IT'S ABOUT TIME

 

I know it has been a really long time since I have made any contribution to this blog. My only excuse is that I have been busy living...and creating.

The Sawdust Art Festival starts in three weeks and I still have a bit more work/creative play I need to do to be ready for opening. And, of course, there is no day that goes by without time in nature to feed my soul. So... that's my excuse in a nutshell.

I'm having a lot of fun experimenting and playing with new ways to do things so be prepared for some subtle and some big shifts. 

Creative play is the key to ....well, everything💓

The festival opens June 28th and runs 66 days.

WHAT DO YOU THINK?

I am currently working on spring cleaning at my house, but in between...a little bit of art play is called for. And so I am offering up these five cards for your preview and the opportunity to rank them according to your favorites. This will help me in terms of production for the summer Sawdust Art Festival this year so your input is greatly appreciated.

Thank you in advance 💓

 

RAINY DAY PLAY

 

Rainy day play brought on some sunny color and, after struggling with some blog glitches, a cheery disposition showed up. So, yes, Andrea, still scattering joy 😀

Despite the year continuing to show strains at the seams, an overall assessment says it was a pretty good year. Daily walks, good health, good friends, scattered workshops filled with new and returning faces, a couple of opportunities too good to pass up, old friends showing up after many years...I could go on and on. My gratitude list is pretty darned full 💓

I hope all who are reading this can add up the gratitude moments against the disappointments and come up on the plus side. And, if for some reason you can't, I'll leave you with Maya Angelou's words, Every storm runs out of rain.

AH, THE DISTRACTIONS

 

The usual morning sound of cawing crows and twittering finches is broken by the high-pitched cry of a hawk. I rise from my journaling to check out the sound, just the first of many distractions on this July morning.

Cindy's journal, which is due to be sent out this week as part of the Round Robin Journaling group languishes on my desk. Over the course of the month many ideas have flitted through my busy brain, but nothing seems to get to fruition. The distractions again.

Summer is always so full of the easy distractions and this summer of 2021 seems to have more than the usual share. Visiting friends and family (oh, so very essential to sanity after the past year of the Covid pandemic) are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the diversions. 

The summer's Sawdust Art Festival seemed like it would be easier than normal since choosing to exhibit only on a "Gallery Wall" that did not require my presence nor as much of a display. But this has not turned out to be entirely true as re-stocking and cleaning have taken more time than anticipated. Good news, yet still distracting.

And, now, the summer's Olympics draw me to watch. Darn! I try to resist, but the whole theme of Imagine continues to call to me. 

And the many things that languish on the to do list grows. Guess I'll start with the Round Robin journal though. Then....well, back to the many fun summer distractions, I guess.😀

MURDER OR SUICIDE?

Not sure if five counts as a murder of crows, but it's not a suicide and I don't know why not so here goes. These are crows I have been working on for the 2020 summer Sawdust Art Festival. It would have been my 21st consecutive year of showing in this great Laguna Beach festival. Sixty-six days of art, music, food, classes, and more. But, alas, I will be taking a leave of absence this year. 

It's time. I need to close this door at least for a while and see just what other doors might open. Road trips, time with grandkids hopefully, sunset watching, long walks, and so much more.

But what will I do with my crows now? LOL with them I suppose.

TEN DAYS BUT WHO'S COUNTING?

Yet another older journal piece

As I write this it is the start of the ten-day countdown to the end of the 
2019 Sawdust Art Festival season. After 20 years I have many mixed feelings about taking leave.... I am both excited and a feeling a bit nostalgic at loss at the same moment.

What will be behind the next door? At this time I have no idea at all, but look forward to the adventure of not knowing.

For now, ten...nine....

MOVING ON

 At last! The chrysalis stage had darkened over a few days, with each day showing more and more of the lines and details of the butterfly to come. 

On Sunday, while I was teaching my Sunday Studio Workshop at home, friend Laurel sent these pictures. Suzanne also sent a video of the entire opening up.

Way cool, I was sorry to miss it.  But here is the pictorial proof for you to enjoy. The first of the caterpillars has now gone through its stages.

JUMPING THROUGH HOOPS?

I'm not sure where the term "jumping through hoops" emanates from, but I remember something from childhood about the admonition to stop trying to....

Sometimes summer festival season feels as if those hoops just might be narrowing in size...there is just so much to do each day. No matter how organized it seems that I am...well, you know the rest.

Experience tells me that all will be good and that sometimes choices might need to be made. And I get it. Perhaps I just have not quite reached that point yet? There is just soooooooo much that greedy me wants to include in each day. Am I the only one feeling this way? Doubt it.

