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From Frustration to a Plan - Curiosity Brainstorm
7 Month Selling Sabbatical- An Experiment
Like a children's nursery rhyme:The spiders are packedTheir ghost buddies nearWith those boxes now closed Black Friday ads appearBecause that’s how it is now.And honestly, I don’t mind. But it does make me as an artist sort of panic. "Wait, should I be doing something?"This phrase is both a great creator and a great destroyer of goals.Great because it can lead you down some wonderful paths.But also sometimes, you’ll be cruising along making your goals work (after months of struggle and stops and starts) and you’ll have gotten down your SYSTEM. You’re doing it! You’re showing up. You’re putting in the...
Rebuilding a Habit
It would be nice to think that once we’ve established a habit, we’ve established it forever. Start walking before dinner in September 2008 and you’ll be doing it well past 2098 no problem. Turns out that’s not the case. Habits are a bit more delicate for longer than we think. It’s the difference, in some respects, between drying and curing. Something can be dry to the touch but that doesn’t mean it’s rock hard underneath. Habits are similar. I have lost my dry-to-the-touch (and apparently not cured) morning sketching habit. It’s disappointing to wake up one morning and realize the...
Transitions and Patience
Have you heard the myth...that artists thrive in chaos? I’ve only ever found chaos in direct opposition to work. I work best in calm. Quiet. Structure. I need to trust that I can get to sleep at night and will have social recovery time between events. I need to have cooked good food and spent quality time with my partner. I need to have finished my client work and had a consistent intake of water. I need a lot to be able to give painting focus. Covid has made that so clear. And once seen, I am unable to unsee...
Spring Forward: Looking Back at the Series
Spring Forward is finished. And what a joy to have worked in this way. Today I want to talk about the goals initially and then how close (or far) I feel I got to hitting them. Plus just some take home lessons going forward. I had clear goals headed into the series...and I’m so glad I did. Again and again the clear goals saved me from myself. Intent: Create 7-15 floral paintings with the goal to capture some of the contrasts of spring through dark darks and bright greens. Focus on the chunky puzzle style. Color: I...