Tuesday, December 30, 2008
ARTISTS/CRAFTSPERSONS-What to do when.....you lack INSPIRATION
INSPIRATION: Stimulation of the mind or emotions to a high level.
…and you feel like you are lacking it?
First of all, realize that you are sharing a common experience among many artists….
Really, you have a couple of choices here:
Wallow in the not so good feeling of lacking what you need to continue on your path as an artist OR
PAUSE….yes, pause. Give yourself permission to simply take a break. How long you might ask? Probably as long as it takes. Could be a short period of time, or maybe longer. During your pause, consider doing the following things:
Nurture yourself:
What inspires you?
How long has it been since you’ve allowed yourself time to look at, be around or consider those things which feed your artist’s/craftsperson’s soul?
I have posted four different things on my blog
from which I draw personal inspiration and I return to them time and again to
refuel myself (you’ll find them by scrolling down to the bottom of the blog)
Visit an Art Gallery or Your Favorite Gift Shop or Art & Design Mags:
How about a virtual walk through the Louvre?
Re-visit the works of a favorite artist.
Visit that fav Gift Shop just for the pleasure of looking
Go to your local Library & feast on the many magazines/books offered
Capture your Thoughts:
Could be on your blog? Write it out……many times, the simple act of getting in touch with your thoughts kindles a creative fire!
Take time to think about…..and reflect on…. your favorite things that you have created…..did those creations spark an idea for future works?
In Short….take a RETREAT:
Re-treat YOURSELF to the things you love, the things that awaken your very own visual & sensual delight…..INSPIRATION is sure to follow…….
Sunday, December 28, 2008
Story of the Guardian (Sentry) Horse
When I was barely into my teenage years, a horse was on the top of my "want list". I worked at whatever jobs I could and saved every penny toward my goal until THE day came & a beautiful dapple gray mare became my own. Since all my savings went for the horse there was no money to buy a saddle for awhile, my first riding experiences were bareback.
This first horse of mine was a nurturing soul partial to women & girls (fortunate for me!). I wasn't a good rider yet & in one of my more serious tumbles from her back while cantering, my body slipped sideways & under her belly. I thought it was all over for me, but this wise old mare of mine came to a screecning halt and nearly sat down on her rump allowing me to crawl out from under her unscathed. Whenever I fell off of her, she'd stop and wait patiently and, if I could read her at all, I'd say she seemed concerned if I was ok or not....almost as if I was one of her very own offspring. In a sense, she was an incredible GUARDIAN of this young and often foolish girl.
So, any of my work having to do with "Sentry or Guardian" horses is in homage to my very special dapple gray horse "Blue".....I'd probably never have survived my early horse experiences without her!
Friday, December 26, 2008
What will your NEW year be?
I love the approach of a New Year.....
a time for re-assessment, reflection, reorganization and ultimately goal setting. For me, it's a time of looking back on the past year and allowing myself to feel good about things accomplished & it's also a time of taking a hard look at things I want to change in the future.
I believe we all, each and every one, have the ability to carve out the lives we choose for ourselves. When I taught Middle School some years back, I remember having a talk with my students about the fact that in life, we can either allow life to "happen to us" (as a "I'm along for the ride"), or we can CAUSE or CREATE the lives we want for ourselves......this talk was followed by "What will you choose for yourself?" Will you pick up the reins of your own life and give it direction or will you ride placidly along.....allowing life to do as it will WITH and TO you?
As for me, this is a time of reflection, ......giving the "horse" of life a brief pause before saddeling up, riding out & firmly reining toward my chosen path for the New Year.
Thursday, December 25, 2008
Christmas Day 2008
As for me, I'm kind of filled with nostalgia this morning. Pleasant thoughts of Christmas's gone by. Thinking of my three brothers and me...the only girl..... when we were all younger (like......much!!) and still together on Timberview Rd. in Dallas. Remembering early morning paper routes which preceeded Christmas morning activities. Mischievous Michael, bouncing on my bed with a "get up!" "get up!"......it's morning! Charismatic Ray, whose very presence in a room commands attention and Tom.....oldest brother.....for as long as I can remember, being in love with High School sweetheart Betty who has been his wife now for so many years, I've lost count!
