Acrylic on mixed media paper, A4
β€π
I will keep you safe and warm
Category: Art
New painting: In Cod we trust
When the Sun goes down in the Arctic, we need to get our vitamins from the fish oil. It is essential during the Polar night ππ¬
Acrylic on mixed media paper, A4. Illustration made for a Nenets writer friend of mine. Copyright Monica Olivia Art π¨ππ»
A personal painting
This is the “place” I went to in my imagination before and during giving birth. It was cold and silent, and this is where I could go in my mind to gather strength and breathe fresh crisp air. I could also clearly see our son there the whole time, sitting close by, waiting to be born ππ§‘
1 of 6 in a small series: Sky on Fire
This is # 1 of 6 in a small series I plan to make, all same size.
Our true nature
Being a mama has really opened my heart, not just for our child, but for all children. I have always loved the little new humans obviously, but being a parent takes it to another level somehow. Truly an automatic bodhicitta practice; infinite love and boundless compassion – our true nature.
Here are some beautiful motherhood art pieces I really like. Hope you enjoy them as much as I do! π₯°
How has motherhood changed you? Has it opened your heart (more)?
How to relax
For the past 11 years or so, I have been teaching myself how to relax and be calm.
I have always been quite a worried person, so I feel I had to learn this in order to simply have a better life with more control. I still sometimes forget how to, but each time I remember, I do the following:
An easy quick way to instantly relax the mind and muscles, causing bloodflow to spread more evenly in the body, is to do three things simultanously: relax the jaw and eyes completely, breathe deeply into belly for at least 8 breaths and move the inner gaze/attention to the feet or ground below. Get a sense of the Earth. Notice the effect.
Another way, if you have the oppotunity, is to lay down flat, do the same with jaw and eyes, and to focus on the in and out breaths in the belly. Take deep slow breaths. Imagine them as waves ebbing on the shore.
And lastly, going into nature of course has a calming effect too, even just for 10 minutes. If you cannot go outside, perhaps painting or drawing nature is an idea.
Hope this helps! I truly believe knowing how to relax and calm our selves is an important skill. Getting carried away by the storm can be both painful and result in regrets.
PΓ₯skestemning
God pΓ₯ske π£
Traditional SΓ‘mi bracelet
Was so lucky to receive this traditional SΓ‘mi bracelet from my partner’s mum as a gift “for giving her the greatest gift” (our son, her grandson) π€
It is made from black leather, reindeer antler button and decoration, and the braids are traditional tinwire used in duodji/daidda. It is made by @tinntraadfruen on instagram if you want to see her work π«
What was a gift you received that had a nice meaning behind it?
March mood
How is/was your March? π
The Copper Coloured Mountain: Pure land
The copper coloured mountain is also known as Zangdok Palri; Guru Rinpoche Padmasambhava’s non-physical pure land.
Be more of an amateur!
“An amateur (literally means ‘lover [of something]’) is generally considered a person who persues a particular activity or field of study independently from their source of income/does not persue it professionally or with an eye to gain.” π¨
#amare #amateur #amour β€
Be more of an amateur this year β¨
First painting of the year finished
First painting of the year finished!πππ
Visited the beach in Sandvika twice in oct and nov before polar night; once to take the photograph and once to try and paint outdoors, but it started raining so finished it finally now in the first day of January π
Acrylic on canvas, 30 x 24 cm π
Colours used: blue, yellow, orange, purple, gold and white. Varnished with waterproof UV protection spray.
2020 in paintings
“Art is for everyone” ππ§‘πππ¨
November
Always shifting
One of my paintings inspired by the icy landscape:
DIY: Juletrehjerter
KjΓΈpte noen kjempesΓΈte smΓ₯ trehjerter pΓ₯ Flying Tiger for en ukes tid siden. De er vel egentlig for Γ₯ bruke som gavelapper, men de funker ogsΓ₯ tydeligvis bra til Γ₯ male pΓ₯ πππ»π¨πβ
Magic Monday // My art exhibition
Come see my little exhibition of 13 paintings at Magic Ice TromsΓΈ β Most paintings are for sale ππ» They also have the cosiest tiny coffee place there, an impressive ice sculpture gallery by Lithuanian artists and a cocktail bar – all ice, even the glasses βοΈπ₯π
DIY: denim vest upgrade
Textile paint on denim vest. SΓ‘mi sun symbol/deity, Beaivi β€πππ In colours of the SΓ‘pmi flag.
