A growth experience

 I  never know how an experience will influence my art.  It is usually long after an event that bits and pieces creep into a work.  Some experiences cause me to think about how I see art and my art practice. I recently had an opportunity to think about mine. 

 Have you ever been interviewed about your art practice?  Recently Jeanette Jobson, a  local artist, asked me if I would be her focus artist for her October newsletter.  Having read most of the other interviews in her previous newsletters I thought it would be "a growth experience".  It was.  The questions were varied and required lots of thought on my part.  Isn't it always difficult to grasp those wispy  thoughts and shape them into something cohesive?

 

 Me at one of the four corners of the world (according to the Flat Earth Society)

 Fogo, Newfoundland,  2011

 Check out Jeanette's  October Newsletter here and get to know me a little  more. Was there anything surprising ?

Transending materials

I recently spent two full days at an  encaustic open studio at Torbay Bight Studio and had a very productive time.  I was just back from holiday and my mind was all over the place, so I went into the two days giving myself permission to do whatever struck my fancy.  I had decided not to severely edit my work while creating. The editing came when I laid it all out about a week later. Some interesting things came to light.

Encaustic is a very accessible medium and it is easy to "play"  with it.  That is both a strength and a weakness as far as I'm concerned.  I noticed that about half the pieces I created entailed layering materials and the pieces didn't move beyond that;  I put them in the category of arranging materials.  They will never transcend their parts (but they look pretty).  The other half were very similar  in aesthetic, but they have moved beyond to that place where they are art pieces in their own right. There is little continuity in theme/content because they were all experimental. 

Below are five pieces, I feel some of them work and some don't .  What's your take?

Update

I'm beginning to think the boundaries of my life are controlled by the four walls of my studio. I've been getting up early, working too late and fretting about the times I'm not able to work. I am happy to report I see an end in sight. I've been checking things off my exhibition prep list with enthusiasm.
Artist statement-check;
press release- check;
master list of titles and prices- check;
final varnishing- check;
eye hooks attached for wires- check;
final coat on sides of canvases-check.

Boy did that ever feel good. My list is now minuscule.

• Put on wire (darling hubby will do this tomorrow while I'm at work)
  
• sign work (on the back for me)
• look closely at each piece for quality control, make minor corrections
  
• wrap and box paintings

Leave for Banff and points beyond on Wednesday
Work hard at CARFAC meetings
Have fun and see lots of art
Return on May 23, totally refreshed to:

• Bring work to gallery on May 25 ; pick up invitations I will personally distribute
  
• Breathe deeply, maybe do an interview
  
• Enjoy the opening on May 29
• Give an artist talk on June 6, without doubt work on it for a week
  
• Go to summer house for two weeks on June 7 and decide what's next in art
• Give myself permission to do whatever strikes my fancy
  

What next?

These days I'm thinking quite a bit about my art practice and how I organize my time. I continuously fight an underlying belief that I can only paint when I am in the mood. Because I am on a deadline, I make myself go to the studio on many days. I seem to be immersed in this pull between wanting to paint and having to paint. While I am satisfied with my efforts some days, other times I have to rework what I have already painted. Have you ever felt like you are swimming someday and not even knowing where the water is on others?

No amount of guilt could send me to the studio yesterday evening. I spent time on the computer instead and was rewarded by reading a great post by Kesha Bruce whose blog I follow. She is using a weekly goal setting strategy that is very organized and appeals to my professional accountability side (which is not being exercised much lately). Currently I spend way too much time reflecting with not action following the reflection. Kesha has it all tied together in here Sunday Summit and I am inspired to follow her example. Perhaps there's something in this post for you to consider in your practice.

Onward

It's Monday. The only thing I have to offer today are dusty thoughts about painting. This past week has been a busy one for me. I totally renovated my home office, had my computer overhauled at the same time and worked . My part time job sometimes expands to a little more than part time but then ebbs to less than part time. The fact that I work as a decorator in a home decorating centre keeps my mind on colour and design even when I'm away from painting. After five years of being fancy free, I wanted to have contact with the public again. I an a better person when I have a schedule.

Now that the dust has settled from the renovations, I'm ready to begin painting again. I have four new paintings set up and I'm trying to complete four more. They seem to accompany me where ever I go. I make mind edits, expand ideas and consider new options. I call it painting in my head. I'm sure every artist has this aspect of their practice. All of our experiences get filtered through our creative brains. It's called experience.

Into it

Sit in it, lie in it, roll in it, look at it, sniff it, touch it, draw it, paint it.
Meadows are a part of who I am.

Shoot it from any angle you like.

Even slightly skewed, meadows hold their own.
Why?

Blog readership

My blog readership has increased steadily in the year that I've been writing it. I 've made connections with artists around the globe and I am more in tune with what is happening in the world of art outside my city than most artists I know personally. Blogging and reading blogs allows me to move beyond the restrictions of geography and parochial ideas . I've also had opportunities to correspond with people who have no agendas except interest in art and the inner workings of an artist's mind. I grow from their comments, questions and posts.

When I look at the location of visitors to my blog (through sitemeter) and check the profiles of my followers, one trend is apparent- I have very few visitors from my home province - Newfoundland and Labrador. Japan, Sweden, New Zealand, Ireland, South Africa, United States, Norway etc. all show up. I'm pondering this.

The other day when Anonymous left this response to my blog. ...

Your blog keeps getting better and better! Your older articles are not as good as newer ones you have a lot more creativity and originality now keep it up!

it brought the question of why people are attracted to certain blogs to the forefront again. I suppose the answer is definitely wrapped up in the nature of the blog. When one writes about the personal aspects of artmaking the interest of the general public is limited.

There's a Newfoundland and Labrador Blog Roll that is in the process of determining the favouite Newfoundland and Labrador Blog. The voting trend is the same for all visual artist blogs so I don't feel lonely!

I'll throw this out to my readers. Why do you visit/follow a blog? Do you have many local blog visitors/followers ? Why do you think visitors are interested in your blog?