Day 3 - #WorldWatercolorGroup Feeling Saturated Cherry Tomatoes in Plastic
By Charlie

Feeling Saturated

Written by Charlie O'Shields

Today’s prompt of “saturation” to an artist can mean intense color, but to an artist who’s scrambling to get everything done in a day, it has another meaning. The definition of saturation is a state or process that occurs when nothing more can be absorbed, combined or added. As we close out the week, this rather describes my current mental state, so it seemed fitting to head in this direction. I’ve no idea how I set upon this image to illustrate the concept. I guess you could say that if sometimes life is a bowl of cherries, there might also be times when life feels like a plastic cup stuffed with too many cherry tomatoes. An odd metaphor to be sure, but still optimistic as cherry tomatoes are quite delicious. But some days just feel a bit hectic, making the weekend all the more welcome. Even on the busiest of days, though, I will always find a moment to sketch something. It’s better therapy than (and brace yourself as this will sound shocking) even the wine I’m about to drink.

Yes, a day without a doodlewash would be a bad day indeed. Busy days can be stressful, but nothing I can’t handle. If I didn’t have that little moment of break to create something, though, I wouldn’t be happy. Sure, I “made” deadlines and “made” emails today, but I didn’t make anything that was simply done for the pleasure of it until my little moment to paint. When I plop my butt down at the edge of my kitchen counter after I get home from work, I like to think of it as my recharging station. It’s like I’d gone into “low power” mode and plugged in just in time before losing all of my power. It’s magical! And just 20-45 minutes later, I’ve reached full power and am ready to enjoy my evening without any of the stress of the day. This is amazing. I’m actually not sure why doctors seem to love resort to pharmaceuticals when they could simply prescribe watercolor! Though the poster in the office might look odd saying: “Don’t pop a Valium! Just paint something!”

And yet, it’s so true. In spite of a crazy day, coming home to take a bit of time to doodlewash something makes me incredibly happy. Oh, I’ll still have that glass of wine, but I’ll enjoy it just a little bit more than usual. Painting is something that comes from the heart and therefore it always has the power to heal our stresses and power us up! Looking at my subject matter now, I find it perfectly ridiculous in response to this prompt, but that’s part of the fun of this month. Perhaps during it, you’ll get a terrifying glimpse into how my mind really works. But I hope that whatever you discover will be something intriguing and interesting. Something that, indeed often begun with the stress of the day, ends with nothing but a whole lot of love. And the fact that you’ve read this post to the end makes me feel incredibly loved. A warm feeling that lets me know you’re in this journey with me. And one that brings a new meaning to feeling saturated.

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About the Doodlewash

Sennelier L’Aquarelle: Indian Yellow, Red Orange, Sennelier Red, Perylene Maroon, and Ultramarine Deep. Lamy Safari Al Star pen with Platinum Carbon with black ink in a little red cloth hardbound l’aquarelle journal I found in a Paris shop.
  day-3-feeling-saturated-cherry-tomatoes-in-plastic-cup

Charlie O'Shields

Creator of Doodlewash, founder of World Watercolor Month (July), World Watercolor Group, and host of the Sketching Stuff Podcast. Sharing watercolor illustrations and stories while proudly featuring talented artists from all over the world!

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32 thoughts on “Feeling Saturated”

  2. another super great read! yes. if we’d turn to creative arts to destress a bit, we’d need a little less RX/ The human soul yearns to create and express. and lies dormant, in way too many.
    But for doodlewashers out there, Not So! a sip of delicious beverage and a wave of the color loaded brush…….. is nearly all we need. Great post Charlie. 🙂

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  3. I love this…”Painting is something that comes from the heart and therefore it always has the power to heal our stresses and power us up! “

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  9. Great post!I so do enjoy and love your writing style.It is honest and authentic which is so refreshing and lovely to read and comprehend.Keep up!Your doodlewash accompanied with the post is spectacular too.I am so glad to be at the receiving end of your de-stress mechanism!I get to witness excellent watercolor paintings.Have a great week ahead!

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  10. Charlie, your Doodlewash is fabulous. Always a wonder how well you capture the essence of whatever you’ve set out to paint. I just bought two of these little cups of cherry tomatoes – so delish, and they look exactly like your painting.

    My painting is usually a private endeavor – I dislike being watched when painting. But because I sometimes paint murals in somewhat public places, I also sometimes get watched. Dislike it – it will always be the moment I dump the entire palette of paints all over the place (I use plastic ice cube trays for acrylic paint palettes so I can stand on a ladder and have the colors I need at hand. It can be a lot of paint dropped on someone else’s floor. And add a witness – oy.)

    Anyway, more than one person has noted how peaceful I am when I paint. Because any type of art that absorbs me also reduces my stress level and brings me levels of peace I don’t often feel at other times. Much better than drugs.

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    1. Thanks, Sharon! 😃💕 Yes…. way better than drugs! And I’m the same with painting. I don’t really enjoy doing it in public which is why I’m only an urban sketcher when the subject matter happens to be sitting in front of me (like the sneakers from a couple days ago!). I love the private time of painting and being able to just connect with the painting itself. Even if it’s just a plastic cup of tomatoes. hehe

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  11. Damn, I’m enjoying the plastic cup as much as the tomatoes – so plasticky! Honestly, I still struggle to fully get my head around how you manage to do these so consistently every single day, but it makes a little more sense now! There is indeed much to be said for artistic therapy.

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    1. Thanks, Jacob! 😃💕 I don’t know what it is about me and shiny and plastic things, but they’re just fun to paint. That plus food and it’s a win win! hehe Some days are definitely better than others… on some I feel like I’m moving so fast I don’t even know what I just posted. Sort of crossing fingers that it looked like the thing and makes some sort of sense. 😊hehe

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  13. Reblogged this on marianschiltz and commented:
    Talk about an outstanding metaphor! All these cherry tomatoes stuffed into one see through container, sadly describes how I feel in America at times… All these people stuffed together on one planet. On the other hand, what a great snack for on the go! I’d prefer a reusable container though. Next time that we get something in plastic, can we cut down on waste, just a smidge, by re-using the plastic for another healthy snack please?

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