Painting without the mind

Interview with Freydoon Rassouli by Nurturing Art (archive)→

What a beautiful approach to painting without the mind:

When I paint, I have no idea what I am painting or what I want to paint. I just start on the canvas and I play. I usually start with a rag, and I take some paint color like blue…and then I put the rag in the blue and put in on the canvas. Then I put that rag aside and get another rag and, let’s say, I take some red and I fill in some other blank spots on the canvas. And now there is a play between the blue and the red on the canvas. Sometimes blue gets the help from green or yellow or other color. I am just playing without following any rules or any thought or any ideas. As I play, I get to the point where the canvas is all filled with colors.

The lovemaking begins when the canvas tells me what it wants…not me imposing an idea onto the canvas. The canvas keeps on telling me, “Ok…touch me here…touch me there…remove this from here…add this in there.” All of that is like making love with a partner who is guiding you rather than you forcing yourself on them. And that’s what develops into a joyful painting

For more, visit Rassouli’s website.

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