Chronically Creative

Friends Are Like Bras

There's not much new I can say about friends that's any different than what you've read before but after reading the recent comments in the Palette Play Challenge forum, I was compelled to write some words for you to digest.  Friends are there to listen to you, laugh with you, and love you for what you are.  Experts say that that having one or two close and supportive friends is at least as valuable to emotional health as having a large group of friendly acquaintances or more shallow friendships. 

Having social support from several supportive friends, like I am surrounded with each and every day at Artella, is the best of both worlds.  The spirit of generosity, sharing, and friendship knows no limits with the friends I have had the pleasure of conversing with since I joined this fabulous group of artistic spirits in August of 2007.  An artwork that I created for Creativity Contest #24 sums it up with a quote by one of my favorite artists, Georgia O'Keeffe:



You probably already know that friends bring out your best qualities;  for example, if you're shy, a friend might attempt to bring you out of your 'shell'.  Friends sharing a common passion coupled with that sense of 'belonging' is always at the forefront of Artella.   It is this positive reinforcement, the warm exchanges, and the safe and intimate setting Artella provides that continues to brighten my days and inspire me in my personal artwork. 

My biggest pleasure is viewing other artists' work and commenting on it.  Not only do I derive a sense of doing something positive to help other artists,  I have the opportunity to meet others with similarly big hearts.  Without a doubt, it's a two-way street:  I constantly learn and improve myself through these 'conversations';  others respond favorably to the feedback they receive.  A recipe that really doesn't require too much work nor actual baking but one you can savor anytime you wish:

FRIENDSHIP CAKE

• 1 cup greetings
• 1/2 cup smiles
• 1 large hug
• 2/3 cup love
• 1 teaspoon sympathy
• 2 cups hospitality

Mix greetings and smiles thoroughly.  Add hugs separately.  Slowly stir in love.
Sift sympathy and hospitality and fold in carefully.  Bake in warm heart.  Serve often.

Why are friends like bras?  That's because they're close to your heart and there for support.  Thanks to my very valued Artella friends.

Playing Favorites

I was reading a blog post yesterday that recommended making a list of all the artworks you might like because of their narrative or storytelling appeal. My mind took a leap and I started thinking that one of my great joys in life is being so absorbed in a book that I find I physically cannot put it down.  I think it is this joy, this absorption, this transportation that is conveyed so beautifully in five paintings that I chose demonstrated a strong desire to make connections between visual and literary art.  I must point out, however, that these paintings are a very small sample from five of the many artists who have chosen the "reading woman" as their subject.  These fabulous artworks by Franz Ebyl, Mary Cassatt, Charles Edward Perugini, Delphin Enjolras and Pablo Picasso are extraordinary because of the response they evoked in people who saw them. At some level, they touched some people deeply and continue to do so today.

Just as with learning to read, the language of art holds a large number of surprises.  So, here are my Top Five Reading Ladies although I’m sure I’m missing a few gems. Regardless, all of these artworks made me think about reading in new ways. The artworks speak for themselves and maybe you'll see why I chose them.


Jeune Fille lisant  Franz Ebyl 1850

Young Woman Reading  Mary Cassatt 1876

Girl Reading Charles Edward Perugini 1878

Young Woman Reading by a Window 
Delphin Enjolras  n/d

La Lecture (Woman Reading) 
Pablo Picasso  n/d

The women in these paintings did not know they were the subject; freed from the need to make any impression, they are fully themselves.  One of the things that I like about these paintings is that all the women look so absorbed by what they are reading; they have been transported by the simple act of picking up a book.  Perhaps what makes the sight of a woman engaged in reading aesthetically pleasing is the serenity and the true self that a book can bring out of a person.  I am notorious for allowing a book to reveal emotions in me that I normally keep in check. Reading takes me to another world; one that is free and amazing.  Out of all of them, I want to know what the young woman in Franz Ebyl's artwork is reading the most!   Which of the five would you choose as your favorite?

Ring around the Rosy

Ring around the rosy,
A pocket full of posies.
”Hush-a, hush-a”
We all fall down!

Nursery rhymes were not originally written for children, but reflected events that occurred in history. Believe it or not, the nursery rhyme 'Ring around the rosy' alludes to the bubonic plague that ravaged Europe during the Medieval Era.  The symptoms of the plague included a rosy red rash in the shape of a ring on the skin (ring around the rosy), and violent sneezing.  Were we thinking about the plague that day? Definitely not.

