Entries Tagged as: creativity
Day 6: Persphone in Autumn
November 6th, 2012, Comments (20)
Today, I was inspired to paint an image of Persephone. I started with a collage base on 6"x6" board, then painted on top of it, not knowing exactly the direction it would take. As it developed I liked how an older woman in the collage appears in her face. I imagine that she is Persephone's mother, Demeter, in her thoughts.
Following the lead of the colors that developed, I see this as an image of Persephone in Autumn, before she enters the underworld/winter until she returns in Spring.
If you live in the U.S., get out and vote!
Day 3: Potential
November 3rd, 2012, Comments (10)
Doodling, earlier in the day, I had the idea of acorns in the ground, untapped potential, perhaps surrounded by trees (potential realized.) After a long day, with Annabelle sound asleep, I sat down and painted it out.
Here's a detail, so you can see the acorns.
Annealing
September 18th, 2012, Comments (10)
Inspired by an essay in Patti Digh's upcoming book, The Geography of Loss, I created this piece recently. I've found that you do get stronger from experiences of walking through the fire. This was painted with acrylic on paper.
Writing aRound and a Giveaway!
July 24th, 2012, Comments (35)
Another idea to play with the round theme before the month is up is to gather with a few friends (or do this via email) and write in a round. You could each write a line (or paragraph) of a story (or poem) before passing it to the next and marvel at where it goes!
I once did this idea with 5 canvases and 5 friends. Each person started a canvas and played with it for about 30 minutes before passing it on to the next person. We worked on the canvases throughout the day, eventually ending up with the canvas we started with, an original piece of art touched by many hands. So fun!
There are loads of fun ideas, prompts and inspiring tidbits in A Year of Writing Dangerously by Barbara Abercrombie. A great style for writers looking for daily inspiration, the book has 365 short essays, a bit of inspiration for each day of the year. And at the book there is a list of 52 writing prompts, one for each week of the year. If you're feeling stuck or unsure where to begin, this book will surely give you something to run with.
One of the suggestions that reminded me of the circular theme this month was day 29, titled "First things first." The author mentions writer, John Irving, who writes his last sentence first. That blew my mind! But what a great idea, to start with the ending and then work your way back to it.
Would you like a copy of A Year of Living Dangerously? Simply leave a comment (make sure to include your email address, so I can contact you) and I'll select a winner by Friday, July 27th. Good luck!
Update: We have a winner! Congrats to Becky!
Playing Around
July 12th, 2012, Comments (10)
I've been having fun playing with the round theme! This one was a bit of play with paint on black paper. I'm calling it "Above and Below."
And here's a doodle I did last week.
If you're playing with the round theme, I hope you're having fun with it too!
The Weight of Walking
June 16th, 2012, Comments (16)
I had a brief pocket of time today, just ten minutes actually, and I used it to do a little free form painting. Ah, that felt good.
I used the opposites theme as a jumping off point, starting with black paper and white paint.
One, a little late
June 10th, 2012, Comments (11)
I did these pieces for the one theme and I'm just now getting around to posting them. Life has been busy! I was working with a blue monochromatic background to go along with the one theme of last month and later went into them with white ink to bring out these images, Bucket and Trailing Stars. They feel like a pair to me. And ah-ha! They also work for the Opposite theme this month, with one figure looking up and one looking down!
Guess Whoooo Turned One?
May 8th, 2012, Comments (26)
My daughter, A! Here's a whole lot of pictures of the party and the decor that helped us celebrate this big milestone. Enjoy!
This party was a labor of love with lots of folks involved. I went with an owl them partly because when I was in labor with A, I kept seeing little owls in my head. I knew that owls represent wisdom in Greece (Andrew's father is Greek) and that Sophia means wisdom. And I just knew that should be her middle name!
I asked my best friend and partner in crafty crime, Judean, to help me out with the party because she is amazingly creative. I sent her a drawing of an idea I had for the invitation and she brought it to life in paper, with moving wings. So awesome! And then our friend Lis at Butterqueencakes.com took the invitation design and created a stunning cake and cupcakes that simply blew me away (and tasted delicious!!)
Judean also created the beautiful owl art above the timeline and the tissue paper one on the front door.
I also created owl lanterns, decorated branches with little owls, hung a "Happy Birthday A" owl banner, and created a clothesline style timeline with pictures of A in the same chair from 2 weeks through 11 months.
I made sweet little owl stuffies as favors for the kiddos. They were my first attempt at stuffies and they were a little wonky, but very cute.
A had a great time and was a real trooper with all the attention. She looked so sweet in her little dress, I could have just eaten her up.
I think she wanted to take pictures too. 
She wasn't quite sure what to think of the cake, her first sweet! She's a bit of a picky eater and likes to play with her food, so at first she just made faces as she squished it around in her fingers. Then she tasted it, made quite a face, and dug in for more! Mm, butter cream frosting!
She also had fun playing with the other kiddos and telling one little friend about her favorite toy, Ernie. She actually shouted "Ernie!" so loud at her, which cracked me up.
Here's our happy little family. We made it through our first year together, which was one of the fastest and slowest years of my life. I feel so lucky to be A's mom. She's a beautiful, bright shining light that makes the world a better place! Happy Birthday, A!
Inspired by Poetry
April 6th, 2012, Comments (11)
How fun that the theme is language this month and it is also National Poetry Month! I'm often inspired by poetry. Poems are often so visually rich, that I see great images in my mind as I read them. This happened when reading "The Guest House" by Rumi. I read the line, "a crowd of sorrows," this image immediately popped into my head and I had to create it.
Do you have a favorite poem? Have you created work based on a line of poetry or a whole poem? Tell me about it!
Dark Night
March 23rd, 2012, Comments (19)
Snuck in some art during yesterday and today's nap times and came up with this creation, "Dark Night." Going with the mixed-media theme, I used acrylic paints on watercolor paper to start, and later went into it with white and black inks. I had intended to do something different, but as often happens, once I get started, I see some shape in the paint and have to go with it!
