17

Artist trading card in pastel colors and text “simplicity”

Another week is drawing to a close and I have had the good fortune to be able to get some creative time in each day. Even with appointments, work and family commitments, the free time has been available to me to make use of or not. Around the world not everyone is so fortunate, even closer to home people are bearing huge burdens. When I look at what is happening in Ukraine, and what continues to happen in Yemen, I wonder how people can keep going in the face of so much organized animosity and trouble. I also wonder if we will be able to keep similar upheaval from happening here.

October closing

Mixed media with purple 34 centered on it

It doesn’t feel Halloween-like, no frost and so no piles of crunchy leaves to shuffle through. But the calendar says it is the 31st of October. This fall has been one of general malaise it seems. I have done a bunch of art and videos for Youtube and my site, but have found it hard to muster up the energy for much else. Giving myself time in my studio has become a non negotiable part of my free days. I don’t always like the final piece, but I am keeping at it. Sometimes all I get done is cleaning up my worktable so as not to have no open spot to work in. As I get more videos and courses done I am getting comfortable, setting new goals and expanding what I offer. It is a long process to develop and grow an audience, but I am chipping away at it.

6s & 7s

Colorful mixed media with “There are many good times ahead” quote

Yesterday, feeling that ongoing sense on malaise that seems to blanket life these days, I tidied my studio up and created this piece. I got to dive into my scrap stash and use up some of the many odds and ends. It ended up being a longer video than I expected as I kept finding another cool scrap I wanted to use. But that is part of the process and fun of mixed media. And my 6s & 7s were banished as a result. As I keep developing courses and videos, I continue to find neat things I want to share. You can check out this project here:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCf1QOmTJT7Y0UxwzakVhu8A

Rounding out the week

Mixed media piece with circles, music and damask

It is Friday, that is not the surprise, that it is the first Friday in August is. The summer is sliding by at an alarming rate, perhaps because on the ongoing issues with Covid, or due to my extra work hours, or even because I have been busy in general. Whatever the reason we, will want to savor these days and late evenings. I am trying to squeeze in so much this summer, day trips, hikes, DIY fixes, home improvement, website, classes, art, regular work, and so on. This has had the opposite effect of what I hoped, instead of feeling a fun filled sense of summer it has felt more like a constant choice between must do and want to do. I have plenty of time, just too much to fit in it!

Side steps

Digital art of mill stairway

These stairs no longer lead anywhere, they just go up to a filled in doorway, I checked, hoping they continued up and around through the levels. But it was another one of those dead ends I mentioned in my last post that I still felt I needed to investigate. With my mind going all “meander-ly” these days I am finding some of these little side trips do provide some grist for the mill, though it might not be put to use for some time. I am practicing patience with myself as I feel something is in the works that can’t be rushed, and that I must honor the pace things will take.

Friday musings

Today I took a solo field trip out to Exeter, NH. I am not often out and about on my own just meandering as I wish. In fact the last full day I had all to myself was 5 & 1/2 years ago! Since then I have had a couple hours here and there to do as I please. Today was a half day, as there were other things I wanted to get done that were non house chore related. Still, to have 3 hours all to myself was a luxury. I got to poke around a salvage house, walk along the river and generally go hither and yon.

Tomorrow I will swing by to see a friend who is closing up her studio and hopefully find a perfect piece of art. After the mill studios being closed to the public for a year I am not surprised that she has made that choice. 12 months of lost foot traffic and even access to your workspace is a blow for many creatives. I expect there will be many who give up their spaces as a result. I still occasionally miss my old space, but not enough to take on the additional cost of rent. Hopefully studios and galleries will be able to bounce back, losing any more of the arts would be a terrible thing.