Creative Every Day

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Nahcotta’s Enormous Tiny Art III

February 11th, 2008, Comments (10)

Here are a couple pics from Friday night. I managed to snap a few shots of the evening which can be found in my Blue Tree flickr album here, although I didn't get any shots of myself there. Doh! I was feeling incredibly shy the night of the opening, but I did manage to meet two wonderfully sweet artists whose art I adore, Jennifer Judd-McGee and Betsy Thompson. Seems like there are so many cool chickadees in Maine, some I've had the pleasure of meeting in the last year (hello to Jes, Tammy, and Susan!), it makes me wish I lived there! But I don't know if I could take winters any chillier than down here and there are certainly some cool people in the Boston area. Speaking of cool Mass. folks, thank you Mindy for coming out to see the show and I'm so sorry I missed you! The picture below is from Jennifer Judd-McGee's flickr pics and you can see one of my paintings along with one of hers in it.

It was a cold night with a snow and a chilly breeze, but the opening was packed! I sold a couple pieces so far and the show runs til March 9th. If you're interested in purchasing any of the pieces, feel free to contact Nahcotta directly.

Updated to add: Nahcotta has a flickr album with all the pieces from the show (my pieces are on pages 1 and 4 of the album. The prices are listed there.

I've gotta hit the sack. The hubster and I are trying to fight off colds. Thankfully, we have a pile of fuzzy kitties to help us get better.

“Subway Stories” at Nahcotta

February 6th, 2008, Comments (10)

Friday is the opening of the Enormous Tiny Art III show at Nahcotta in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. The opening runs from 5 to 8 p.m., so if you're in the area, do stop by for a feast of delicious artwork! I've posted all ten pieces along with their sizes and prices on the Blue Tree Blog.

Nahcotta also has a blog and today they posted pictures of the gallery in mid-installation. I spotted my art in this photo above (click to make bigger.) My art is in the third group. I see Amy Ruppel's beautiful encaustic pieces, then another artist (not sure who) with really cool looking circle pieces!, and then a group of my art. I'm looking forward to seeing all the beautiful artwork in person! And I'll be sure to take some pictures at the opening too.

The Monster at the End of Your To-Do List

February 6th, 2008, Comments (19)

I really loved this post from Christine Kane. All her posts are great, but this one I thought might be particularly relevant to all the Creative Every Day folks. The article is all about "Creative Procrastination."

If like me, you are already a procrastinator in general, you probably also procrastinate with your creative urges. I think I've experienced all the symptoms that Christine lists. And it's true that fear is behind them all. Coincidentally (or not), I'd just been talking to the hubster about this...this recognizing what holds me back. And most of it is that big monster, Fear (of rejection, failure, etc...).  I've found that the best way to deal with fears is to move straight through them with a dose of compassion and firmness. Beating yourself up over what you've procrastinated about isn't going to get you any closer to your goals, so how to help yourself along?

I try to tackle something that scares me daily, even if that something is super-duper-teeny-tiny. No one else can judge what scary means for me, except me, so I decide. Yesterday that teeny tiny thing, was writing a magazine to get the name of the managing editor, so that I could properly address a query. And the wonderful is, the feeling of getting past that fear, no matter how small, gives me a boost. And suddenly that big monster gets smaller. Heh, I just realized I was picturing the monster as blue which reminds me of a book I had as a kid. The book was called, There's a Monster at the End of this Book. Throughout the pages of the book, Grover (a blue, fuzzy monster), pleads with you not to turn another page. He's terrified of meeting the monster at the end of the story. He begs and even builds brick walls while trying to prevent you from getting to the end where he'll have to face this monster. I always felt a little badly for Grover as I turned the page, but I did keep turning. And then you get to the end of the book and it turns out the monster is him.

How perfect! Just like in the story, the monster we put up all these walls to hide from, is nothing to be afraid of. Whatever the negative voices and imagined stories you've created, swirl together to create this big, scary monster, when in reality, the monster is yourself. And with a little compassion, you can see that this "monster" isn't so bad after all. And maybe like Grover, it just needs a hug.

