WHERE DOES IT COME FROM?

 I have to admit that often I say my inspiration arrives, as for Calvin of Calvin and Hobbes, in last-minute panic.

This time the arrival was far more peaceful and kind of developed over a bit of time.

In September student Camillia (always full of laughter and joy) brought me a crow card she had purchased on her magnificent summer trip to visit baseball parks. I was enamored, but did not see myself doing anything like it.

Yet, the seed was planted. Seems as soon as everything was boxed and ready for the Sawdust Festival's Winter Fantasy I had time on my hands for pure play. Why it went to creating stamps that then became printed cards I can't really say. But there it is. Six individual, different designs--all crows of course! It was a lot of fun. Now what to do with them? Send short personal notes, I suppose. Or make more. Or......????

JOYFUL SOUNDS RING OUT

If only we listen

Anyone who reads this blog even sporadically knows that I do love my morning walks. They are for keeping me, not only somewhat fit, but sane.

On a recent morning the symphony of sound coming from a soloist mockingbird in a nearby tree prompted me to stop and listen. What joy! The variety and scope of this little guy's tunes was amazing. I thought to myself, "If only..." I wanted to hold onto this joyful rendering, but how?

As I stood transfixed I could not help but think if only the sound could be captured in my mind, all worries, stress, concerns, problems, foibles even would simply disappear. Silly thought perhaps, but...well, what if...?

I think that it is worth pondering the question a bit longer.

WHY???

Awake at three a.m. I really tried hard to return to sleep, but it just wasn't happening, so here I am at 4-something...

Heeeeey macarena!

Busy brain so I guess I will just put it to work solving things and getting things done around here. There is always plenty to do.

Guess I will start with the pile of laundry and then wait for enough light to head out on a morning walk.

Eager to work on a new art journal I started recently. There are some fun techniques I can hardly wait to try.

So....here I go...HEEEEY MACARENA!

SOME THOUGHTS

Simple

Some thoughts on the first day of February:

Inspiration is right before us. All we need do is look...and see.

If we can play at our work we are blessed.

We are all doing our best, even when limited.

Creativity is not limited. Just reach out. Invent. Experiment. Be bold. take risks. Break rules. Make mistakes.Dig deeper.Adapt. Let go of fear.
Ride off the beaten path. Sing in your own key. Cut holes to see through.
Shake hands with tomorrow. Plug into joy.

EVERYTHING OLD....

It's funny how everything old just seems to come around new again. It is often as if there are only these few iterations of things that just shift slightly to reinvent themselves. 

But morning walks along our beautiful shoreline.... Same? Different? Definitely new each day in my mind. Always refreshing. Always gorgeous, no matter the weather. Always...the same and yet different as well.

In any case, makes my day!! Leaves me inspired. Off I go to create!

WHAT SHALL IT BE?

With heavy air drizzling on the skylights, I find myself thinking of the final workshop of the month scheduled for tomorrow. What shall we do? What should the main project be? Of course, we will go over basic methods, but I'm looking for that something "special" as focus. With the students all being repeat ones, I don't hesitate to ask them what is preferred.

Some would like "oh, anything." Others would like to focus on collage figures. I had mentioned focus on faces, so that is definitely one possibility...and there are myriad ways to accomplish this.

So...What shall it be?

WHO WOULD IT BE?

Who?

Normally, I prefer to use my own images for this blog, but this one seemed to call out to me.  Perhaps it will to you as well.

Having created a space post-festival season to see what will show up, I have found myself spending many hours each day simply clearing out my spaces and ridding myself of long-saved yet unused pieces. Still unsure what will show up, I nevertheless move forward with the clear image that whatever it is will be pretty wonderful.

So what do I answer to the question of who? After a good deal of thought and with the creating space in mind, it suddenly came to me that I would need to sit down with myself. Who knows better what might lie ahead and who better to manifest?

So who would you choose to sit with for that precious hour?

MID-AUGUST ALREADY? HOW CAN THAT BE?

Camillia's journal

As the herd of goats bleats in the morning air across the canyon, I am mesmerized by the sound...until....

Whoa! It's past mid-point of this month of August and there is still much to do. Not least of these tasks is to get to creating something for my pages in this fun monthly Round Robin journal.

I have had several ideas for what will transpire, but of course, Bill Watterson's Calvin comes to mind with his words stating that last-minute panic is his inspiration. I will try to not let it go quite that far. Maybe after the weekend hullabaloo settles???

We'll see. 

EYE OPENING

Mark Bradford on 60 Minutes

 Sunday night I watched Anderson Cooper interview artist Mark Bradford on 60 Minutes. What a fascinating story of the man and his art. I was mesmerized.

The techniques he uses and how he came to them are so very unique and also inspirational. An amazing story. Check him out if you can.

I keep saying I am working to create a space so that I may see what fills it.  Somehow, Mark Bradford's art and his techniques, while not it, are still a hint, I think.  We shall see.

WOW

The piece here to the left was something Mark Bradford seemed to feel he HAD to do. It came out of a posted video done by a woman who was in the car when her friend was shot by police. These are her words heard on the video.

FLASH!

I like the thought

The weather folks keep talking about the possibility of flash floods, but, luckily, not any yet.
One of the things we do in Sunday Studio Workshops is create at least one piece that can be sent as mail art to a name drawn of another participant in the workshop. I get one too. It always brings me a smile of pure joy to get these in the mail. And my mail lady likes them too. This one came recently from enthusiastic student, Camillia. What a great reminder to us all!

THUNDER AND LIGHTNING PRECEDE WEEK 2/BLOG 4

Morning after

There is no duty we so much underrate as the duty of being happy. 

