Entries Tagged as 'play'
Wreck This Journal with Smooshy Paint!
July 3rd, 2009, Comments (21)
I've been having a blast playing with my copy of Keri Smith's Wreck this Journal for Jamie Ridler's book group. Fun! If you missed last week's update, I brought my journal in the shower and gave it a good scrub. And it did not want to dry, despite being wrapped sweetly in its own little towel, so I took Lisa's advice and put it in the dryer briefly. I didn't want to start a fire, so I only got it mostly dry in there. When I took it out, it looked like this:
Oh my. So, I spent some time uncurling all the edges and now the book looks like it had a perm, but it's mostly fizzled out. Hehe. It's still a little damp, but I've carried on with it. I actually like some of the effects that writing on a damp page has. In this week's video you can see my current favorite page and then you get to see me in action, squirting paint and ink onto the pages to make a print. So purty! I already see something in the print that was made, so I'd be curious to hear what you see there! If I end up playing with the ink/paint blot further, I'll post a picture.
Making a video could be another way to play with the self theme for the Creative Every Day Challenge this month! You could simply show yourself live, read something you've written, make silly movie, or just share something about yourself. I'd love to see you! I know the first video I did for Wreck this Journal was really scary, but it's become a lot less scary with each one I do. It might be a fun way to strech yourself! In the meantime, I want to wish a happy 4th of July to everyone in the U.S.! Happy 4th! And to everyone, I wish a wonderful, creative, fun-filled weekend!
Meeting Yourself Where You’re At With Art
July 2nd, 2009, Comments (15)
elephant night
Art is one of the most soothing things I can do when I'm feeling cruddy. And yet, I still forget or I putter around without picking up the paintbrushes. It's a fairly simple task to pick up your pen and write or pick up your paintbrush and paint, but the starting can be hard. Especially if you have any voices in your head saying, "I want to make something good."
Phooey, I say. Let go of the making-something-good or making-something-special voices and meet yourself where you are, right now, in this moment.
It's true, it might not be pretty. It might not be what you expect.
detail
Allow yourself to be surprised.
Simply show up and begin. Begin with simple tools. A few colors, a piece of a paper, a pen. Leave your fears of failure at the door. For just this moment, it doesn't matter if what you create is "good" or "bad." Just let something flow out. A few brushstrokes. A few lines. Where does that take you?
Last night, I started with a scrap of paper that I'd done some playful marks on previously. I wet part of the paper and grabbed a bottle of ink that my cats had playfull rolled down the hall earlier. I squirted some ink on the wet paper and delighted in how it spread and curled and formed fantastic shapes. I then squirted blue paint directly onto the paper, shapes began to develop. Orange came next, a field. And ink spots looked like houses. A figure appeared on the right side. I stepped back, looked from a distance, then peered closer. One of the house shapes looked like an elephant, so I made it appear. The sky was lit with stars.
Before I started painting I was feeling some angst about a variety of things, including the weather. But afterwards, I felt light and alive and more free. That's some of what expressing yourself can do for you. When you allow yourself to create, not what you might wish you were creating, but what you need to create now, in this moment, you'll feel more alive, more connected, more at peace.
This is what I aim for when I'm creating, this connection to where I'm at in the moment. It's the way I found myself creating in the art picnics I developed and it continues to be a magical experience that I just adore having.
How can you meet yourself where you're at in your art?
p.s. The next Art Picnic workshop has been scheduled for Saturday, August 22nd, from 1-3 pm EST. You can get all the details and sign up here!
WTJ and Muse Cube Fun!
June 26th, 2009, Comments (21)
muse cubes
For the month of sound, I just had to mention Gretchen Wegner's fabulous Muse Cubes! Gretchen is currently working on a new set and has asked for our help.
The cubes are like two dice that you can roll any time during the day to shake things up and help move you through any stuckness you're feeling by using movment and sound. I just shook my set and got "stretch" and "sigh." Try it out. Don't you feel better?
