Capturing the Color With Macular Degeneration

It is funny how quickly the year goes by. Just yesterday there were many complaints of it being too hot and too dry to do anything but try to stay cool. Then in a blink of an eye, the seasons change and the days turn to cooler temperatures and early sunsets, all of this bringing much-needed relief.

Autumn festivities

Autumn brings the changing of leaves, brisk cool mornings, and for me, a return to our church's annual holiday sale. It is a time for me to gather up all the assorted art pieces I have been obsessively working on and try my hand at peddling my wares to whoever might be interested in buying them. I am sure my husband is silently applauding these efforts to clear out some of the clutter found in my art/office room.

The sale day

Our sale day started early and briskly, it is like a right of passage to some, to circulate through the many sales being held on that particular weekend. My collection of artwork was quite abundant to say the least. I covered a 6x8 table with painting and sketching. There were also paintings lined up behind my table on the bleachers. To say I had a “few” pieces is an understatement. I enjoy what I do.

Kabitzing

As I sat through this long day, selling pieces off and on, I think the most fun was the visiting with the people shopping. I like to share with them my journey with myopic macular degeneration (MMD) and how I am pushing through to continue to create any and all kinds of art work. No matter how challenging it may seem at times.

There was one particular person that made an impression on me as he browsed through my assembled artwork. As he glanced at the many pieces I had, he said these words, “That’s a lot of color”. I nodded in agreement and he went on his way.

Capturing it all

His words impacted me greatly. I took a different look at what I have been creating over this past year and then it struck me. The main theme of most every piece of work I have done, involves color, bright colors, intense colors. Thinking with a "myopic macular degeneration brain", I realized then that what I have been striving to do: capture it all.

As I see the source of my artwork, I do know that the colors are not as bright as they should be or were. In my attempts to recreate these objects, I grab those colors and make them bold and strong. MMD may be muting my viewing but I am fighting to hold on to the true colors.

Wisdom from Monet

A great artist said it well, “Color is my daylong obsession, joy and torment”. – Claude Monet

I feel this in my bones, searching and recreating the beauty of color is something I have to do. It keeps me grounded and focused on the beauty around me.