I love to keep lists. I have to-do lists on nearly any paper surface within reach. But I've noticed that to-do lists are never-ending and when they start to fill up with scary things, I start to avoid looking at them. In the past couple of days, I decided to keep an "Already Done" list. I realized that not everything I do and feel good about is on a list and it's really helpful at the end of the day to look back and see what I've actually done. A sense of accomplishment is a major boost and helps keep me motivated to tackle the next little monster on my list.

So, if you're finding yourself stuck with a monster on your list of to-do's or a monster sitting at your crafting table, try showing him or her your list of "Already Done" and see what happens. What happens if we keep turning the pages? Is there a loveable blue monster on the other side of your to-do list?

p.s. More fun synchronicity...I had to get in my car before I finished this post and a song came on the radio with the lyrics, "there are no monsters under your bed."

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!

A Month of Inspiration

January 31st, 2008, Comments (15)

As promised, here are some views of my inspiration board:

Go to my the flickr pics (click on the pictures) to see all the notes about the individual items on it. Here are some details:

What I'd like to have is some bigger boards and a magnet strip to collect inspiration and hang art from. But in the meantime, I'm happy with the board I've got!

My space is filling up with "Subway Stories" art and it's just about ready to be packed up so that I can drive it up to Nahcotta tomorrow.

I spent some time this morning writing out my creative acts of the last month. Yes, it's been a month, which is wild! Great work to all you amazing creative folks out there. I really appreciate all that you are doing and sharing and trying. It's awesome. I think next month, I'll try and keep track of all my activities as I go, instead of looking back through to see what I blogged about and trying to remember the days when I didn't mention something. I know I did something every day, but trying to remember the details is not going to work. Hah. So, while I didn't record every single creative thing I did and the list doesn't account for all the fun inspiration, synchronicity, and connections; I tried to make note of what I where I focused most of my creativity on each day. Here's my list:

January 2008's Creatactivities:

1. painting in my art journal
2. doodling and drawing in my sketchbook
3. made an Amazon widget
4. made a painting/collage called "Memory Cycles"
5. drawing in oil pastels
6. drawing in sketchbook with suggestions by my mother-in-law
7. sketching, updating website
8. creative thank you notes
9. writing/designing newsletter, playing games with friend's kids
10. making up a recipe for the first time, collaging, writing book
11. painting with the power out
12. working on subway art
13. more subway art
14. and more subway art
15. even more subway art
16. opened Etsy shop, made best friend's baby laugh while best friend got her haircut
17. drawing in sketchbook, subway art, wandering in library and pulling inspiring books.
18. working on the subway art
19. same as above
20. doodling
21. took pictures of my sparkly shoes and my big fuzz ball, Tabbers
22. picking out flowers to decorate the house with, doodling over an old drawing
23. working on subway art
24. making soup and presenting it artistically. yum.
25. subway art
26. re-vamped my inspiration board
27. subway art, mini-collages, drew in sketchbook
28. subway art
29. worked on book
30. subway art
31. subway art, bird drawing

I just love focusing on the creativity in my everyday life. And I wanted to mention that it's not too late to join in the Creative Every Day 2008 challenge! I think joining in anytime is perfectly o.k. So, if you've been thinking about jumping in, leave me a comment or shoot me an email.

Having the weekly post where people can leave a link to their creativity posts seems to be working well. Next month, I'd also like to focus some posts on what others are up to. If you have any other suggestions/ideas, feel free to let me know! Back to work for me.

More Creativity Snapshots

January 30th, 2008, Comments (11)

Today was spent finishing up last touches on work that I'll take up to Nahcotta at the end of the week. You can see two of the latest pieces in process above. I've got some other ones in progress too, but I'm going to put them up at the coffee shop where I'll be hanging art at the end of February.

I was going to write about my inspiration board for Wellness Wednesday today, but my pictures came out too dark. So, I'm going to wait and get some daylight shots of it. Last Wednesday, the hubster said to me, "Isn't it Wellness Wednesday or something?" Haha, too funny. That cracked me up.

Yesterday was spent working on my book about creativity. As the Creative Every Day challenge has been developing, it has been giving me all kinds of ideas, which shifts around the direction of the book. I recently picked up Eric Maisel's The Art of the Book Proposal which has been helpful in getting me to think about the focus and framework of the book.