Gretchen is looking for some feedback on the words she'll be using on the new set of cubes and has set up a short survey to get some feedback, so she can choose the best possible words. Please give your feedback on Muse Cubes here. It's quick, easy and anonymous! Thanks in advance!
I've also been playing with my copy of Wreck this Journal for Jamie Ridler's book group. I decided this was the week to take the journal in the shower and I did that yesterday with amusing results. After the shower, I decided my journal deserved it's own little towel.
Poor thing got washed well and I'm not sure how it's feeling about its first ever shower. I mean, it got really wet.
And it got scrubbed too. Even behind the ears, but especially on the "Scrub this page" page.
Only problem is, one day later and my journal is still all wet. I think it's the humidity we're having and all the rain. But wait, as I type this, the sun has poked out! I want to cry I've missed the sun so much!
O.k. Just put the journal out for a little sunbathing. Hope that helps things. I'd like to take the journal along with me on my trip to NYC this weekend, but if it's going to be a big wet mess, it may miss the party. I thought about taking a hair dryer or heat gun to it or popping it in the dryer...Hmm, what do you think will work best?
Wreck This Journal, Week 3
June 20th, 2009, Comments (17)
Oh, I'm feeling so sleepy this week! After a day of errands today, I felt the urge to take a nap, which I may still do. But first, I want to share what I've been up to in Wreck this Journal for Jamie Ridler's fabulous book group!
I crumpled one page and threw it across the room, where it landed next to Space Ghost (the well-loved toy of my cat, Sadie.) It almost looks like Space Ghost caught it! Hehe! Sadie must have brought him into my studio so that he could play fetch with me. Good kitty.
This next one is contributing to my journal smelling a bit funky. I think the "take your journal in the shower with you" exercise is gonna happen this week!
The instructions were to sample various substances in your home and document them. I sampled olive oil, glass plus, jerk sauce, green tea soap, lemon lotion, shaving cream, listerine, face scrub, and lemon hand lotion. I enjoyed it, but wished my substances were a bit more colorful!
This book has been a lot of fun for me. It's definitely an encourager of play, which I'm a big fan of. I hope you've been able to be playful in some way this weekend!
Singing in the Shower
June 16th, 2009, Comments (24)
Song
Do you remember singing as a kid? You know, that kind of singing kids do with pure abandon? Do you ever sing like that now?
As it's the month of sound here for the Creative Every Day Challenge, I've been thinking about where and when I sing. I'm not a fabulous singer, but I do love to sing. I sing with passionate abandon in the shower and in my car and sometimes to my cats. The hubster and I are constantly making up little songs about silly things we do, like the song we made up about bagel sandwiches and another we sing about tickling toes.
My dad used to sing (horribly) to 50's songs in the car and we'd all sing songs about farts (while laughing hysterically) on long car rides. My mom used to sing us a silly song about spinach on car rides to my grandmother's house (I still totally love that song) along with the more traditional "Over the river and through the woods, to grandmother's house we go..."
In elementary school, I got a solo in the school show, singing "Who Put the Bop," which I sang in a poodle skirt my mom made for me. And I sang a few lines as an orphan in the school's production of Annie. What a thrill that was! In high school, I sang along with my casette tape player, listening to musicals like Les Mis and Phantom over and over again. And I sang and danced in the production of A Chorus Line. In college, I learned to play enough guitar that I could strum along and belt out Ani Difranco's "Both Hands." I know when I have kids some day I'll sing to them.
Songs hold so many memories for people. Some remember being told they couldn't hold a tune, others remember their parents or grandparents singing them to sleep, others remember writing songs of love and angst in their teenage years, others remember singing their own babies to sleep. What are some of your favorite singing memories?
Whether or not you believe you're a "good" singer, singing is such a wonderful release, such a powerful expression. Perhaps, even if you are shy with your voice, you can find some time this month to play full out with song. (The shower or car a great place to give it a go!)
