Catalyst for transformation, expressionist art or historic record?

(Post updated January 2021, July 2021 and August 2022)

SALchemy Degrees of Separation project transformation and transition

My COVID-19 Degrees of Separation project has completed. With the turn of the year, I stopped making daily iPad artworks after 193 days. Hello fresh energies. Hello 2021 😊

This was a ‘survival’ project. I began it in mid March 2020, as the world locked down, to help me keep my own mental state strong. I shared it because I hoped it might help other people feel accompanied, and I’m told it did.

Creating daily art allowed me to process my 2020 experience, and acknowledge and transform any challenging feelings. The discipline of the project supported me and helped me make sense of my situation. Eventually though, even a self-created structure can start to feel restrictive. When this one did, I realised I had myself moved on from the state I’d been in when I’d started. By late December I knew I must shift my focus: from discipline (and the daily effort dedicated to just one medium – painting on the iPad) to a greater sense of ease overall. So, I let the project go at New Year and set myself free.

The project output follows below. It’s a large body of work with multiple layers. There is SAL-style honest self-expression around my oh-so-human experience through the C-19 pandemic. There are strong elements of 2020 documentary β€” as a whole, these paintings and their stories are a record of a period in our collective history. And, there is the touch of magic I call SALchemy; it led to me creating prints of some of the artworks with special energies and intentions at SALchemy.uk (store now closed).

Thank you for accompanying me in this project in 2020.

Above are some pivotal paintings made as I was making the decision at Christmas to end the project and make a fresh start.

You can see all the paintings below…

Days 273 to 293 (on days 291 and 292 I made mixed media paintings, not included here – they were part of the transitioning process):

SALchemy COVID-19 Degrees of Separation Project days 273 to 293

Days 257 to 273:

SALchemy COVID-19 Degrees of Separation Project days 257 to 272

Days 241 to 256:

SALchemy COVID-19 Degrees of Separation Project days 241 to 256

Days 225 to 240:

SALchemy COVID-19 Degrees of Separation Project days 225 to 240

Days 209 to 224:

SALchemy COVID-19 Degrees of Separation Project days 209 to 224

Days 193 to 208:

SALchemy COVID-19 Degrees of Separation Project days 193 to 208

Days 177 to 192:

SALchemy COVID-19 Degrees of Separation Project days 177 to 192

Days 161 to 176:

SALchemy COVID-19 Degrees of Separation Project days 161 to 176

Days 145 to 160:

SALchemy COVID-19 Degrees of Separation Project days 145 to 160

Days 129 to 144:

SALchemy COVID-19 Degrees of Separation Project days 129 to 144

Days 113 to 128:

SALchemy COVID-19 Degrees of Separation Project days 113 to 128

Days 97 to 112:

SALchemy COVID-19 Degrees of Separation Project days 97 to 112

Days 81 to 96:

SALchemy COVID-19 Degrees of Separation Project days 81 to 96

Days 65 to 80:

SALchemy COVID-19 Degrees of Separation Project days 65 to 80

Days 49 to 64:

SALchemy COVID-19 Degrees of Separation Project days 49 to 64

Days 33 to 48:

SALchemy COVID-19 Degrees of Separation Project days 33 to 48

Days 17 to 32:

SALchemy COVID-19 Degrees of Separation Project days 17 to 32

Days 1 to 16. On day 3 I knew it would be a project and that I would share it.

SALchemy COVID-19 Degrees of Separation Project days 1 to 16

You can read about how it all started, here.

SAL
#thejoyexperiments #SALchemy #C19_degreesofseparation

The paintings are made on an Apple iPad Air (3rd generation) with an Apple Pencil (1st generation). I’m using the pro Art Set app.

The project was, in part, inspired by my visit to the London National Portrait Gallery in early March 2020, to see David Hockney: Drawing from Life; I loved his iPad work.

I’ll be super-happy if you share my creations. Please use short quotes from the piece if you like, but always always link back to this page.
For any other use, please ask me first.

See the journey of my paintings and drawings over the years here.