Tag Archives: Maru Godas

Risk, Discovery, Momentum

With Art at the Kent now in the rearview, I’ve just finished another broken vase and shadow piece and have a fresh sheet of paper stretched on my board, ready to begin a new one.  I still need to get these pieces out of my system before I can move on.

Broken Shadows

Broken Shadows ©2025 Elizabeth Fram, Watercolor, gold pigment, knotless netting & stitching on paper, 9″H x 7″W

Even so, I’ve spent the majority of my studio time pushing forward with gouache. It’s a dance of two steps forward, one step back, yet feels ever so liberating. With each sketch – and at this point they are definitely just sketches – I’m becoming more aware of what a deep and, at times, mysterious pond I’ve jumped into.

Maine Mug

Maine Mug ©2025 Elizabeth Fram, Gouache on paper, 8″H x 11″W

Stlll, there are plenty of folks to lead the way. Aside from masters such as Paul Klee, Lois Dodd, and Fairfield Porter, contemporary painters like Lena Rivo, Maru Godas, and Mike Hernandez give me plenty to think about and to study.

Three Tubes

Three Tubes ©2025 Elizabeth Fram, Gouache on paper, 9″H x 11.5″W

In a timely bit of kismet, I was listening to an “I Like Your Work” podcast by Erika b Hess in which she touched on the commonality, and even the bravery, of delving into the fresh territory of a new medium. Her characterization of such explorations as a period of “risk, discovery, and momentum” nails the feeling. What better time than now, after a couple of big exhibitions, to thwart complacency by breathing some fresh air into my practice?

Orange and Purple Bowl

Orange and Purple Bowl ©2025 Elizabeth Fram, Gouache on paper, 9″H x 11.5″W

Please note: I’ll be back in four weeks (Nov. 20th). We have a date to meet our first grandbaby!

Two Necessary Ingredients

I can’t think of a better way to end one year and to begin another than by acknowledging and giving thanks to the two constants of any art practice: the hard-to-define, yet oh-so-necessary element of “inspiration” – which (hopefully) hovers over one shoulder — accompanied on the other shoulder by its requisite companion, “hard work”. You can’t have one without the other, but the truth is, the former most reliably shows up as a result of the latter.

I will be thinking of both as I sit down this weekend to finish outlining my overall plan and goals for 2022. How about you?

3 Daughters of Maine

3 Daughters of Maine    ©2021 Elizabeth Fram, Watercolor and pencil on paper, 6 x 15 inches.    Now that Christmas is past and the cat is officially out of the bag, I can share the portrait commission I was working on in Oct/Nov. Its significance to this post is that my dear friend, on the far right, exemplifies the essence of inspiration and hard work for many people. Especially those who look up to her in the running world, the state of Maine and beyond.

Below is a handful of the many guiding lights I’ve gleaned inspiration from this past year — some for their artwork, some for their business acumen, a few for both qualities. But without a doubt, hard work is an ingredient common to all. As my parting gift for 2021, I hope that one or two of these resources might prove insightful for you as well.

Finally, I’ll sign off with a quote Lissa Hunter offered during a talk she gave last March — wise words from her former drawing instructor, Larry Thomas:

“Don’t look for something important to draw, make it important by drawing it.”

See you in two weeks…
Happy New Year!