Our father was still alive then, witty and charming......loving music of all sorts....spontaneously dancing with either mother or me on a whim (strains of Tijuana Brass playing in my mind), punctuated by a loud "OLE!" from time to time. Always the major "toaster" at Christmas Dinner.....usually with the following:
"Here's to the two things I love most.......beautiful women and fine horses.....and when I die, may my hide be tanned into a side saddle so that I can always be near to the two things I love most.......beautiful women and fine horses."
And our mother.....always there creating all the things that made the holiday special for us.....the food, the decorations, the gifts and, as her manner was/is, making sure things ran smoothly as a well oiled machine!
Ahhh, the memories! A feast to dwell upon.....at least for a time before moving along into the present......being thankful for each and every loved one.......
Wednesday, December 24, 2008
...more on "Art & Fear"
As a past college art instructor, I would hold class critique sessions at the completion of a new student project. Critiques were ongoing throughout the semester & I'll always remember the tension which had its roots in FEAR as students were facing their first critique session. Trying to help students get comfortable being UNcomfortable, I'd often liken the first critique to feeling "naked" before fellow students (to which they all related!).
Point being.......the making of art comes from a place deep within and the SHOWING of what's been made lays bare a very vulnerable core of the one who made it. At least in the beginning, I have seen this to be true. As an artist becomes more comfortable with the whole creative process, likewise, he/she becomes more comfortable with the "self" the art reveals.
This little (BIG) book "Art & Fear" by Bayles & Orland addresses so many things each and every artist grapples with in their individual life as an artist and in the identification of threads which are common to all of us who create art, I find it a validation as well as a comfort and an inspiration......it'd be a great one to add to your list!
Monday, December 22, 2008
One of Life's Little (big) Moments...
Sunday, December 21, 2008
When Life Gets Hectic...
Saturday, December 20, 2008
Ever Considered Your Life a "Work of Art"?
Another all time favorite book of mine....."The Four Agreements" http://www.amazon.com/Four-Agreements-Practical-Personal-Freedom/dp/B000K1P66W/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1229771181&sr=1-2
Waxing philosophical this morning. THIS IS A GREAT READ!! Small little book with big, big wisdom. Occassionally, I come across a book that I "re-visit" time and again to refresh the value I find in it and this is one of them. Guess this is an extension of an earlier blog on how an artist "re-charges".....
Wintertime....longer, dark hours.....a good cup of coffee.....fire in the fireplace and a little (BIG) book that opens the windows of your mind to your life being a "work of art".......
Thursday, December 18, 2008
Poem-"Ode to Flash"-Memories-Trailride
By Lynne Anderson
I surely don’t know
Whether or not
Reincarnation in horses
Is ever a thought
But when I learned
That Flash was mine
For hours and days
Of riding time
It seemed we caught
Each other’s eye
And recognition was there
From years gone by
A bay gelding he was
So fit and tall
With a gleam in his eye
Next to him I’d feel small
But on that horse
I felt I’d come “home”
More so than places
In the past I have roamed
I knew him
And I’d swear he knew me
He knew my touch
And I knew his key
His gait was the same
His interest was keen
He was light on the bit
He was muscled and lean
His ears flicked back
At the sound of my voice
Slower or faster
He responds to my choice
Certain mysteries of life
Can cause such wonder
And my time with Flash
Gave me thought to ponder
Can a horse of the past
Somehow be bound
In a new one today
And be the same all around?
I’ll never know
And I don’t much care
But I won’t forget Flash
And my memories so fair
O’er the trails of Custer
Through the rocks and the trees
Each step was a memory
Pine scent on the breeze
I’ll forever be grateful
For the imprint in my mind
Of a horse named Flash
No finer can you find
In him somehow
Was a horse I once knew
His name was Sienna
How’s this? I’ve not got a clue!
I only know
Without rhyme or reason
I rode them BOTH
At THE SAME TIME for a season!
How an artist "re-charges" continued
How does an artist "re-charge"?
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
The Artist's Impulse.....
I've been asked many times "where do you get your ideas?"
