Entries from: February 2008
Videos to Inspire
February 5th, 2008, Comments (2)
First off, it's Super Tuesday. Have you voted? I watched this inspiring video on Marilyn's blog. It's a bit long, 25 minutes, but definitely worth watching. What an amazing story. Definitely inspirational.
Second, this video, which I first saw at 37 Days. Something about this just cracked me up and it goes along so well with my Subway Stories art series too. 
More Inspiration
February 4th, 2008, Comments (8)
In a bit of synchronicity, shortly after I finished the previous post about Inpiration Treasure Hunts, I found out about (via the Scoop) a new ezine called "Inspiration" from the blog, "design for mankind." It's free to download and full of inspiring pictures and snippets of what inspires a wide variety of creative folks. Definitely worth checking out!!!
I shared my Inspiration board the other day, which is sort of a catching place for random things I want to keep in my line of sight. But there are plenty of things that don't make it to the board. Here are just some of those things that inspire me:
- the fish tank in our home
- the color combinations I see in the sky set off against the trees
- shapes in the grain of wood, glass bottles, and puddles
- poems
- dreams
- doodling
- bookstores and libraries
- chopping vedgetables
- peeking into homes on real estate websites
- teeny tiny boxes
- beautiful handwriting
- the sound of water
- birds
- greenhouses
- blank paper
How about you? What inspires you? Where do you find unexpected bits of inspiration?
Patti has a great post on her blog about the everyday objects of her life. I was drawn in by the art which illustrates her essay and the beautiful poem by Billy Collins. After reading many of his poems on Patti's blog, 37 Days, I picked up a book of his poetry (Nine Horses
Painting is silent poetry, and poetry is painting that speaks. - Plutarch
Draw the outline of a small 2”x2” square on a piece of paper or on a roll of a child’s art paper. A manageable, consistent size. Each day, draw a new square. And create something on one of these squares every day to remind you of your day—it can be a portrait of a simple object you love. It can be a record of your day, how you felt, the color of that day for you—in collage or pencil or paints. It can be a short poem or a quote or a solid block of color. It can be anything you want it to be. It's a small size; you can do this. Perhaps it is a painting of an ambrosia apple every day for two weeks until you really see it. Create one every day for a year. That’s what life is.
(pictures above: A damask wallpaper pattern that inspires me; 3 boxes painted with images of nightmares I've had, made for my Art Every Day Month project one year; bird drawings done for another year's Art Every Day Month; Recently finished piece, A Timely Message; butterflies on display at the Botanical Gardens in Montreal.)
Inspiration Treasure Hunt
February 4th, 2008, Comments (4)
Yesterday I was feeling super tired and in need of some extra rest and I got it. Today, I'm feeling brighter and have art to share, which I think I'll spread out over a few posts. First off, the finished "Subway Stories" pieces. The first one above is "Park Street" and the one below is "Wollaston." Both are 8"x10" with collaged paper, acrylic and ink on panel. These were the last of ten pieces that I brought up to Nahcotta on Saturday.
I'd originally planned to head up to Nahcotta, which is in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, on Friday, but we were experiencing some yucky weather, so I put it off. It worked out well anyways because on Friday I needed to clean up a bit and then go pick up my youngest brother. My mom and step-dad had bought tickets to see Blue Man Group, but then my step-dad had to be at a conference out of town, so they asked if the hubster and I would take my brother. Of course I was more than happy to oblige! I've been to Blue Man Group twice before, but it was a long time ago, so I was excited to go again. And the hubster had never been. Our seats were awesome. I'd sat in the balcony both times I saw it before and this time we were on the floor. It was a lot of fun. Afterwards, we grabbed some dinner in the city and then got out just in time (on the way home there was a thunder and lightening storm and it poured!)
On Saturday, after dropping my brother off at home, I drove up to Portsmouth and dropped off my art at Nahcotta. And I really lucked out because it was such a gorgeous day. Especially after the nasty weather we'd had the day before, I was really grateful to be able to walk around outside and soak in some sunshine. Portsmouth has such a great downtown area and because the weather was perfect for strolling, I decided to do a little inspiration treasure hunting. It is easier to do this when you're alone and you can turn your awareness on fully. It's fun to do this in a place you don't visit often or somewhere you've never been before, but really it can be done anywhere. It simply requires that you shift your perception, open your eyes and soak in your surroundings. On my inspiration treasure hunt, I took in the sights and sounds of the bustling downtown area. I peeked in the windows of cafes, gift stores, a typewriter repair shop, and went inside some of them. I touched smooth ceramic bowls, handmade purses, and loads of books in an independent bookstore. I got lunch in a popular lunch spot and savored the tastes of a warm homemade sandwich. I smiled while watching kids (and kids at heart) get all wide-eyed in a funky toy store and scrunched up my nose at the bin of rubber cockroaches for sale. At the end of my treasure hunt, I was tired, but full of inspiration. A successful hunt!
And speaking of treasure, I received a lovely prize from Bridget over the weekend too! For a cartoon caption contest, Bridget sent me the sweetest collection of pins for my inspiration board and gorgeous magnets all featuring black and white drawings. I love them!
I hope that there was loads of inspiration to be found in your weekend adventures!
Soooo sleepy
February 2nd, 2008, Comments (4)
I have art and other stuff to share, but at the moment I am so sleepy and all I want to do is curl up with the book I'm reading (Patry Francis's Liar's Diary). Tomorrow, I'll update with the weekend's adventures. I've been busy, busy. Well, busy for me anyways. I'll have some pictures to share tomorrow. Posts are more fun with pictures I think. Til then, I hope your weekend has been full of inspiration, laughter, and loads of creative moments!
