A Burst of Love

This last Valentine’s week post is a bit of a Valentine itself, being sent out to this amazing artist and friend whose work I am posting– not because I know her but because she is so inspiring.

Paula K Gilbert has been in the polymer art community for twenty-some years now. She has kept at it through a series of very difficult times that included health issues that made it hard to think clearly, much less hold a tool steady. But she kept creating and, not only that, kept sharing. And she still does. She has been a regular contributor to The Polymer Arts and has assisted us in research and administrative tasks, on and off, for nearly the entire existence of the magazine, much of it in a self-imposed volunteer status. She is one of the most generous souls I have ever had the pleasure of knowing.

This past year, Paula turned to an alternative source of art related to her work in polymer, one that could be more easily handled regardless of the kind of day she’s having. She started, if I remember correctly, making alcohol ink designs on small glass tiles for pendants. I don’t know why she was so surprised that they sold so fast. They were beautiful little gems. Eventually, she turned to painting tiles with alcohol ink in these beautiful abstract designs, and loosely-formed imagery bloomed onto them. Her sense of color and intuitive application has resulted in some amazingly energetic and entrancingly beautiful pieces. Although she has dabbled in more involved techniques, including scratch-off etching and stamping, I think her uncomplicated and obviously impassioned application, like what you see here, really shows her love for art as well as her persevering spirit.

Paula doesn’t have a website at the moment but she has been posting her work on Facebook. Nonetheless, she has a waiting list for her painted tiles, so if you are interested, well, line up behind me because I am on the list myself! If you want to contact Paula but can’t do so through Facebook, you can write us here and we’ll pass it on.

Inspirational Challenge of the Day: Create something for someone you love. Make it something small and uncomplicated. Don’t think about making a great piece or impressing them. Don’t even try to make something you think they would like. Just keep them in mind and pull materials and colors that remind you of them. Create spontaneously and without self-criticism, and see what your love for another and for yourself comes up with.

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