The more I sat around reminiscing about these rhymes the more I came up with, surprised at the sheer variety that there was.  Most were cheerful and sometimes with a message meant just for children.  You probably remember learning some of them when you were younger, using them in playing games, learning to count or read to you at bedtime.  I have fond recollections of this jump rope rhyme we played during recess at school:
Cinderella, dressed in yella
Went upstairs to see her fellow,
How many kisses did she get?..one...two...

Anne Anderson date unknown

Determining who was "It" or who was going to be last or first were difficult decisions that had to be made quickly and fairly.  No one ever wanted to volunteer.  Think about it for a moment: did you ever want to be “It”? The last one left in is “It” in this playground favorite: 
One Potato
Two Potato
Three Potato
Four
Five Potato
Six Potato
Seven Potato
MORE
O-U-T spells OUT
So Out you must Go!

Author n/a 1985

Many of these little rhymes are hundred of years old, and have been passed through many generations. Even in ancient Greece and Rome, some 2000 years or more ago, little tots played at counting games and sang little verses of that era.  Another familiar jingle that will never grow old is Hey, Diddle, Diddle:
Hey, diddle, diddle,
The cat and the fiddle,
The cow jumped over the moon.
The little dog laughed
To see such sport,
And the dish ran away with the spoon

Randalf Caldecott 1882

Allowing my mind to drift, I was back in my childhood when life was simpler, when all I knew were colors, multiplication tables, and snippets of nursery rhymes.  What games did you play and can you recall the rhymes?  “If you’re happy and you know it, clap your hands….”

Button, Button, Who's Got the Button?

True confession time:  I've got a fascination with fasteners.  Buttons are my baubles, my trinkets, my treasures.  Sounds decadent but really it's just simple, creative fun.  Even meditative.  Maybe therapeutic. Not only for me because Maggie, our cat, shares my passion for shuffling buttons especially the round ones that roll.  Sounds of the buttons shifting about bring back vivid memories of my mother's round metal button container. That container sure held plenty of play potential.

My mother's collection was much smaller and vastly more practical than mine is today.  While her buttons were used for sewing onto clothing items, mine find their way onto varied artistic surfaces.  My mother clipped off the buttons from old shirts and blouses. To be honest, I've done the exact same thing a number of times.  In fact, some shiny metal 'heart' buttons came off a dress that was past its' prime, if you know what I mean.  Buttons are a perfect design element that can be used in an infinite number of ways.  I've used them in multimedia collage projects, greeting cards, and sprucing up picture frames.  When a project calls for a decorative element like a button, the entire jar is dumped unceremoniously upon the floor.

Maybe some of you will remember a children's game where a small button would be passed undetected to the next child. All the details are a bit sketchy now but whenever I see a large button collection, the "Button, Button..." phrase pops in my mind.  I must have been a magpie in a different life; I just seem to be attracted to shiny things like metal buttons. When I began my own button box project, I grouped metal buttons on an inexpensive painted wooden box in an appealing manner.  A metal jewelry handle was secured to the lid to carry the box.  I then glued the buttons to the top and outer side surfaces and added four round plastic recycled thread spools as legs.  These were wound with wire to match the box's surface.  Inside is where the real treasure lies: the inner box lid displays a vintage image of a women with the text, "Button, Button, Who's Got the Button?"  The box itself holds a cluster of cherished metal buttons that sparkle and shine when the box is opened.

 

Where do I keep my bounty of beautiful buttons, you might ask?  Displayed in my art studio in... my collection of glass jars!  The reason they're glass goes without saying - they act as inspiration each and every day with their multitude of shapes, sizes, and colors.  I love using my buttons so they can be enjoyed again and again, not hidden in a box....and that means I can have room to gather more.  The first thing I'll ask at a yard sale is, "Do you have any buttons?" The focal point at a thrift store or flea market is scouring for buttons.  A neighbor's garage sale rewarded me with an astounding collection of buttons plus a delicate, scrolled metal Russian bowl to hold the precious treasures.  A sister-in-law lovingly presented her mother's exquisite collection of buttons to me in an old round cardboard box. Some of my buttons were recycled from sweaters and clothing that I wore when I was a baby. Of course, there are buttons that are not to be traded, sold, or given away - they're reminders of past times.

