Have you ever seen the fantastic energy and fun shown by a small child discovering color and paint? They just start and go, wielding a brush almost too large for their hands or spreading paint with their hands and fingers. It’s magical to me. Sometimes I find a need to rediscover that childlike energy and fun.

One way I do this is to use a new - to me - medium such as alcohol inks. These are acid-free, intensely colored, alcohol-based dyes. These liquids must be applied on non-porous surfaces, not the traditional, prepared canvas that I’m used to. I’m using Yupo paper, which is a tree-free, recyclable, synthetic paper that has a flexible, plastic-like feel.

I’m still having lots of fun with it! My first experiments were very messy. But they freed me from the incessant need for perfection (I try to remember a mantra that my husband quotes: “Perfectionism is the Voice of the Oppressor”).

Here are a few of the earliest alcohol ink works. I love the jewel tones and their intensity. What do you think and feel when you see them? I’d love to hear about your reactions.

The Yupo paper creates size constraints: I finally chose sheets of 11x14 and 18x24 inches, which are much smaller than the typical 48x48(or 60)-inch canvasses for my oil paintings. Recently I have been able to work on 24x36. Although I started with my tree themes, I have extended these pieces to include, seeds and flowers.

Finally, I throw caution to the wind and just push things as far as I can by putting the ‘rule book’ away and seeing what happens!