Evelyn Anim
The Nomadic Abstract Artist
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CREATIVE EXPRESSION - PART 1
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Before I embarked on my nomadic journey I was living in the UK and had my own place and
so I had a lot of space to create and store my abstract art.
My art included collages on canvas which I made using paper and various left over/recycled materials.
I mostly painted abstract art onto cardboard using acrylic paints. My beautiful artwork also made
it's way into greeting cards and bookmarks.
I left them all behind when I came to Costa Rica because it simply wasn't practical and I
wanted to have less stuff in my life!
My arrival in Costa Rica was the start of living minimally which was
great but the creative part of me was screaming to be expressed and so I wrestled with how
to do this but still stay minimal as I was now living a nomadic life.
Obviously it's impractical to carry around paints, canvases and paint brushes now that I was living nomadically so I had to figure out a new outlet for my creativity.
Spirit showed me that I could still create smaller works of art on cardboard but use a different medium. Cardboard is universally free and readily available everywhere so made sense ti continue to use it. However acrylic paints didn't fit in my
budget like they did when I was in the UK so I was guided to use NAIL VARNISH as my medium to replace the acrylic paints that I would normally use.
Initially I was skeptical about my brainwave but those doubts were put to rest when I started using them, they turned out to be such a joy to work with!
They they very were cheap to buy in San Jose (x3 for 1,000 colones) and came in amazing colours ranging from neons to metallics. What I loved the most about nail varnish was that I didn't need paintbrushes! The brush that comes within the varnish bottle was sufficient to
paint with.
Nail varnish dries really quickly especially in the Costa Rican sun and so often I would paint outside in the parks of San José. It was really fun to able to paint outdoors in the sun. This was only possible because the small canvases made from card board and nail varnish paints were now portable.
With nail varnishes I didn't need to carry around brushes or use water to mix the paints so my
art process had not only become portable but also minimalist compared to the boxes of paint, brushes and materials I used to use.
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Not only used nail varnishes to paint on cardboard but also to paint on various pieces of clothing and jewellery including jean shorts, jean skirts, t-shirts and wooden earrings.
Although painting on cardboard with nail varnish solved my initial issue of expressing my creativity with minimal materials and space it wasn't suitable for my time in Puerto Viejo for a few reasons.
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One of the reasons why it wasn't going to be sustainable is that a collection of nail varnishes
starts getting heavy quickly as the containers are always made from glass. Also even with
small cardboard canvases it only takes a few for them to start taking up space. I knew then that going forward I would need to find another outlet for expressing my artistic ideas. Puerto Viejo would proved to be the perfect place to start creating ENVIRONMENTAL ART.
Environmental art is perfect because I can create art using shells, coral, rocks, leaves and whatever else is around. No more need for cardboard or paints of any kind! My canvass are
now sand or trees or whatever surface I feel like using at the time. I can just walk along the beach and find a space place to create and use what's around me. One of my favorite quick environmental arts to create is to collect rock and shells and line them up along the surface of trees which then makes the tree look like its wearing a open necklace.
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I'm completely happy with creating environmental art that's temporary because I have photographs of them and I can always create permanent versions if requested for beach gardens or homes.
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I arrived in Puerto Viejo with 12 pieces of abstract art on cardboard created with nail varnishes
but decided to reduce them to 4 of my top favorite pcs. There was a dog sitting assignment
that I completed in a beautiful house in Playa Negra in Puerto Viejo which had really nice shelves so I adorned the shelves with the pieces I parted with.
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While I was there I added some of feather collection to an empty case. In another large empty case I added coral, rocks and lots of tiny shells and driftwood. Another way I be found to
express my artistic ideas is by adding artistic touches to a hostel I volunteered at. Bikini hostel in Puerto Viejo wanted to transform their septic tanks so I offered to paint 2 pf them. I painted on in a vibrant bold style and the other in a softer gradient style. I also added small rocks and shells to an empty glass bottle to adorn one of the tables. See below.
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Environmental art is portalable, creates zero waste and compliments a minimal lifestyle! I wouldnt rule out working with nail varnish again especially for creating designs on clothing and acessories.
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For art commissions please email or send me a whatsapp message -
+506 7155 8938
Feel free to get in touch if you would like a unique environmental art piece for your beach
house, garden, house or if you would like some clothing customised.
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I can paint/customise the following:
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*Tree trunks*Septic tanks
*Rocks*Coral*Driftwood and shells in clear bottles and vases
*Chairs*Tables*Walls*Cardboard
*Your Clothing & Jewellery
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