The magic of four

student spotlight with Andrea Gunkler

Today I’m so happy to share a new student spotlight! Andrea Gunkler is a German artist and when she signed up for Soulful Abstracts, she had no idea what an extraordinary journey she was starting: a journey towards… 100 mini abstract series! Every week in our online group, we eagerly wait for her to share her new creations, and it has become such an inspiration and a source of motivation for all of us. As I’m posting this today, she has reached series #75, and she creates 4 pieces at a time, so that’s 300 mini artworks! Without further ado, here is a glimpse of Andrea’s journey and artworks… Enjoy!

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“I admit, I never thought about painting pictures in a series. One painting session, one idea, one subject, one painting. No two or three or more, one.

Until I entered the fantastic world of Laly Mille‘s online art classes. This decision changed a lot of things for me. I purchased her class “Soulful Abstracts”, and right from the beginning, she introduced us to what I now call the “magic of four“.

In the first exercise about color palettes, she asked us to work on very small substrates, 10 x 10 cm, and to use four of them – at least. It supports learning, Laly says, if you try new techniques in a series of paintings. Well, I saw the reason but I was anxious at first when I watched her pretty little paintings emerge under her paintbrush fitting so well together, a perfect quadruplet: the same color palette, the same language of collage and marks, the same look and feel.

“You‘ll never get there“, the terrorist inside my head yelled (thank you, Elizabeth Gilbert, for this term) - a job an inner critic has to do all the time, but my job was not to listen. And I didn‘t listen. From the moment I first got a glance of these tiny little square substrates in Laly‘s hands I heard a subtle voice calling me. These sheets were so innocent, so cozy, so cute, I immediately started cutting my own stash of square watercolor papers. And that in itself was something of a miracle.

I am a recovering artist who hadn‘t touched any brush or color for more than 10 years due to the belief that I could not paint at all, and I had just started again with painless watercolor paintings in a German online class called “Happy Painting!” by Clarissa Hagenmeyer, which really is a perfect starting point for beginners.

Watercolor paper to me is kind of a sacred thing. My mind was entangled in thoughts like “you must not cut watercolor sheets from a block“ or “you must not destroy this expensive material“. Fear arose for a moment when I adjusted the paper for cutting, but the next moment curiosity and enthusiasm about the way ahead took over and I followed the luring whispers of the watercolor squares. After cutting, the paper appeared even more luxurious to me.

When the class proceeded to “mark making“, all my walls of anxiety crumbled. The terrorist in my head waved goodbye and took a long time off. The mini series Laly created for us was a spark that ignited a fire in me that‘s burning ever since. And when I did my first one it felt like hitting a wave with my surf board for the very first time and rushing effortlessly to the Biscayan shore. I entered the flow state of mind!

I cut more substrates. Series followed after series, 15 cm in length or 10 cm (as I am still avoiding waste and these sizes optimally cut a 30 x 40 cm watercolor sheet into squares).

At the end of every lesson in the class, Laly advises us to “practice, practice, practice“. “You might even do this a hundred times“, she suggested – and this hit my buttons. Do the same thing a hundred times and you‘ll experience a miracle. The way you paint changes, the way you look at painting changes, you will not be the same afterwards.

There are different steps you have to take if you want to accomplish your mission. There is enthusiasm at the start, when the spark is still fresh and burning bright. After a while you may feel boredom. Embrace it. Boredom is a teacher, a hint that you might change something to bring fun back into play. So you make restrictions for yourself. You may cut the time for creating, the materials or the amount of collage parts you use, the colors. All this brings back the flame of curiosity. You make further adjustments to the process, the topics, all in order to keep your work fresh and interesting – for yourself in the first respect.

What you learn on this journey is simply unmeasurable, and in the end this large stash of small paintings you produced rewards you with a feeling of triumph. You reward yourself! What you achieve by taking this journey isn‘t “simply“ expertise in painting. You learn (play Alanis Morissette in your mind!) for life: overcoming resistance, staying focused, being resilient, showing courage, showing up on a regular basis and withstanding boredom, just to mention a few examples.

Indeed, working in a series teaches you a lot in terms of painting skills as well. You may practice new techniques on a small scale without having to face the fear of going big. You may test out new colors or painting implements - or simply do the series for fun. For me these mixed media mini series are still a playground for experimentation. Whenever I purchase new tools or colors, I grab four substrates, tape them to a cardboard, and start a series.

I do this whenever I have to face challenging situations (in painting and in life), and I return to my mini series to take a rest from it all in well-known techniques and processes. When other artists refer to their journals, I do a mini series. You see the worthiness these mini series have for me in so many respects? And why I speak of them as “the magic of four“?

This journey continues. I am heading for mini series number 75 right now, and I am sure I will continue even after reaching the magic number 100. They have become part of my life (not only as an artist) – uncountable in worth and strongly recommended to mimic. Have fun, go on or start creating and shine your light!”

meet Andrea!

Andrea Gunkler, author & artist, born 1967, living with hubby and cat in a small house in a small village in the countryside in the middle of Germany.

www.andrea-gunkler.de
www.facebook.com/AndreaGunklerKunst
www.instagram.com/andreagunkler

“I cannot paint!“ – For years I believed in this. Although painting was a part of my life since the day I was able to hold a pencil in my hand. As an adult I visited art class after art class without finishing one due to the feeling there was something wrong. So I gave it up and let my inner critic win the fight. People may have liked my paintings, but I was never content.

I had to learn to accept myself first before attaining satisfaction with my work; my texts primarily. In my early Fifties, I took the risk and started painting again – the best decision in my life!

Let me tell you: it‘s never too late to start your own creative endeavor. What you‘ll gain are joy, strength, fulfillment, growth and so much more.

join us!

I hope Andrea’s post has inspired you! Please leave a comment for her below. And of course we would love for you to join us in Soulful Abstracts!