Some fun links to share:
- In case you're curious about some of the technical aspects of singing, here's a good article about basic singing techniques.
- Peggy sent me a link to this website which I'd twittered about before and then forgotten about. It's so worth sharing here though because it's such a fabulous combination of sound and interactive animation. Gorgeous! Just move your mouse around when the music starts.
- The next Art Picnic teleclass is happening tomorrow evening at 8pm EST and I'd love to "see" you there! Check out all the details and sign up here.
Wrecking My Journal, The Catnip Version
June 13th, 2009, Comments (20)
Here's the next installment of me talking about Keri Smith's Wreck this Journal for Jamie Ridler's fabulous book group. I don't know that I'll do a video every week, but I felt like this idea, featuring my big orange boy kitty, Tabbers, definitely had to be captured in video. Hehe.
At the end of the journal, there's a place to list other ways you could wreck your journal. I'd written things like: throw your journal from a moving car and play fetch with a dog. And then I saw Jessie's super cute video of her playing fetch with her dogs with her journal! Since I don't have a dog at home to play fetch with, I decided to use another idea from the list: put catnip on the journal and let one of my cats attack it. The other kitties were sleeping elsewhere, but Tabbers is the cat who loves the nip the most, so I asked him if he'd be willing to help me out. He agreed. I only wish I'd caught the massive face push he gave me in thanks right after I stopped the video. Ah well. Enjoy!
Close Your Eyes and Create
June 11th, 2009, Comments (12)
Creating to music can be a wonderful thing. It can be especially interesting when you allow yourself to be moved by the music, to respond to what you hear.
The following exercise is a wonderful way play with sound and creating intuitively. I share a similar exercise in the Art Picnic workshops and the next one is coming up Wednesday, June 17th, 8pm EST. Get all the details and sign up here! I would love to create with you!
I've set this post up, so that you can use the song here (if you're reading this in rss or email, click through to the blog to listen) or use your own music.
The Exercise: Have a pen and piece of paper ready and get into a comfortable position. Take a few deep breaths to center and ground yourself, then begin the music. Let the music play for a moment, then put pen to paper and close your eyes. As the music plays, let your pen move freely across the paper. Move it in response to the music and let your hand move whichever way it wants to go. Don't think about the end result, just let go.
You can do this for the whole music piece or just for 30 seconds, depending on how much time you have to play with. Letting the drawing go for the whole song can be a wonderful exercise, but do as much as you can.
When the music has stopped, take a deep cleansing breath and open your eyes. Take a moment to look at what you've scribbled. Do you see anything there? Maybe a face? A monster? A house? A fish? Or maybe a tree? Whatever you see there, take a moment to bring it out. You can color it in or just make it more clear. The image here is an example of what happened when I developed the image with colored pencil.
Often the symbols that pop up through an exercise like this relate to something going on in our lives or have some kind of message for us. Sometimes they don't. But either way, it's fun to play with. You could do some journal writing or dialoguing with the symbols that come up for you and see what they have to say or develop your doodle further with some paint.
This is a fabulous way to get started if you're feeling particularly stuck creatively. It takes all the pressure off of performing (your eyes are closed, so what can you do?) and allows a more intuitive response to come forward. Plus, it's just fun!
p.s. The fabulous Jamie has written about her experience of turning business meetings into Art Picnics right here. So cool! Love that idea!
p.p.s. Christine at BlissChick has posted a great interview with me at her blog, which you can check out over here.
p.p.p.s. (That's way too many p's! Be sure to stop by tomorrow for the featured Creative Every Day Challenge Participants post!! I've got some wonderful work to share with you!)
Click below to expand post and view music player.
(more...)No More Creative Constipation! Art Picnic: June 17th
June 3rd, 2009, Comments (6)
It's nearly time for another Art Picnic adventure. Yay! I'm super excited to share this class with you!
fly fly fly, created at recent art picnic
I have a confession to make.
