From time to time I am driven by a need to write about something – and that many others frequently feel the same is evidenced by the proliferation of blogs on the internet. So when today, quite by chance, I noticed an incoming link to my blog site and followed it back to its source, and there discovered a collection of artwork by  Jacquelyn L Berl (that reached out and spoke to me) I wanted to write about it. It seemed to tap into some primeval instinct or memory. I was surprised by my reaction so I left a comment for the artist asking if I could write a review of a particular piece that I was drawn to, and I am pleased to say that she e-mailed me back to give her permission.

I should like to say right away that I am not any sort of official art critic; I am simply an author who loves art in its many various forms and enjoys writing about it. The views and opinions I put forward are my own and since I believe that both beauty and meaning are in the eye of the individual beholder, a piece of art will mean different things to different people, including the artist. To me, that is the wonderful thing about art – you make of it what you will; you interpret it for yourself. Sometimes you just plain simple enjoy it without even thinking about or knowing why you do.

Interestingly, I was surprised to be drawn to the work of this artist (no offence Jacquelyn) because enchantment or fantasy art is not usually my thing – that’s why I took such notice of my reaction to it!

Take a look at the art “Fading Light” below, look before your read my response to it.

I just love this piece of work. Initially my eyes were drawn to the bark of the trees, the shape, the colour, the light on them – it reminded me in essence of Klimt’s Silver Birch (see below) I’m a serious fan of Klimt’s work. In fact I once tried to paint his “Silver Birch” myself in oils - I liked the finished piece – but not enough to show anyone else!

 

But there was far more to it than that; I was also attracted to the profusion of detail in Jacquelyn’s piece – the form of the elements from the natural world and the extraordinary mingling of colour and texture. I am quite sure this art would be even more stunning viewed on the canvas rather than on the computer screen – and not just because it has such a tactile quality.

First, it was an overall impression I was drawn to – and then I started to notice the detail. The combination of realism and fantasy tapped into a childhood vision of mine of fairytale magic, mythical and shared by many. The archetypal figures seemed to be reminding me that anything is possible if you are willing to believe in it – you just have to open your eyes to see it, and open your mind to the possibility. The artist’s method of creating “something from nothing” is also suggesting and echoing this theory. The title “fading light” has more than one meaning to me – that dusk is approaching and light liteally fading, but also metaphorically the light fades from life because we don’t allow the free thoughts of childhood, we’re not open to endless possibility - instead we banish belief in things that cannot be explained and rationalised. As a result our individual world can become a darker place, unimaginative and dull.

Interestingly, it seems that this type of art is a long and drawn out affair, taking much time to complete, which is at odds with what I am about to say. There is a phrase that Monet liked to use (he encouraged people to think of his paintings this way) that I would like to borrow, to apply to this art - since it seems so appropriate to “Fading Light” despite the fact that the process of creation is apparently lengthy: “impulsive, unrehearsed creativity.” Because that reflects the seemingly spontaneous and almost musical fairytale magic contained within it and used in the creation of it.

On Jacqueline’s site it says:

“Scatterlings is a collection of self-directed enchantment art which combines actual foliage with watercolor and color pencil mediums. Hidden among the actual and rendered foliage are an enchanted assortment of Scatterlings; mythical animals and fairies. Jacquelyn succeeds in forming ’something’ out of ‘the nothing’ often overlooked in everyday life. These one-of-a-kind folk art pieces take up to a year to complete as flowers and leaves are collected, pressed, preserved and finally hidden within a vision that evolves continually. (Mixed Media; Pressed Foliage, Watercolor, Colored Pencil, Pen and Ink on Handmade Paper)”

And the technical bits:

“With the advent of Giclee (zhee-clay) the art of fine art printing has become even more precise. Because no screens are used, the prints have a higher apparent resolution than lithographs. The dynamic color range is greater than serigraphy. In the Giclee process, a fine stream of ink — more than four million droplets per second — is sprayed onto archival art paper or canvas. The effect is similar to an air brush technique but much finer.”

And the art itself (apologies if I’ve distorted the size slightly in resizing it to fit the blog page):

Title: “Fading Light”©
24″w x 18″h inches

I simply must show you some close up sections, although if you visit her website there are many more you can browse.

Finally, thank you Jacqueline for so generously allowing me to reproduce your artwork on my blog – anyone reading this should respect the copyright.

PS: I only wish I could afford to buy it! I love it!