These words from Robert Louis Stevenson resonate for me on this stormy morning. So very many magnificent things can emanate from this feeling of happiness.

After a night of fantastic thunder and lightning it was still possible to get in a morning walk before more rain appeared. Glorious!!

And what a way to start each day! It is a discipline, yes, but such a rewarding one. I am hoping that this resolution of mine to do two blogs each week, while yet another discipline, can be at least close to as fulfilling. Fingers crossed and working/playing at it!

I THINK I CAN...I THINK I CAN...

Why not?

Week one, Blog number two. So far so good. 
The mail art card to the left seems to express yet another thought on resolutions. Why not resolve to be creative in the year to come? 
There are so very many ways to do "creative," at least I think so. But, going back to the "Success" post, one of the best things is to just do it (Oh, no, not that Nike quote again!)
Seriously, though, creativity, like flying, starts with doing.
Begin, fail, succeed, do it again, begin again, fail, do it,.........
So why not take a class or workshop?
Watch a YouTube video to learn something new and try it? Pick up pen, pencil, paint brush, even crayon and paper and just begin drawing? 
There are myriad ways to "just do it" so why not begin?

WHAT MOOD IS THAT?

Spring flowers bloom

What mood is that? Hobbes asks Calvin while discussing creativity and inspiration in a cartoon by the great Bill Watterson. Calvin's reply, Last-minute panic is probably recognizable by many of us who play in creative fields. 
It's not that ideas and possibilities do not abound, but somehow getting to the nitty-gritty often awaits that last minute crush.
Recently, after completing eight collage pieces for a set for Amy Poehler's upcoming production for Netflix of Wine Country, I found myself unable to focus on just one creative area. I was all over the place. Perhaps this was in part a direct effect of the intense pressure to complete the eight pieces. Last-minute panic had been the rule.
So now do I have to wait until another last-minute time? 
Gee! I hope not. 
Plodding on will continue until some brilliance shines through. Maybe I'll even get another film gig.  Wouldn't that be great?

TRY, TRY, TRY AND TRY AGAIN

confused? maybe

I'm not sure just what my attraction to faces, especially those of women, is but my drawing hand just keeps playing with them. Perhaps it is about the issue of success and failure. I'm drawn to the relationship between them as well.
In the continued drawing of face after face after face, playing with small changes to see the result, I find I feel like young Gerald Hodges (and if you don't know his story you should!)
He is quoted as saying about joining his high school swim team when he could not even swim: I felt like if I couldn't handle not being good at something, then how could I consider myself a successful person?
Well said, young man. We can all learn from you.

CHECKING BACK IN

Just one more spread of play

I said in an earlier post that I would check back in with how the four-week Mixed Media Journaling class was going.
This two-page spread is from week three and the play continues.
One of the things I have noticed is that though I generally work pretty quickly, I am even going at a more rapid pace in this workshop setting. Not really sure why, but there it is. Also, not yet sure of the end results and how I feel about them, but I really like the way it "feels" to move that quickly.
Jacki keeps referring to me as a graffiti artist. Maybe that's about the speed? Guess I need to find myself a bridge or some train car to do graffiti on--tee-hee.
One more week to go. Again, I will keep you all posted.

I KNOW...WHAT??

Only the beginning

Yeah, yeah, I know...it's finally raining outside and it's the dead of winter and...why have I zealously begun spring cleaning? I can hardly move around my office at this point and it seems to be only the beginning as each move creates more moves and more mess. 
No resolution sparked this; it just showed up with this morning's rain. Why? Who knows. But now I am in full throttle on this.
Lots of art fodder will either go in the trash or, if you have need of specifics please let me know and I can set aside for you.
This is crazy, but back to it!!! Inspiration awaits at the bottom of all these piles I am sure.

OH, BABY, IT'S COLD OUTSIDE

There IS a song in my heart. Winter Solstice is here and it actually feels like winter. How long will it last? Not long, I hear. But for now, enjoy as it helps with the season. 
2017 is nearly gone and it has been quite a year on many fronts. Workshops are done for me for this year and I look forward to the possibilities for those to come in the new year. 
Creative possibilities, as always, abound. Look for more birds in new and different ways in 2018 along with a continuation of the Celebration of Women series. The latter is my quiet show of defiance and I have a lot of fun with it so why not, eh?
Meanwhile, Happy Holidays to all! Keep a song in your heart too !!!!

NATURE INSPIRES ONCE AGAIN

Evening view through the bamboo

I've been a bit pissed ever since my husband's bamboo planting began to take out some of my views. Nevertheless, as so often happens, there are some quirky rewards. Peeking through the bamboo and holding it a bit aside I was able to get this shot of the sun's beautiful reflections in clouds over the ocean. I was thrilled...and once again, inspired!

GLORIOUS FALL!

Look closely at all the shapes and colors!

My daughter sent me this picture from Long Island in New York. I was impressed with the myriad colors and shapes and textures presented. Not sure exactly why but it was just what I needed to get myself in creative gear and I have been working non-stop ever since. I cannot wait to see what transpires.
I love the happenstance of it.
What inspires you?

MOODY MUGGY SUMMER

Mother of Exiles

The Emma Lazarus poem at the base of the Statue of Liberty is a not so gentle reminder of what our country has long cherished. We are a melting pot of cultures and countries that is currently challenged in these troubling times as to how to continue upholding these values while protecting our shores. So it seemed fitting that, as a part of my Celebration of Women series, the Mother of Exiles (as the Statue is called in the full poem) be represented. Come see the complete collection of women at the Sawdust Art Festival until September 3, Booth #202.