Molly Lawless likes to work with alcohol inks because they have a mind of their own. When they come in contact with paper they spread with unpredictability, mixing and creating new, unexpected hues. Lawless strives to live her life like the cascading colors in her artwork.
“With alcohol inks you need a sense of flexibility in your approach to creating art,” says the artist. “It’s how you should approach life. I can have a plan going in but then I need to be flexible about the outcome. Sometimes you end up with something better than what you had planned.”
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Lawless teaches middle-school art—she recently accepted a position at Wydown Middle School—and is mom to one daughter, Romy. Her style in the classroom is a reflection of how she approaches challenging tasks.
“When I see my students about to try something new, I always say, ‘Feel the fear and do it anyway.’ I want to teach them to be comfortable with ambiguity,” she says.
Lately, Lawless’ artwork has been an experimentation in mixing complimentary colors, and she’s encouraging her students to do the same.
“In school, art teachers will sometimes tell their students that if you mix compliments you’re going to get mud,” Lawless says. “So, they almost play down those beautiful mixed neutrals you can get when you mix opposites, which do have a place in art.”
Lawless has also been experimenting with the use of negative space.
“I’m playing with the positive versus negative space,” she says. “If you use too much, these inks can get out of control quickly and there’s no negative space. It’s this little battle I have. I love negative space because it gives you breathing room.”
Lawless says she continues to grow as a teacher, an artist, and a mom, and hopes to continue living a life that’s as dynamic as an alcohol ink on a piece of non-porous paper.
“There’s a push and pull. The inks act in a sense how life is. Movement that’s constant,” Lawless says. “So, it’s symbolic for that reason … It’s experimental and there’s this discovery process.”
