist/Blogger/Story-teller/Photo-taker

 

Painting No. 58 – Title “A State of Mind”

 

 

• Acrylic on Canvas
• December 2014
• 100cms Length x 100cms Wide x 3cms Deep

Painting Story

This painting was inspired by a sketch I did during an art therapy session August 2014. During the session our art therapy facilitator asked us to sketch within 5 minutes about ‘how we feel right now’. My life, my state of mind right at that moment was best described as being more ‘cup half full’ as opposed to being half empty during earlier years. The bright yellow is representative of sunny feelings; the blue and green colours representing cooler feelings and emotions; the orange and red being representative of rage and/or being upset; and lastly the black is representative of the loss of my son and the sorrowful feelings I have which will never go away.

During my art therapy session, I explained that my sketch and now in this painting, once turned upside-down, is representative of some days where it is not all sunny, they can be dark and looming such as the early years after the loss of my son; but these kind of days were few and far between now, as it had been nearly five years on since the loss of my son Ben in 2009, being that it was August 2014 at the time the sketch was done. Within the painting its self, I created scaffolding type lines in black which signifies how my daily life, months, and years can be complicated by depression and anxiety. But I am in a much better place now than I have been…my well-being has improved greatly with the use of art and creative writing therapy.

Written by Karen Robinson – Abstract Artist/Blogger/Story-teller/Photo-taker

 

CONCLUSION

The process of painting, painting story writing and digital photo painting has offered me a way of expressing thoughts and emotions which can be difficult to say out loud.  I also came to understanding that art can be a very powerful way of communicating with others.  Therapy via art gave me a voice and my art therapy journey has become an important part of recent years and still will be an important part of my life in years to come.  I am hoping that by sharing my art therapy journey, will inspire others, to take up art therapy to find their voice – in order to be able to move forward in most difficult of times.  Art Therapy has brought me now to a much better place where I find myself being able to seek joy in each day.  As an ongoing process, I will be blogging about my art therapy journey “moving forward” and expand on how others have used/are using art therapy to assist physical and emotional well-being.  I hope you will join me!

 

© Karen Robinson – September 2014

POST-TRAUMATIC GROWTH:  Improving one’s sense of wellbeing using art, creative writing, photography and blogging – my journey written by ©Karen Robinson.  Please click here for my latest blog news!