If you like the idea of buttons in your artwork, you'll be impressed with two favorites of mine:

       Keepsake Crafts Buttons by Jo Moody
       The Button Craft Book by Dawn Cusick

In them, you'll find show stoppers like a button coat, entirely covered with a mosaic of buttons, fully lined with black buttons. A wall piece for a theme exhibition by artist Sherri Warner Hunter gives the functional button a more playful aspect.  Another artist featured in The Button Craft Book, Kimberley Adams, creates hat bands from a variety of button arrangements. 

I love combing my collection today just like I did as a child.  So, Who's Got the Button? 

Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious!

A nonsensical word, isn't it?  Sometimes, I think there's not enough of it in our world especially with us artists.  We tend to be a pretty serious lot with heaping doses of self-criticism.  Maybe a little nonsense, "A little spontaneity" once in awhile, is a perfect remedy for what ails us.  Mary Poppins certainly had the right idea when she sang this song:

When trying to express oneself, it's frankly quite absurd,
To leaf through lengthy lexicons to find the perfect word.
A little spontaneity keeps conversation keen,
You need to find a way to say, precisely what you mean...

Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious!
Even though the sound of it is something quite atrocious!
If you say it loud enough, you'll always sound precocious,

Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious!
Um-diddle-diddle-um-diddleye
Um-diddle-diddle-um-diddleye.

• Leave judgment until half-way through then finish it, move on, and make another;
• For every piece of art you make and dislike, you will be one step closer to getting something you really like;
• Creativity is exciting when we try different things, vary aspects from past work, and generate new ideas.

I think that making art is most fun when you can feel some element of spontaneity rather than trying to force it into existence, kicking and screaming.
Um-diddle-diddle-um-diddleye.

Two Peas in a Pod: One Green, One Red

A teenage right of passage.  Lathered and slathered, patted and plumped.  Starting with the face: forehead, nose, cheeks and chin; moving on to neck, chest, shoulders, arms and legs.  Baby oil applied in generous amounts and then sunbathing in our itsy bitsy teeny weeny yellow polka-dot bikinis under the intense midday sun for hours. 

We were thirteen, bored and bummed out about not having the "California Girl" suntan even though we lived in southern Alberta, Canada.   My best gal pal and I were at her house on a hot, dry summer day. I blame it on the girlfriend with the bright idea to lay under the lawn sprinkler because she'd heard that we would tan faster with the addition of water.  To look at me on the outside, it would be pretty hard to tell that I was suffering some major internal turmoil. But inside, I was a girl  in a full-blown panic, running around screaming, “aaaaaaggggghhhhhh!"  and "don't make me lay under the sprinkler and burn like a lobster!" at the top of her lungs.  Oh, it’s a slow and sneaky process starting with abnormally warm, pink skin and ending with red, painful, blistering bumps. 

Looking back, a simple math equation applied:

Me: fair and freckled; auburn hair
Friend:  medium and blemish-free; brown hair
My End Result:  Sunbathing = Sunburn x 2

Needless to say, my girlfriend and I were two peas in a pod with a major difference: she's the fresh, sweet green pea; I'm the distinctly dried, shrivelled red one.  Bronze may be beautiful but I prefer buying leather shoes with matching purse rather than looking like cowhide.  These days, I try to be careful. I limit my time in the sun and use sunscreen most of the time.  Once Upon A Summer, I was young . . . .

Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?

I will be the first to admit that I would like to win a million dollars.  In a perfect world, winning big money would be any artist's dream. Certainly, making art is no path to riches.  As some of you might have guessed, I am a dreamer and I do like having a good chuckle which is often rare in the visual arts. It is much better than dwelling on the negative aspects of being an artist.

If you're itching to win fast cash, it’s important to keep in mind what the true chances of winning the top prize are.  I may be a dreamer, but the odds of me actually winning a million dollars is nearly nothing to nil.  For now, I'll stick with what I know best and that's art and I'm betting that's what most of you are very good at.  Borrowing from the hit game show, Who Wants to Be a Millionaire: "Tease your brain, Take a Risk, Let's Play!", this is a contest with no lifelines, only laugh lines; no giveaways and no competition.  Everyone is a winner.

Question #1 You have the ideas and the art supplies so what do you create?

     * Make art that's in my heart, mind and soul
     * Create an artwork to match my sofa, carpet or walls
        Is that your final answer?

Question #2  How would you improve your art skills?

     * Explore different methods of making art and creative designs
     * Ask every Tom, Dick, and Harry to judge my work
        Is that your final answer?