Still, I am grateful that there is so very much that wants doing in my life. So...I'm off for my morning walk along the shoreline. On my return there will be a load of laundry, a grocery list for later (or maybe early tomorrow), breakfast, banking, pay bills, and a walk to the festival for another good day. 

The hoops are calling!😄

MONARCH REIGN AT THE SAWDUST

The milkweed plant at the edge of my Sawdust Art Festival booth is doing its job well. A little over a week ago, the first Monarch flew around, landed on the plant several times, and then apparently moved on. 

A few days later, two caterpillars were spotted munching away on the leaves. Then, one of them left the plant and wandered back and forth across the 2x6 beam above, finally settling after two days on a spot near the corner post.

Meanwhile, two more caterpillars appeared. One of the original two found a spot to make a cocoon near the edge of the planter.

The jewel-like cocoon formed is truly a miracle with the metallic gold line circling it and the silk formed from which to hang. Amazing!

The other two caterpillars were not to be seen when I checked this morning, but I am sure, with closer inspection, I will find them at some point in the day.

I have learned so much about Monarchs and their life cycle since this all began, both from guests and fellow artists, and--of course--Google.

More next time of what has been learned.

And, once again, the words of Rainer Marie Rilke come to mind: Everything is gestation and then bringing forth.

You can watch the progress in Booth #205 at the Sawdust Art Festival.

WHAT TO DO WHEN...

 For months now I have had a sign on my desk that reads "What can I get rid of today?" This has created a regular routine of finding things both small and large that really no longer seem to serve.

The other day I came upon a package of 5x7 mats that had come into my possession at some time in the past and not been used. Were they to be part of the clean out? Then I noticed the scraps and other set aside bits of alcohol ink play. Why not?

And so, while not exactly lemons and lemonade, the bits and scraps and the small mats have become small salable pieces for my summer Sawdust Art Festival booth. I have more of them and more scraps so I see lots of playtime ahead.

Come see me in Booth #205 just off the main aisle. 

JOYFUL EXHAUSTION

Pretty desperately needing this third mug of coffee this morning. Pretty late night after the Sawdust Art Festival Preview Night Party. A long day of prep was followed by a joyful night of re-entry into the social world of festival time. Lots of old and new faces and great conversations over wonderful music in an engaging and fantastical setting. The artists this year have outdone themselves. When you come you should definitely "Expect the Unexpected," as this year's theme states.

There are just two days remaining to finish off the unfinished, like pricing, replacing what already sold, and more. Guess I'd better drag this tired self back to work. 

See you at the Sawdust Art Festival--June 28 thru September 1, 10 am to 10 pm daily!!

DETAILS, DETAILS, DETAILS....

Working on signage details

To create something exceptional, your mindset must be relentlessly focused on the smallest detail. (Georgio Armani)

I look to create something exceptional in this, my 20th, Sawdust Art Festival. This means, as Mr. Armani says, that I must be relentless in my focus. In these last days, it now comes down to all of the details. The art work is complete and will have to stand on merit. The details will have to be on me.

Booth color. Check. Shelves. Check. Pricing....well, soon. Work station. Check. Signage. Halfway there. Business cards. Check. Educational Display. Check. Bio and Photo. Not complete.

There are myriad details still...labeling, price list to Sales Booth, bags and wrapping, and on and on. I must be relentlessly focused because this is to be a celebration of the twenty years. Focus! Focus! Focus!

MUSING ON THE CHASE

Everything is gestation and then bringing forth. To let each germ of feeling come to completion wholly in itself, in the dark, in the inexpressible, the unconscious beyond the reach of one's own intelligence, and await with deep humility and patience the birth hour of new clarity: that alone is living the artist's life--in understanding as in creating. Rainer Marie Rilke

Section of tile

Rilke's words seem to resonate on this day in the midst of readying for the upcoming summer Sawdust Art Festival. In the midst of packing already completed artworks, that "germ" still calls to me and I turn to the paints, to the inks, to the papers once again...has to be!

WHAT THE SPIRIT REACHES FOR...

Journal entry for May

For quite some time now I have been involved in several round robin journaling groups. While I thought at first that I would not like the format, I have found it is usually a push and a good one, a place for trying on new techniques and/or ideas.

In the midst of the busy time getting ready for the summer festival I found myself searching for just what I wanted to do for the month's journal entry. While cleaning some shelves, it appeared in the form of a print I had done previously on Gampi paper tucked away in a book. Some paint for background, adhere the print, a tree quickly sketched in, just the right words....voila!

