[stylist] Sharing a pantoum -Adding Color to your work
Lynda Lambert
llambert at zoominternet.net
Wed Mar 27 00:31:23 UTC 2013
thanks, Mary Jo. Color holds so much history and meaning, and the really
interesting thing is that a particular color will change meaning with
different time periods - the same color will be called by a different name,
accroding to the times. Like everything else in life, it is ever changing.
But, each color has it's own character and holds meaning.
I enjoyed thinking about this early this morning before I started off on my
day.
Lynda
Lynda Lambert
104 River Road
Ellwood City, PA 16117
724 758 4979
My Blog: http://www.walkingbyinnervision.blogspot.com
My Website: http://lyndalambert.com
----- Original Message -----
From: "Mary-Jo Lord" <mjfingerprints at comcast.net>
To: "'Writer's Division Mailing List'" <stylist at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Tuesday, March 26, 2013 7:22 PM
Subject: Re: [stylist] Sharing a pantoum -Adding Color to your work
> Hi Linda,
> Thanks for such a great explanation of colors and painting. I'm going to
> keep this for something to refer to when I'm confused about color.
> Mary-Jo
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: stylist [mailto:stylist-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Lynda
> Lambert
> Sent: Tuesday, March 26, 2013 8:28 AM
> To: Writer's Division Mailing List
> Subject: Re: [stylist] Sharing a pantoum -Adding Color to your work
>
> Good Morning,
> Barbara, since you asked me the difference between the two blues we were
> talking about, I thought I would write about how color is achieved in
> paintings. That is what I know to my core. Just as color in a painting
> evokes a mood, so it does in a poem.
>
> The same principles will work with words, when you stop to consider how to
> achieve color in writing, too.
> The choice we make when writing about a color, will cause our work to have
> a
> mood and give the reader a very particular sense of place, or feeling.
>
> Speaking of colors - there are as many colors as there are stars in the
> sky.
>
> But to begin, we can break them down into families of color. This is very
> basic. You probably learned how to use a "color wheel" as a child, or in
> primary school? The Color Wheel has only SIX colors and from those SIX,
> all
> other colors are derived. Remember the Roy G. Biv way of remembering your
> colors? Red - Orange - Yellow- Green - Blue - Indigo - and Violet.
>
> So when you are talking about Azure Blue, Cerulean Blue, Midnight Blue,
> Baby
> Blue, Sky Blue, Cobalt Blue, or any of the other zillion blues - they are
> all in ONE COLOR FAMILY, to begin with. So you begin there.
>
> Now, how do we get all those different BLUES? There are a number of ways
> to
> do that. When you are painting, you normally have one or two different
> tube
> paints in two different blues - for example: I would have a "cerulean
> blue
> tube" and another much deeper blue tube of paint, such as "Thalo Blue."
> This will give me a far wider range of options and here is why.
>
> Cerulean Blue is mid-tone color and an opaque paint - that means you
> cannot
> see through it at all when it is put on the palette, no matter how thin
> you
> apply it. It is very dense.
>
> Thalo blue, on the other hand is quite a highly saturated color (very
> different than Cerulean) thin and it is transparent. It is so powerful of
> a
> color that you can only mix a little tad of it in with your other paints.
> It
> will completely take over and it will take a lot of skill to be able to
> use
> Thalo blue successfully.
>
> Basically, you can think of a color application in painting as one of
> three
> things: transparent, translucent, or Opaque.
>
> That would be how the paint appears as it is mixed on the palette and of
> course it would appear that way on the canvas after it is applied. It
> would
> most likely be applied in very thin layers, one upon the other. As the
> layers are worked over each other, you would bring in very subtle nuances
> of
> colors - each affecting the previous layers - this would be how the "old
> masters" painted.
> Watercolors are transparent colors typically. To get those kinds of
> transparencies with oils you have to add other mediums to it, such as
> linseed oil and a touch of turpentine - and there are other materials you
> can use as well to get the oils more fluid and thinned down. By nature,
> they
> are heavy, and have to be "worked" to get them ready for applying to the
> canvas.
>
> The other popular kind of paint for modern painters is acrylics. Acrylics
> are very different than the previous two mentioned above. Acrylic can also
> be transparent - this is done by adding lots of water to the paint; and,
> or,
> spraying the surface of the canvas with a spray of water from a pistol
> grip
> bottle or atomizer. You can get very ethereal and lovely surfaces and
> colors
> with acrylics. The are actually water based paints, and people love them
> because you don't have toxic chemicals to mix with them, and you do not
> have
> strong odors in the studio.
> You can layer the acrylics masterfully, just as you can the oil paints,
> once
> you learn how to do that - it takes time and lots of practice! But, they
> are
> wonderful paints.
>
> There are many other kinds of paints, too, but these three are the most
> used
> ones.
>
> To get the myriad of colors you may want, you can learn how to add various
> amounts of other colors into your mixture - this takes a lifetime to
> learn.