Ideas, the wording of a sentence for example, often come to me soon after I turn off the light and put my head to the pillow. Fortunately, I have a collection of pens, sticky notes and a blank journal, so I can pop up, turn on the light and scribble out my ideas. I'm always glad I write it or draw a little sketch because most of the time I won't be able to remember exactly what came in a flash right before I fell asleep the night before. I didn't realize this time between sleep and wakefulness had a name until recently. I was listening to NPR's "Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me" and their guest for the game "Not My Job" was James Lipton of "Inside the Actor's Studio." The hosts kind of made fun of his use of the word in the first chapter of his book, Inside Inside, but I thought it was really cool! The term used for this in between time is called "the hypnagogic state." Lipton suggested that creative artists, musicians, and writers were familiar with this "dream-like and sometimes fruitful state between wakefulness and sleep." Is everyone aware of this state? Does everyone experience it? I think the hubster, who is a musician and very creative, may fall asleep far too quickly to have any ideas come. But maybe he experiences that state when he wakes (between sleep and waking, it's called the hypnopompic state.) I'll have to ask him.

So, I'll make that my Wellness Wednesday tip for this week. Pay attention and see if ideas, answers to questions, or art compositions come to you in this hypnagogic state. And be sure to have some paper and writing tools tools by your bedside. If you can't turn on the light in the middle of the night, try keeping a flashlight or booklight that you can use without disturbing your bedmate. Or just write in the dark, which I do sometimes.

That's it for tonight. See you tomorrow. And happy creating!

Etsy Updates

January 20th, 2008, Comments (1)

3 of the prints I put up on my new Etsy store sold today. Hoorah! So, I've replaced those prints and added one more "Subway Stories" print there.

I also wrote about my etsy store along with some cool etsy shops I've enjoyed (just a few out of many I love to watch and buy from!) on my Blue Tree Blog. So, go check that out for some fun linkage. I'm going home in a couple hours and I'm so excited to snuggle up with the hubster, his homemade cooking, and some cute kitties to keep me warm. It is frigidly cold outside today. Brr!

Creatactivities = Creative Activities

January 16th, 2008, Comments (9)

I've coined a new word. See definition above. Creatactivities. I like it!

Feeling a bit overtired today, but I've been keeping busy and I'm excited for a new Project Runway tonight! I met my best friend in a nearby town this afternoon to keep her baby entertained while she had her hair cut and then we got some lunch together. Making a baby laugh is a sure-fire way to brighten your day! In the afternoon, I plunked myself down in the cute coffee shop where I'll be hanging art next month and worked on adding items to my Etsy shop. I joined Etsy years ago just to buy things there. Watching the site blossom has been incredible and sometime last year I decided I'd add some of my art to the mass of wonderful products there. Well, I got the banner up and then never added anything to it. It's been on my to-do list for a little too long. Well, I started on it today. So far I've added four prints, they're all printed on 8.5"x11" velvet fine art paper and they're available for $25 each. I'll add some more prints there over time and hopefully some greeting cards too! Getting the Etsy store up and making the baby laugh were great creatactivities (creative activities) for me today.

I've been working on this new "Subway Stories" piece called "Boylston" for a couple days now. I just need to do some touching up, seal it with varnish and then it'll be done. This one is a slightly larger 10"x10". When it's complete, I'll add some close-ups with the stories in them. In the meantime, I snapped a picture of it this morning, taking advantage of the bright sun reflecting off the snow. Speaking of snow, driving around in this winter wonderland we've got going on in New England has been really fun. Everything is just coated in the stuff. And with the roads clear and the tree branches hanging over the road, it feels a bit like I'm driving through these dream-like snow tunnels. I have to admit, it's gorgeous.

There has been some totally awesome creativity going on, so do pop in on your fellow CED2008 participants! And by the way, I believe the list is current, but if you don't see your blog on there, please let me know. And if you've just discovered this challenge, it's fine to join in now!

Some juicy inspiration for you:

- This article from Lucia Cappacchione is about creativity as a spiritual practice. She begins by saying what I've heard over and over, but still bears repeating because I don't think we all feel this deep in our bones, and that is, "we are all creative." Cappachione writes,

The medium in which you create is irrelevant. It doesn't matter whether you write a business proposal, play a piano sonata, or prepare a delicious meal. You may be seeking to resolve one of life's mundane problems or express deep feelings and insights through poetry. Embrace your creation as a lover and you can break through to another realm. When you stick with it for better or for worse, your creation pbecomes your guru (Sanskrit meaning"from darkness to light").

