​As a lover of all art, from the strange to the technically perfect, I would like to spent the next several posts writing love letters to art mediums. I, myself, am an amateur painter preferring oil above acrylics. Being as I also have a fascination with the science of 'the hows', I have to say that metalworking is hands-down one of my greatest curiosities.

It takes a tenacious individual to ply their trade working with some of the most unyielding and temperamental materials. Even the softest gold requires some precision alchemy to get it to a liquid and get that liquid into a solid again. Temperatures of the tools, not just the metal, have to be maintained to avoid volatile reactions with something as docile as water droplets.

I know I'm not the only one that's forgotten a pot of water on the stove. Ever drop water on or into it after it boiled out? POP and hiss, right? Imagine a tiny drop of water getting between a metal mold and molten metal. A tiny explosion from water vapor can ruin more than just the art!

Metalworking can be wildly dangerous but a skilled and talented artist working with gold, silver, platinum, copper, brass, iron, steel, and everything in between can turn out magical results. I love jewelry as much as the next person, but I can't get enough of metal art crafted out of scraps. They have stories in them and I am a sucker for stories! Not only is there the history of where that material has been, but there are undoubtedly plenty of experiences an artist would have in choosing the metal, what they saw in it, and what it was like working with something imperfect all to reincarnate it into a brand new life.

If you have any metalworking stories, please share them!
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From deep darkness, we move on to deep blue. This is one of a nature lovers' favorite colors. Naturally! It's the sky. It's the sea. In between those two vast spaces is a world of freedom!

Blue, in moderation, can inspire tranquility. There are scientific studies that have shown the color blue can encourage the mind and body to produce chemicals (dopamine & serotonin) that calm and relax you.

Not all blues are made equal, however. Ride along the color wheel to the bright, bold almost neon section and the feeling of blue changes. It becomes more energetic and less natural.

Like all good things, too much blue can throw off the balance of this cool color. Too much blue can tip you past those tranquil feelings into the unhappy realm of negativity and sadness. Let's go back to nature for an analogy.

Blue's effect on you ranges from enjoying the ocean with your feet in warm sand, to being lost at sea on a tiny raft. All that sky and blue water is beautiful, but it definitely is less so when there's no escape from it.

That said, I'll finish up by saying my hat goes off to the artists that find balance in our favorite colors!

    Let me start by saying that black is not really a color in itself. That is without going into the debate of true black, light versus pigments, and all that jazz!

Black is, essentially, the darkest value of any color. Pop open any paint program and bring up the paint pallet. No matter the color picked out of the wheel, the values range from white to black.

That is quite an analogy for life! But we aren't here to talk philosophy. I would be here all day (or night). No, today let's address the elephant in the room and ask, why are there so many negative connotations associated with the far end of the color spectrum?

It is a visceral feeling that has been with all us humans since day one on this blue marble we call home. Our ancestors out in the wide world with only a few rocks and sticks to fend off the darkness. When we peer into the dark there may be something peering back.

Yet, there is nothing so bold as the definitive brush stroke in dark paint. It doesn't blend easily. Keeping it from dominating everything else around it is even harder. Sometimes a body just has to embrace those ancient fears and use them to make something extraordinary; something eye catching!

Next time you get a glimpse of art using a splash of Negative Noir, imagine the decision that was made before the brush hit canvas; before the bristles even touched paint! Better yet, ask the artists about it. You may just hear a fascinating tale you weren't expecting...