>
> White can be on your palette, too. But, an amateur painter will think that
> white will give you the lighter colors, and will not realize that the
> white
> will weaken your colors and cause them to appear chalky. A pro will know
> how
> to mix the colors with other colors and barely touch the pile of white on
> the palette - it is used very carefully. White is NOT a COLOR. And, there
> is nothing that is white in nature. There are things that appear to be
> white, but they are really a mixture of many other very subtle colors that
> give the illusion of being white.
>
> And, then, there is BLACK. Black in ever, ever, found in nature. Like
> white,
> it is an illusion and when a person learns color theory they will quickly
> see there is no such thing as anything that is black. The very darkest hue
> or value of any color, gives the illusion of being black to the untrained
> amateur.
>
> You will always see lots of primitive, naieve, artists using both white
> and
> black in their paintings. This is because they have had no training and
> have
> no understanding of color theory.
>
> A professional landscape or portrait painter will never have black paint
> in their palette at all. Black will do the opposite of what white will
> do -
> it will flatten your colors and dull them down, and distort them into a
> garish mess. And, BLACK is not a color, either. Black, however, will be
> the
> joy of a contemporary painter - and it is used as a statement and a
> thumbing
> of the nose to traditional "rules." Before I started my BFA in Painting,
> I
> had been a painter for about 10 years. I was traditionally trained, and
> was
> soaked in "color theory." My work was already being shown in museums
> nationally and published in magazines before I ever started my
> undergraduate
> education.
>
> In undergrad school, I went out and bought gallons of black paint and
> large
> brushes from the hardware store and plunged into a new world! Defiance!
> Dissonance!
>
> In your writing, you will learn to use color to get the nuances you desire
> as well. It is those subtle nuances that make the work sing. When using
> the
> name of a color, think about what that word really means - the history of
> it's use; how it looks; how it would feel; how it might smell; and how it
> fits into your goals for that poem.
>
> Myrna's poem, "Azure Skies" has it all and that's why it "works."
>
>
> Lynda
>
>
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Barbara Hammel" <poetlori8 at msn.com>
> To: "Writer's Division Mailing List" <stylist at nfbnet.org>
> Sent: Tuesday, March 26, 2013 1:17 AM
> Subject: Re: [stylist] Sharing a pantoum Azure Skies Thank you all!
>
>
>> Oooo! You've used cerulean in a poem? Maybe I'll have to look up my
>> poems that have mentioned azure or cerulean. (I might even want to try
>> my
>
>> hand at making them better but I have this thing in my head that tells
>> me:
>
>> once they are done, they are done. You said what you wanted at the time
>> so leave it alone. Rewriting would make me consider it a whole new poem.
>> Crazy, I know, but it is what it is.)
>> Barbara
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> Poetry is an echo, asking a shadow to dance. -- Carl Sandburg
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: KajunCutie926 at aol.com
>> Sent: Monday, March 25, 2013 1:04 PM
>> To: stylist at nfbnet.org
>> Subject: Re: [stylist] Sharing a pantoum Azure Skies Thank you all!
>>
>> Thank you to all for your kind words and sharing your own unique
>> perspectives about the poem.
>> I too have folders.. a main NFB folder and sub-folders. I am very
>> humbled
>> that others have created a folder for my work.
>> Shawn nailed it about the contrast of azure which denotes beauty and
>> light
>> and the sorrow and darkness. This poem was inspired by the time after my
>> husband's death. It was so unexpected that I found myself in a dark place
>> but at the same time I wanted to embrace the sky. The discussion of
>> colors
>> was really interesting to me as I use color in much of my work and have
>> even
>> written about cerulean. Now I am thinking about cyan and how to work
>> that
>> into a piece.
>> Again thank you so much! Now off to do more reading.
>> Myrna
>>
>>
>> In a message dated 3/25/2013 12:00:47 P.M. Central Daylight Time,
>> llambert at zoominternet.net writes:
>>
>> I have been thinking lately about the words that we use over the years
>> in
>> our own writing. As I am working on my archives, I am coming across
>> some
>> words that are very consistently in my lexicon over a long time - since
>> the
>> 70s. A project I would like to tackle when I have a space of time to do
>> it
>> would be to explore my own vocabulary and begin to weave the pieces
>> together
>> as I encounter them - a research project into my own work.
>>
>> Azure is really a state of mind.
>> I am sure I have never used that word in anything I have written - it's
>> a
>> very beautiful word that evokes so many hues - Reading Myrna's poem
>> seemed
>> to open up a window for me this morning - a window into the heavens
>> because
>> it implies a kind of transparent or translucency.
>> Lynda
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> ----- Original Message -----
>> From: "Barbara Hammel" <poetlori8 at msn.com>
>> To: "Writer's Division Mailing List" <stylist at nfbnet.org>
>> Sent: Monday, March 25, 2013 11:25 AM
>> Subject: Re: [stylist] Sharing a pantoum Azure Skies
>>
>>
>>>I have a Myrna folder, too.