I get a bit nervous about talking on the phone. I've done a bunch of phone interviews in the last year, a few calls and classes, and they've all gone smoothly, but each time I've had a wave of anxiety wash over me before I spoke. It's getting easier, the anxiety is less each time, but speaking, for this introvert, can be a bit unnerving.
I could simply stop doing this sort of thing, but I really love sharing this work. I feel that it's powerful and important. Yes, it's simple, but the most powerful stuff is often the simplest. And the things I share in the Art Picnic class are essential parts of what helped me though my worst creative blocks, stuff I wish someone had shared with me when I was going through it.
My worst creative stuckage happened after I graduated from art school. My head was literally bursting with the voices of all the teachers I had and unfortunately, the loudest ones were the negative voices. Teamed up with my inner critic, these voices had me way too scared to create anything at all. I went months without painting or drawing and a full year without creating much at all.
If you're a creative person (and I know you are), then you know that creative stuck can lead to the feeling of build-up, like a dam that's over-extended and ready to burst. It affects all parts of your life, leading you to feel on edge, frustrated, and not so fun to be around. Well, it's like being creatively constipated! Heh. Not pleasant!
No more creative constipation!
The way out for me was scheduling some time with myself to be playful, to give myself permission to fail wildly, and to create from my heart. In the Art Picnic class, I share the main tools to help you get started, get playing, and keep that momentum going. It's a gentle approach and I think that's the best way to get back to your creativity. Even if you're not blocked, scheduling some special time for you and your creative muse is a beautiful thing. Why not come play?
The next Art Picnic is happening Wednesday, June 17th from 8 - 10 p.m. EST (find out what time that is in your neck of the woods here.) It's only $25 and you can sign yourself up right over here.
An Art Picnic is all about quieting your gremlins and moving past your creative blocks so you can create freely. I'll be teaching you how to let your intuition guide you as you work, how to get playful with your art, and how to create from a place of joy, freedom, and authenticity.
The call consists of a half hour of sharing the essential parts having your own Art Picnic, 1 hour of creating on your own (with the ability to get in touch with me if you get stuck), and a final half hour of checking-in, sharing, and a few final tips to help you continue on the creative path. Check out all the details about the class here.
I loved what Teri wrote about her Art Picnic experience from the last workshop I gave. In the process, she learned that she could schedule some time for her creativity. And I love how she noted that it was a picnic with no ants! Ha! Very true!
It's so vital to schedule time for our creativity. Signing up for a class like this can be a huge help in making a commitment to yourself. It's fabulous self-care, so nurturing, and healing to set aside this kind of time.
If you have any questions, feel free to let me know. I hope to see you there!
Do Art Not Dishes: How to Stop Avoiding Your Art Supplies in Four Steps
May 20th, 2009, Comments (17)
Three Muses
One of the biggest clues I get that I'm avoiding my art, is when I have some time to create, but all of the sudden I have an incredible urge to do the dishes, mop the kitchen floor, re-fold my laundry, or clean the litter box.
Now, if you love cleaning, doing dishes, or scooping out kitty poo, this may not be your clue. But anytime you're filling your art-time with things that don't really need doing in that moment, stop, take a breath and ask yourself, "Hey, what's happening here? Why am I avoiding my art?"
Doing distasteful chores is my clue that I'm in major avoidance mode, but there are sneakier ways I avoid. They're easy to fall into and oh, so time-consuming. For me, these sneaky avoidance tools include reading blogs, surfing online, and Twitter. Now, there's nothing wrong with doing any of those things, but you have to stay aware of when you're doing these things not just for fun, but as a way to stay just busy enough that you have no time to create.
O.k., so I've noticed myself avoiding. Now what?
First step: Do not beat yourself up
Beating yourself up over not creating will only lead to, you guessed it, more avoidance and less creating (followed by more beating yourself up.) Ouch. It's a vicious cycle and it's painful, so let's sidestep the berating yourself and move into the space of being gentle.