The uninhabited cabin in Montana had appealed to me to photograph several years ago. The isolation and yet the peace of the place somehow resonated. Now, as I ready for the two plus months of what summer in Laguna is--crowded streets, traffic snarls, busy crowds of folks at the three festivals, and so much more--I feel the pull of a place like this one.

Mary Oliver wrote: "I have decided to find myself a home in the mountains, somewhere high up where one learns to live peacefully in the cold and the silence. It's said that in such a place certain revelations may be discovered. That what the spirit reaches for may be eventually felt, if not exactly understood."

Is this the pull? Is this what my own spirit reaches for? Perhaps. Guess it will wait until the summer season ends though.

TWENTY-SIX DAYS?

Surprises abound beyond these gates 

Twenty-six days somehow got me thinking about twenty-six miles across the sea...don't know why, but probably the song..."Santa Catalina is a-waiting for me...."  But I digress. 

Twenty-six is the number of days remaining until the Sawdust Art Festival holds a preview night party for artist's invited guests.

Am I ready? Ha! But I will be, of course. I am excited to be celebrating not only my twentieth year as an exhibitor, but also my decision to hang it up this year. I need to make space for whatever is coming next and feel this is the way to do it. Exciting!!

I hope you all will come visit. I don't think that I will be the only artist with some new and interesting work for sale. 

Meanwhile, guess I'd better get back to work...there is still much to do.

BRINGING FORTH

Another storm coming?

Rainer Marie Rilke said, "Everything is gestation and then bringing forth."What a wonderful description of the process of creativity.

The recent storms that gestated off shore and then came forth and getting ready for summer festivals like the Sawdust Art Festival have this and process in common. 

Am I pushing the analogy? Perhaps a bit, but it feels a bit "stormish" at this time of year as we prep for the several shows that take over the Laguna summer scene for so many of us. The momentum builds from the day in May when we choose our summer spot to build on right through until Preview Night in June.

As with a building storm's energy, there is a gathering of momentum and power right up to that six o'clock hour on June 25th when the gates are opened and the flood of guests surge onto the grounds. It's a lot! And we love it! 

I have new work and some from past seasons this year to display and sell in this my twentieth summer. I will take leave next year so this season has more "weight" than even usual for me as I seek to share my vision with others. Hope to see all of you there at some point between that opening moment and close of show just before Labor Day.

WINDING DOWN....AND UP

Festival season...and the summer...are winding down. Early morning walks have a slight chill and the light has changed. Clouds are edged with pink and lilac and the colors are reflected in the sea below.

This is one of my favorite times of year, in part because of the possibilities that arise with change. And change is definitely in the air. I am looking forward to what is on the horizon...in my walks and in my life.

Early morn

If you are local and have not yet made it to the art festivals here in Laguna you do have a few days left to do so. The Sawdust Art Festival goes through Sunday, September 2nd and the others are either on the same schedule or just a bit earlier so you had better move to come soon.  The days are getting cooler (at last!) and the evenings are delightful. So I hope to see some of you soon.

DAWDLING ALONG...

A quail by any other color...

It's just that time of summer I guess....I am dawdling (sometimes it feels more like slogging :)) along through the heat and humidity, hoping to reach the end of festival season intact. 
Creating is my simple solution to keeping the joy in all this. A walk along our local beaches gets the juices flowing and ideas percolating. So...why not a quail of just any old color? Or how about a crow? a raven? a finch? a grackle? The list is endless. The magic words, "Why not?"

OH, MY, THIS HEAT!!

Staying cool

While it's hard to stay cool when all around is heat, somehow it seems the Sawdust Art Festival, and Laguna Beach in general, seem to manage. The breezes continue to flow cool, especially up the canyons.
My yard is filled with birdsong and my Sawdust booth has baby birds chirping for food.  Life goes on and we all just move a bit more slowly to accommodate to the heat.
Entertainment at the festival keeps spirits up and an evening glass of wine helps a bit, too.
If you are anywhere near come on down, cool off,  and enjoy the evenings with us til 10 PM. 
Booth #131 right at the front of the grounds.

DEMO...DEMO...DEMO!!!

Play

Sawdust Art Festival time is, among other things, time for demonstrating how one does his or her art. Each artist takes the time to create for the public view. This is one of my favorite things, as it not only fills some of the slack time (after all, twelve hour days are not always busy...and then there's the heat of the past week!)but it allows me to simply play with what is at hand in a small space. 
Some small tubes of acrylic paint. Scraps of watercolor paper. A couple of brushes and pens. A napkin or two. And off I go. It is a pleasurable way to fill my time and my obligation. Double win...maybe even a triple! Voila!