>>> Azure is one of those words I work in to poems on occasion. My other
>>> favorite sky color is cerulean.
>>> So, Lynda, what is the difference between azure and cerulean? And I
>>> thought cyan was the color that is an even mix of blue and green,
>>> somewhere between aqua and turquoise.
>>> Barbara
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Poetry is an echo, asking a shadow to dance. -- Carl Sandburg
>>> -----Original Message-----
>>> From: Lynda Lambert
>>> Sent: Monday, March 25, 2013 8:54 AM
>>> To: Writer's Division Mailing List
>>> Subject: Re: [stylist] Sharing a pantoum Azure Skies
>>>
>>> Here is my thoughts after reading this excellent poem:
>>>
>>> This Pantoum is so rich in mythological imagery. It is ethereal.
>>>
>>> Your choice of the two noun, Zephyr, combined with Breeze,
>>>
>>> gives the feeling of lightness,fluidity, and fragility.
>>>
>>> And then you pull into this combination the color that is historically
>>> mythological - Azure!
>>>
>>> Together the two words denote anything that is very fine and light, and
>>> even
>>> magical in nature.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> The Zephyr is such a fragile kind of breeze - in ancient times it was
>>> known
>>> as the "West Wind."
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Azure always makes us bring out thoughts to the heights, upwards, to
>>> the
>>> sky, and even the atmosphere. It is a delicate blue, yet rich in value.
>> At
>>> times it is called "Alice Blue."
>>>
>>> In early times, painters would not use Azure as a pigment because they
>>> believed it to be unstable, but in time, it was realized that it was
>>> indeed
>>> a stable color and after that we began to see it brought into
>>> paintings.
>>> Typically, it would be used in paintings of sacred events - it denoted
>>> royalty, and holiness.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> I think your poem gives allusions to these things so well, and
>>> particularly
>>> it works because of the Pantoum form. I noticed immediately that you
>>> used
>>> the traditional Pantoum form, using end rhymes. You did it so well that
>>> the
>>> poem does not have the kind of rigidity that often comes via a rhymed
>>> ending. Your rhyming end words retain the lightness you created from
>>> the
>>> first line.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> In photography and on the web, Azure is a color that is also called
>> Cyan.
>>>
>>> Often this color is called light sky blue, baby blue, and silver lake
>>> blue.
>>> I have a feeling that this color will be found in the art of just about
>>> any
>>> civilization, and it will be used with the depiction of things from
>>> Nature.
>>>
>>> I suspect you could do an entire research project on the topic of
>>> "Azure
>>> Skies." It is that BIG in scope, I think.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> OH, the other thing that was strange as I read this poem, is that I had
>>> read
>>>
>>> "brush" as "blush" without realizing it. So I went back once I
>>> realized
>> I
>>> had mis-read the poem, and I purposely read it as "blush" in those
>>> places -
>>> and WOW, again, the idea of painting and the movement of the artist's
>> hand
>>> was so clear to me.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> This is a very "painterly poem."
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Thanks for sharing.
>>>
>>> I started a Myrna folder, so I can keep some of your gems - this one is
>> in
>>> it!
>>>
>>> Lynda
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> My Blog: http://www.walkingbyinnervision.blogspot.com
>>> My Website: http://lyndalambert.com
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> ----- Original Message -----
>>> From: <KajunCutie926 at aol.com>
>>> To: <stylist at nfbnet.org>
>>> Sent: Sunday, March 24, 2013 10:28 PM
>>> Subject: [stylist] Sharing a pantoum Azure Skies
>>>
>>>
>>>> Okay here is my last pantoum which I believe was written about three
>>>> months
>>>> ago... I also attached it as a rich text file...
>>>>
>>>> Azure Skies
>>>>
>>>> That I could soar across azure skies
>>>> To leave my thoughts upon zephyr's breeze
>>>> And ask no quarter or compromise
>>>> When night time comes and darkness bleeds
>>>>
>>>> To leave my thoughts upon zephyr's breeze
>>>> Brush stroked dreams, watercolor hued
>>>> When night time comes and darkness bleeds
>>>> Upon the echo of my soul renewed
>>>>
>>>> Brush stroked dreams, watercolor hued
>>>> They fill the heart where grief had grown
>>>> Upon the echo of my soul renewed
>>>> The truth of these thoughts unknown
>>>>
>>>> They fill the heart where grief had grown
>>>> And ask no quarter or compromise
>>>> The truth of these thoughts unknown
>>>> That I could soar across azure skies
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> nfbnet.org/kajuncutie926%40aol.com
>>>>
>>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>
> ----------------------------------------------------------------------------
> ----
>>>
>>>
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>>>
>>>
>>>
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>>
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