Color & Inspiration

The August 2009 Margie’s Muse column is an excerpt from The Beader’s Guide to Color by Margie Deeb [Watson-Guptill, 2004]

A passion for color and movement is the driving force in all my creations. In “That Silver Ribbon of Road,” three independent panels of color represent the past, present, and future, as well as the subconscious, unconscious, and conscious mind. That silver ribbon of road connects them all. Design by Margie Deeb; loomwork by Margie Deeb and Frieda Bates

Add passion to your artistry and mastery. Take all three into the realm of imagination. Let them brew and steep and rumble. From that place you’ll emerge with new vision, and your colors will be uniquely yours, singing your unique voice.

For centuries, the Aurora Borealis has astounded observers. This breathtaking phenomenon of color has inspired those who opened their hearts, minds, and senses. Rather than mentally noting the shades of color, they lingered in the mystery of it all.

When colors set your imagination on fire, allow yourself to do more than note them for later use. Linger in the reverie and mystery of your inspiration. If it is the Aurora that inspires you consider how the colors move: are they quick and pulsating, or sweeping and majestic? What is the quality of their light: luminous and sparkling, or dense and opaque? What are the nuances of color fluctuation? Do they change in intensity, value, or luminosity?

Allow your experience of color to move beyond your senses, into the realm of the imagination. If you could hear them sing, what would they sound like? What of their texture? What would it feel like to trace your fingertips across them? If you could taste them, what would you taste? And how would they smell? How far into the colors can you go? What is it about these colors, their movement and life that cause your soul to stir? What sparks your passion?

Imagination can infuse your color choices so that they become more than a mere record colors, or a pretty combination of hues. With imagination, your color becomes uniquely expressive of you.

On the path of imaginative artistry, the journey is as valuable as the work that arises from it. A passion for living life in all its colors is an exhilarating one, and may just turn out to be your path.