Leaf canvas
This leaf survived in my bag for weeks, on planes and buses (from some travels in february, I hope to find time to share some photos with you soon!) Only a bit broken in the edges πππ Turned out great as canvas for a little landscape paintingπ¨π
Seasonal art
Wishing all a lovely end of autumn ππ
Framed in sunlight
Svart ramme, 30 x 40 cm π
New format
Fargerike vegger
Liker Γ₯ pynte stua med egne maleri ππ§‘ππ #myart
Things that are yours to keep
Some things I truly believe are yours to keep, that no one can take from you:
Your spiritual practice. In my case, it is vajrayana buddhism. It has saved my life in many ways – both in dealing with chronic illness, but also the normal existential stuff like finding purpose and joy πππΌπΏ
Your ambitions and dreams (if they come from a place of pure motivation and love). In my case now, it has been starting a little family with children ππ€±
Your ethnicity and ancestry, no matter how lost or scattered it is in this modern world. In my case from my personal experience, I feel very connected to my home in the Arctic and being uralic/finno-ugric. I didn’t as a kid and teenager, at all, but now as I am older, I feel like I can “own” it more. I donβt speak any of the uralic languages, and feel a sadness about this. A disconnection from my own culture. And a feeling of not belonging to a community, when they canβt speak to me. I hope my son will not feel as disconnected. But I have found other ways to express this β primarily through art and duodji. Not all languages are of verbal nature, but are equally important, I think. π¨
Your creativity. Not necessarily arts, but anything you find a solution to that involves stepping out of the habitual intellectual mind and into a state of spontaneity and flow.π
Your struggles. This sounds negative, but for me I mean that my struggles are valid. I have a body that has its big share of physical problems, and I don’t mean to whine. At all! π Just to express that this is my reality, and that chronic (perhaps invisible to others) illness can happen to anyone, any time in life.π
Your love. This one sounds cheesy but I think we all can feel love and that we have love as a basic human need. To receive it and give it. And we all have different ways of showing it. I like giving gifts for example.. but am not so good verbally expressing how I feel. I like receiving kind loving deeds, but not to be smothered. So understanding how we show it differently is important too. I also believe that as humans we have the capacity to love many at the same time. Whether it is friends or partners, plural. Romantic, familial or platonic.β€
Snow and flowers
Midnight moon
Akryl, 24 x 32 cm, mixed media papir π
Farga brukt: blΓ₯, hvit, lilla, rosa, rΓΈd, gul π¨
Ble tegna
Ei jeg ‘jobba’ med pΓ₯ Turbo TromsΓΈ hadde lyst Γ₯ tegne meg digitalt etter et bilde tatt av meg. Sa sΓ₯ klart ja! Og ble kjempesmigra βΊ Tusen takk!π€
Complementary colours
Did you know there is a reason why orange+blue and yellow+purple work together so well? π§‘πππ They are considered complementary colours! “Complementary colours are pairs of colours which, when combined or mixed, cancel each other out by producing a grayscale colour like white or black. When placed next to each other, they create the strongest contrast for those two colors. Complementary colours may also be called ‘opposite colours’.”
Something else
Finished piece
60 x 50 cm, acrylic on canvas with matte varnish π No title yet π
Gorgeous start to october
Had some gorgeous light today, perfect for some photography and filming π #staytuned
In progress
HΓΈstsol pΓ₯ maleri
βοΈπππ
From photograph to painting
Painting from my photograph πππ
Spent so much time in this place by the ocean π Acrylic on canvas, 24 x 18 cm
Autumn
Resharing this one for autumn purposes ππ§‘π
20 x 40 cm, acrylic π
Not for sale ππΌ
How is autumn where you live?
Tiny 10 minute painting
Very small and cute painting framed in a 10 x 15 cm frame. This little painting took me ten minutes to make, I wanted to make it without thinking too much; just go with the brushstrokes π¬π§‘π
To innramma verk
Hibernation
“During the fall, if a polar bear is pregnant, she digs a den into a snow drift. She then climbs into the hole and stays there to give birth and care for her cubs for the first few months of their life. She and her cubs will not emerge from the den until the spring. Male bears and non-pregnant females continue to roam and feed throughout the winter.”
One of the absolute top animals on my list I wish to see in my lifetime.. Guess I need to head up to Svalbard for that!
Stone castle in the sky
Happy to be back to painting since rearranging the flat. It’s been a mess for months, but now it’s starting to look and feel much better and I got my work/painting/crafts station back!ππ»π¨πΌ
SmΓ₯ vindu
Tenker at maleri er smΓ₯ vindu til andre verdener π¨
Begge disse maleriene var gaver π
Summer vibes
Summer has finally arrived in the Arctic, kind of. Still some snow around, but also green and some flowers!πΏπ» Didn’t realise how much I missed some warm weather, although I absolutely love winter.