Second step: Gentle Noticing
Take a deep breath and gently notice the inner pulls that want to lead you into an activity of avoidance and then take a peek at why you're avoiding. There's usually some kind of fear there. A fear of not being good enough. A fear of making bad art. A fear of failure. (All totally normal, by the way.)
This may be enough for now. To just notice. You can then go on and do whatever avoidance tactic you were about to do (maybe you really do need to do those dishes!), but you'll do it in a conscious way. There's a big difference between choosing to do this activity instead of making art and doing an activity while unconsciously avoiding.
Step Three: You're Not Your Fear
After you've taken a gentle look at your fear, you may want to do some journaling about where this fear stems from. Ask yourself what is scariest to you and then see if you can determine some playful ways to work through them.
One of my biggest fears is of not being good enough. When this fear comes up, I work through it by getting playful. Play can help quiet your inner critic to a whisper. Heck, you might even get your inner critic to play along with you. At a time in my life when my inner critic was particularly loud, I started having art picnics on my bedroom floor. I created a safe space in which to create freely and gave myself permission to make complete and utter crap. Lo and behold, this totally worked for me.
Once I got playing, I got into a creative flow, my confidence began to build, and I was creating freely again. The hardest part is often starting. If you can get through that, you'll be on your way.
Step Four: Commit to Your Creativity
If you find yourself getting into avoidance mode on a regular basis, it's extremely helpful to create a regular date with your creativity. You can do this on your own by scheduling time and putting it in your calendar (every day at 3 p.m. for the next month, I'll create for 30 minutes or every Saturday from 12 - 1, I'll work on my writing), you could make a date with an art pal or group of friends to create together on a regular basis, or you could take a class (I know when I pay for a class, it helps me keep my commitment to showing up.)
A student in my last Art Picnic class mentioned that if she hadn't been signed up for the class, she would have decided her day was too busy to create. But because she'd signed up, she showed up, and was so glad she'd taken the time for herself.
It's so easy to feel like we're just too busy, but creativity doesn't need wide expanses of time to flourish, it can come in little bits. And when we make time for our art, whatever that may be, we feel so much more alive.
So for today, forget the dishes and get creating.
p.s. The next Art Picnic class has been scheduled for Wednesday, June 17th from 8 - 10 pm EST. I'll be posting more details soon, but in the meantime, you can learn all about it and sign up right here.
Wild and Wacky Nature Printing
May 19th, 2009, Comments (5)
There are so many ways to play with nature elements in your art. If you're looking for some inspiration, here are some fabulous tutorials to get you started:
- Hammered flower and leaf prints: Super clever way to get the color of flowers and leaves into your art while simultaneously pounding out your frustrations. (I should have done this after the Celtics game on Sunday. Blarg!)
- Gyotaku: We all know about leaf rubbings, but what about fish rubbings? This tutorial will walk you through the finer points of Gyotaku. My cats would go out of their minds if I ever did this at home, so I won't be doing this anytime soon!
- Leaf Rubbings: For a different look with botanical rubbings, try doing them on rice paper. I love the way they look in this Martha Stewart calendar and I bet they'd look gorgeous incorportated into a collage.
- Gelatin Printing: I've done some gelatin printing before and it's a blast! It's also a great tool to use with natural elements to make gorgeous monoprints. Here's a tutorial on setting up your own gelatin printing station: This one is from Art Esprit and here are written instructions along with a video from Linda Germain (check out all her gelatin printing videos on youtube!)
I did all the images in this post with gelatin printing. They're fun to make and they're also great to use as collage materials.
Hopefully this will fill your head with ideas and send you off to buy gelatin. Or maybe it will just inspire you to hammer the heck out of some plants. Or perhaps you'll paint a fish. Hehe. This post could get you into trouble! No matter what, keep having fun with it!