- Geoff emailed me about his site, artistaday, which profiles a different artist every day of the week. It's a great site to see some new and interesting art!

- And I really liked this blog post from artist Deb Chaney about celebrating small successes. It's so easy to forget to do this. I know I'm always wishing I did more. But stop for a bit, right this second, and feel great about all that you have accomplished. Breathe that feeling in. It's important.

O.k., I'm going to take my sleepy self into some cozy pajamas and relax.

On a Roll of Creative Goodness

January 9th, 2008, Comments (11)

Oo, I've got a tummy ache! So, why am I here? Well, call me obsessed, but I'm on a roll today, feeling good and want to share. And immediately after I write this post, I'll be getting into cozy pajamas and curling up with my journal and maybe going to bed early.

I mentioned in an earlier post that I'm working on a book about creativity and in the comments of that post, I got a generous offer of editing help from Sarah. It was scary to email the drafts of the introduction and first chapter off to Sarah, but I did (and I survived.) I got her comments back today and already her feedback has been so helpful.

Before I got her comments back, I was thinking about the intro and wondered how some of my favorite authors did it. I pulled out a few books from my bookshelf and flipped through the pages. One of the books was SARK's Succulent Wild Woman and the first page I opened to had one of SARK's drawings of a woman on a bicycle. Beneath the drawing was written, "We are all riding creative cycles." Immediately I was reminded of the art piece I did last week, "Memory Cycles" which focused on the cycles in our lives. I love little bits of synchronicity like that. (And I've found that when synchronicity is popping up everywhere, I'm on the right track. So, hoorah!)

I closed SARK's book and flipped open to a random page in Jan Phillips' Marry Your Muse and in the margins was this quote (which I had circled and underlined previously) by Corita Kent ,

Creativity belongs to the artist in each of us. To create means to relate. The root meaning of the word art is "to fit together" and we all do this every day. Not all of us are painters but we are all artists. Each time we fit things together we are creating - whether it is to make a loaf of bread, a child, a day.

How perfect is that? That seems to encapsulate the essence of what I want to encourage in others in the Creative Every Day 2008 project.

My creativity activities today ran the gamut of playing silly games with young children of my friends to writing and designing the monthly newsletter for my art website. By the way, subscribers to the newsletter are automatically entered into a monthly drawing for a free print! You can sign up in the lower left corner of the website.

How bout some more fun linkage? I can't help myself.

- This is a video by Creative Every Day 2008 participant, Kris Cahill. Kris makes these amazing paintings in reverse on vinyl. Go watch and be amazed!

- I love this challenge posted on JustBeConnected today. Hostess for the week, Patti has posted a fun (and creative!) way to beat those pesky winter blues. Her challenge is another example of how being creative every day often involves changing your perspective a bit.

- Karen posted this hilarious list (a kids say the darndest things kind of list) the other day and it totally cracked me up. Check it out if you need a giggle.

- Need more laughs? This blog is sure to crack you up. Go check out: Tiny Art Director

TTFN, Ta-ta-for-now

Fort Building 101

January 8th, 2008, Comments (10)

Last night, I was feeling a bit cranky, so I took my laptop and sketchbook into bed and camped out there for awhile. I did some work on my website, adding some of my latest art pieces to the store and then I did some sketching for some pieces I'm working on for the upcoming "Tiny Enormous Show" at Nahcotta next month.

Sketching and working while surrounded by cozy pillows and kitties was a nice change of scenery. It reminded me of staying home sick when I was little and making a fort of blankets and pillows under the kitchen table. I'd lay under there with my jammies on and draw. Sometimes I'd pull the phone in there with me and call up my grandparents to say hello.

I love forts made of big fuzzy blankets still. Like a snow fort, but without the cold or a fort we'd make in the woods, but without the bugs, a cozy indoor fort is a fantastic place to re-connect with your childlike self, imagine, day-dream, draw, nap, journal, meditate, listen to music or just plain relax.

It can be hard for us adults to find excuses for fort making. We figure, why make such a mess? What will my husband think? What will my kids think? Well, they may think you're weird, but that's not such a bad thing.

Tell me, if you were to make a fort, what would you make it with? Where would it be? What would you bring into it with you?

 

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