Falling in love with my work again

https://www.etsy.com/listing/119191665/10x10-coffee-collage-ink-blue-red-lotus

I go through spells...sometimes i feel like i have a successful piece and sometimes i don't...it is just how this goes...
In recent weeks there have been those moments when i felt good about the work...Every artist knows what i'm talking about...that moment when you realize that the work your have created  actually makes you feel giddy...just like falling in love....For people who have never experienced this, it can seem a bit egotistical...i mean, really?  Your work makes you feel giddy?  How weird is that?  But, it does, when it is good...there is that level of creativity that is almost intoxicating and euphoric...and it happens when the work is complete...and in your gut...you know that it is good....and believe me, there is a lot of crap work that was created before the good, so when you finally make something that is successful...it is like Fireworks....

How does that happen?  i think it is the theory i have heard from the infamous Ira Glass about getting through the crap to the good stuff..and that quote i like by Andy Warhol and simply making stuff and letting other people decide if it is good... both said in a little different way to mean...

just keep going...

there is another one i like...

" just start, the results will happen...."

and sometimes, the result is to fall in love with your work again...and remember exactly why you are doing what you are doing...because let's face it...being an artist is hard work....it is gut-wrenching, brow beating, emotionally taxing, and with very little reward at times(monetarily and on the low end of the spectrum of respect from the general public)....so, when it does pay off even if it is just in the form of a successful creation...that is like hitting the lottery....and sometimes. that is enough....

too many ideas, too little time

Sometimes i find that my mind is overrun with creative project ideas....

For example: RIGHT NOW!
At this very moment i want to make a lot of stuff...here is my list:

1. crowns
2. hats
3. tiaras
4. tutus
5. crocheted head wraps with attached scarves inspired by the mother in "a Christmas Story"
6. a new blanket for my daughter
7. christmas cards, valentine cards, and glittery cards
8.  mini art dolls
9.  mixed media art houses
10. mixed media art purses
11. watercolor paintings of all of the stuff i pick up
12. painted shoes
13.  sewing projects: too many to list
14. framed dioramas: too many idea to list
15. art cards
16. block prints
17.pocket warmers
18. pillow cases
19. fairy houses
20. ceramic sculptures
21. backyard raku kiln made from a grill
22. christmas ornaments
23. more christmas ornamentswith my kids
24. christmas cookies with my kids


and soooooooo much more....

routines, quirks, and methods

The older I get, the more I understand that there are a few things I have to have in order to get work done. I have read about other artists who have their little routines, quirks, or methods that help them feel centered. I never realized just how important my quirks, routines, methods, were to my process until I wasn't able to do them...(this is life with a two year old...adjustments must be made....)

While taking a much needed break, to contemplate how I could possibly get more work done...I came up with list of things I need in order to operate...


 1. A place to work. While I am able to work almost anywhere, and always carry supplies with me everywhere I go...(something i learned to do over 11 years ago with my oldest so i could take advantage of any possible moments of free time)...I find that I have gotten to the point where I need my own space to be able to create. In the last two years I have moved my "studio" from our formal living room that we never used (and we do now as the family den)....to the formal dining room. And now, I simply work wherever I can...whenever...But, this is no longer working out. I am desperate for my own space. I need the freedom of being able to come and go from projects without worrying that they will be ruined by the dog, or curious hands. I also need to be able to walk away from a project and come back. The freedom of having one's own space sounds amazing. I am currently renovating the garage...IN MY MIND....for my next studio space...either that, or i'm going to get rid of our clothes and move into our closet...desperate times call for desperate measure...

2. I need peace and quiet....when I am working on a project, it is like a form of meditation. I need to be free of interruption for a block of time in order to fully comprehend the process... (i'm pretty sure i'm going to have to either completely lose my hearing, or wear earplugs for the rest of my life for this to happen...)

3. I need limited supplies...when I have too many supplies to choose from, my brain gets overwhelmed by the infinite possibilities...so, I have learned to purposefully limit myself when that  that overwhelming feeling comes on. Usually limiting myself two three items max at a time. 

4. Time....I need time to myself that no one else has dibs on..... while I can get things done in that super-mom-multi-tasking sort of way, I do not enjoy it. I need time to myself to be able to fully focus. This is something I really struggle with as a stay-at-home-mom. My time is never my own. In fact the last few months that I have been working more, have been filled with great frustration for me because I have not figured out how to manage this yet. I am still working on it. 

5. Rest:I used to be able to stay up all night working on a piece...not anymore...I have to rest or my brain and body shuts down.  I feel mandatory nap times becoming more and more mandatory.

 6. Health: if I don't feel well, nothing will be created. So, doing yoga, eating balanced meals, resting, taking my vitamins, are all imperative to my creative process. 

7. My overalls: the overalls I wear are hand-me-downs from my father over 15 years ago. They are covered in paint and falling apart. I just realized it might be time for a new pair...

Time and Lotuses

    The last few weeks have been full of weirdness and change. Kids are growing up too quickly. Jobs are changing oddly.  Old things are fading, New things are blooming. I suppose, it is just called Life, isn't it? 

For me, finding time to work on my artwork means, it has to be convenient, and inaccessible to sticky,curious, little fingers...I find that I have to break the process up into steps or phases...bits and bites that i can come and go from as time allows..

This morning I worked on these lotuses, applying the flowers with water soluble graphite and watercolors. The backgrounds were made a few weeks ago. I had no idea what I would do to finish these. I'm not sure these are quite finished yet.  Sometimes I just have to work and see what happens.

The Lotus image is something i have been working with for about 5 years now. Though I admit, it was only used on work for myself. Only in the last two years have i felt safe (?)....no that's not quite right... confident (?)....not that either...but something along those lines that allows me to put these out into the world...I think it is the fact that i enjoy making them that had me a bit confused about whether or not to put them into the world...I know...that sounds weird...but, when you understand my artistic history...you might understand my confusion...

In the past..i associated my artwork with feelings oh sadness, depression, and unhappiness...Many artists understand how much easier it is to create work from a dark place than from a place of light...the idea that one's work will seem hokey or silly when it comes from a place of light often stops people from creating such. 

But, in recent  years the idea "do that which comes easiest to you and gives you joy" has been playing in a loop in my head... and here we have the Lotus.  

I suppose some artists have "their thing" that they do that identifies them...i can honestly say i have never known what mine was...or is...Is the Lotus mine? I have no idea. But for now, I am allowing myself to enjoy them. 

Creative Momentum = On a Roll

So in the last week or so, I have felt some creative momentum...and I was trying to figure out why?

What is the difference?

My life is the same.

I have the same time restraints

I have the same obligations and interruptions...

the things that is different is the type of work i have been focusing on...

Prints...more specifically...Block prints...

Another thing that is different, is the ideas behind them....

I have been focusing on the simple things that give me and my family joy...that's it...

As a result... i have made three prints in the last week...which, for me, is HUGE...

I have always loved this type of printmaking since I was in middle school and my teacher introduced it to our class.(I dare to say, over 30+ years ago, gasp!)

And later in college I took a workshop on collagraphy printmaking and then went on to take a few actual printmaking courses that i adored.

A few times in the last few years of teaching i was fortunate enough to get to attend other printmaking workshops, but never seemed to be able to get to do it for myself...

Now, I can...

I have 2 small printing presses... and by small...I mean...TINY...in terms of printmaking...

One can handle 5x7 prints... and the other can handle 8x10's.... the larger one I haven't ever really used...ever..but i will be dusting it off and giving it it's shot soon i feel...

(note to self: explore the idea of unused art supplies)