Call it impulse, call it revelation, call it dreaming, call it the artist's "BREATH"......it is as NATURAL to me as breathing....and I've often purposely used a double negative to describe this....."an artist can't NOT make art"....for, indeed, it does seem a work greater than oneself, it's on the inside and must come out. Perhaps a form of communication, expression and, for me, a path of supreme adventure. The making of art, the ideas,.... the conceptions transforming into reality bring a satisfaction deep and enduring.
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
The Art of Architecture.....
Consider:
- 1% of the budget (7.5 mllion) of this project was spent on ART
- Was the largest single facility Public Art program in the U.S. in 1995
- It's still one of the largest Public Art programs in the world
- Art is integrated in the architecture of this place
......and it's right here in Colorado!!
It was 1995 and I was picking up a friend who was flying into the then new Denver International Airport. Didn't know my way around the new flight digs, but when I walked into the Jeppesen Terminal for the first time, I was simply riveted by what I saw.....the interior space of the white multi peaked terminal whose vision was to "echo the mountains & commemorate the Arapaho & Cheyenne teepees pitched there long ago"......stunning!! In my opinion, BRILLIANT vision and interpretation of Colorado history and geography into a contemporary format.
Felt like I was on the inside of a large transluscent, glorious light filled sculpture and it literally took my breath away.
Had the priviledge to meet Curt Fentress, one of the architects for DIA, at a Colorado Art Educator's Conference several years later.....was a joy to relate to him the tremendous impact of this piece of architecture on me!
Other Art in DIA? Everywhere you look.....more on that later.
Traveling through DIA this Holiday Season? .......it's anything BUT just another airport!!
Monday, December 15, 2008
Early AM Thoughtstream
Does anyone really realize how the hand of the artist is ever present in their daily lives?
Who designed the car you drive?
How about the style of your home, your furniture, kitchenware....what about colors? Like, who is the driving force behind "popular color schemes" for the upcoming year?
How about clothing?....style/color? ad infinitum......
In the larger scheme of things, how about Leonardo daVinci sketching a flying machine?
Today, on the drawing boards of many an artist are the plans for what we'll experience in the future......
Sunday, December 14, 2008
Snowy AM....quiet...beautiful...thoughts
Thinking about the value of contemplation....not only of ART, but contemplation of life in general and, for me, the two things are combined. Viewing artwork allows us to see the world through another's eyes.....if not their heart....
Saturday, December 13, 2008
Favorite Quote......
....."Art & Fear" by Bayles & Orland
Clay.....a primordial medium
I've enjoyed expression in so many mediums in the past....first pencil drawings as a child and later paints: acrylic, watercolor and oil....then pastels. For a time I made jewelry pieces on a bead loom, made purses, belts and wallets from latigo leather and used a backstrap loom to make my own fiber wall pieces. But, quite later in life for me, about 14 years ago, I returned to college to get my Master's Degree in Art Education and I took a ceramics class as an elective my first semester.....
I knew......I knew the first moment on the wheel.....that I'd come "home" so to speak....to the medium of core passion for me. So much so that I immediately included Ceramics as a double emphasis in my Master's program.
Something about clay....the sensuous touch/feel of the malliable material.....the sense of awe and wonderment as I take "mud" and create a 3-dimensional object......it seems to stretch across time/space and connect me with peoples around the globe. Present cultures, past cultures......blend together as I'm in "the zone" with my hands in clay. For me, it is a very profound experience which nearly defys a complete definition......
I've had the priviledge of teaching ceramics at both High School and College levels and have witnessed the magic moment when some of my students are swept up in this same kind of inexplicable connection.....falling in love.....and making a life-long relationship with the medium of clay........
Friday, December 12, 2008
Early Morning Ponderings
Here's another of my favorite quotes that I recognize as truth to the artist involved in the creative process:
"..sing the song of your heart, and sooner or later the world will accept and reward the authentic voice."
Thursday, December 11, 2008
One of my favorite books.....
"Something about making art has to do with overcoming things, giving us a clear opportunity for doing things in ways we have always known we should do them."
One of life's treasures
The gorgeous moon and the sparkling stars & planets against a crystal dark sky......a moment of gratitude for being alive to see it.
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
Snowy Morning here in SW Colorado
Am married to polar opposite! He has a hard time with mornings and loves staying up late at night....we have sometimes crossed paths in the wee hours of the morning....me just getting up and he just going to bed! Ships passing in the night......