Question #3  What is the main reason for you to make art?

     * I wish to capture the experience of seeing, hearing, or imagining something
     * Nothing else to do; there is no rhyme or reason
        Is that your final answer?

Question #4  Do you feel guilty for being an artist?

     * Being an artist is a call, as much as being a lawyer or a doctor... it is a vocation
     * I would rather have a bad attitude than call myself an artist
       Is that your final answer?

Could you have walked away with a million?   Better yet, did you have the last laugh?

This Story Stinks!

Typically, we enthusiastically support nature's creatures into our secluded backyard haven.  The sweet smell of springtime, with birds and squirrels frolicking in the birdbath, is an everyday occurrence.  So it comes as a surprise to find a jet black and bold white-striped furry creature waddling towards our home, which is next to our deck, where we lounge mindfully oblivious to the chain of events about to unfurl.  That's right, a skunk.  But wait, this  fella is not making his way to the deck; instead he falls out of sight, down into the depths of the window well of our home, which is next to our deck where we lounge. There is nothing for the creature to grasp his long, front claws into and pull his stout body out of. We have a skunk in our well.  What to do, what to do?  When skunks spray right outside your house, then your house stinks.  And your clothes stink.  And you stink.

Hubby is a man with many bright ideas and the one he has right now seems perfect.  Set a wooden plank in the window well and the skunk will climb out.  Does it work?  This is where the movie starts rolllng, the crowd is hushed, and before me is a man, in painfully slow motion, creeping cautiously towards the well to set the plank in place.  Ordinarily, it would be a simple operation but not in this case.  Slow, caution, and fear are the words of the day.  What is my part in this epic drama?  I'm Acting Director, hiding behind the screen door, shouting out the next moves hubby should take like, "Watch out!  His tail is up!"  or "Back up, he's climbing out!" 

The opportunity to escape eludes this stinky critter.  A few hours have now passed by yet the skunk remains in the well.  Curiosity killed the cat and it's going to kill us next.  Perhaps by getting a closer look  through the inside basement window, we can actually watch him climb out.  It's difficult to distinguish him as day is now turning to dusk and we don't dare turn the light on.  Although there is a large rip in the screen, we're feeling relieved that the window is tightly closed.  

Eventually, the animal with his unmistakable eau du parfum walked the plank to freedom.  Despite the ordeal, we were struck by one thing: "He was actually very cute."  Laugh Out Loud?  You bet.  So did the skunk.

There were two skunks--                    
                                          Out and In.                                          
 When In was out,
 Out was in.
 One day Out was in
 And in was out.
 Their mother,
 who was in with Out,
 wanted In in
 "Bring In in,"
 she said to Out.
 So Out went out
 and brought In in.
 "How did you find him
 so fast?" she asked.
 "Instinct," he said.

(Author Unknown)

Please allow me to introduce myself. . .

My life as an artist is like a blank canvas of opportunity with a few titles added to the frame. Not to be confused with titles like BFA, MFA, or PhD (Patiently hoping for a Degree), these titles include Mother, Wife, Friend, among many others.  Fourteen years ago this month, I completed my Art and Design diploma.  Along the way, I have found some brush strokes and techniques that have helped paint my life picture.

Brush Stroke #1:  Moolah Matters
As an artist, I had to put on my creative thinking cap and build myself an income, an income that would serve practical needs such as mortgage, food, clothes, and most importantly - art supplies!  You may not get the perfect suburban dream but you will have a fulfilling life doing what you love.  If you have the calling to be an artist, there is very little you can do about it except give into the creative urges you have and make art. 

Brush Stroke #2:  No Risk, No Reward
The reality of being an artist is that earning a living from the sale of your work takes commitment, hard work, and some very good marketing skills.  It is very easy to be comforted by the boundaries of an art studio because it's where we haven't experienced failure.  That comes in the 'real' world where our dreams may be rejected, the public may not purchase our work, or sales aren't strong enough. Learning to experience failure and recover in a short period of time will give you the freedom to make wider choices.

Brush Stroke #3:  Artist Eyes
You don't have to create artwork 24/7 to be an artist nor does selling have to be a primary objective.  We see the world through artist eyes where we observe all that is going on around us that will eventually pass through in our art. As the famous sculptor, Louise Nevelson said, "Art is everywhere, except it has to pass through a creative mind."  When someone asks you what you do for a living tell them you are an ARTIST, with pride.

How will you Paint Your Picture?