« Older Archive for May, 2008

Get Thee In The Studio

Saturday, May 31st, 2008 by Alyice

As you may recall, from an earlier post, I had been struggling with finding the time for my art and photography with an already overloaded schedule and loved Jan’s idea of painting first thing in the morning. I loved that idea so much that I put it into action but soon discovered that I wasn’t a creative person in the morning. I was a work-a-holic in the morning. I needed to get “work done” before I could play, otherwise the juices of creativity just didn’t flow.

But to make room for creativity later in the afternoon I had to accept that distractions come in many forms, including a few preconceived notions that constantly find their way back into my life, such as: “everything would fall apart if I didn’t stick to a schedule” or “I’d fall behind schedule if I didn’t complete x amount of tasks per day” or “nothing would get done if I didn’t do it” or “people are relying on me to…” And then I had to learn to let go of those distractions—both mentally and physically—so that I had room to get creative.

I think that’s why Susie Monday’s response to my question, “What’s the coolest tip you’ve ever received?” in a recent interview I did with her hit home so much. Most artists talk about various techniques they’ve learned, especially the ones that changed the way they create but Susie confirmed something I knew in my heart and up until recently had been struggling with mentally. She said her coolest tip was “Get thee in the studio.”

Susie went on to say, “When I make myself leave the laundry, turn off the tube, close the door, and just sit and look at the materials I have to work with I began piddle around with what IS, not what I want it to be…”

I absolutely loved that statement! I cannot tell you how many times I’ve procrastinated in creating because I needed to learn one more thing, buy one more thing, do one more thing. As a beginning artist, it’s so easy to see what isn’t or what could be versus seeing what is and working within the confines of what is at that moment in time.

Since I’ve made that commitment to do some form of art every day I have learned that working with what I have makes me a stronger artist. It causes me to think outside the box, to experiment with different ways of doing things, and to practice.

Not everything I do comes out the way I want it to. Many times I have to gesso over what I created and start again but in the doing and the redoing I am growing as an artist. Which brings me to the second thing Susie said that really hit home, “Get thee to the studio means that I do the work and let the consequences and the quality take care of itself—whether it’s a success or a failure.”

And that, my dear friends, is truly the secret to a successful artist! We can read all the art books ever written. We can watch every video made on our craft. We can attend all the workshops we can afford. We can get interviewed in a hundred various publications, but if we do not step foot in that studio it’s all for nothing. Without actually creating, we cannot call ourselves artists nor can we grow as artists. And if we don’t get in that studio and create something—anything—we cannot fill gallery showings or make a living as an artist because there will be nothing to show and nothing to sell.

Until next time,

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In Love With Creativity

Friday, May 30th, 2008 by Alyice

It’s amazing how many times we tell ourselves, “I just don’t have enough time to…” and then buy into that statement instead of changing the way we think or the way we do things so that we have the time for the things that constantly beckon us. Maybe we’re afraid that we’ll change our lives to fit that one thing in and discover we liked the idea of that thing more than the actual doing. Maybe we’re afraid that the changes we make to make room for that thing will do more harm than good or maybe we’ve simply forgotten what it means to take care of “me.”

It’s easy to allow the pressures and busyness of everyday life to rob us of doing things that make us happy. And it’s easy to put our own needs on the backburner for the greater good of our children, our spouse, our relationships, our work, our business, and even our church. Heck, it’s even easy to allow preconceived notions of how things ought to be to rule over what should be. But it’s that kind of martyr-like thinking that can destroy us and everything around us.

We need time for ourselves. We need time to relax, to breathe, to think, and to do absolutely nothing. And we need time to do something for ourselves without guilt or shame or feelings of selfishness.

And that’s why I am in love with the idea of creativity!

Creativity is about stepping outside the obvious and using one’s imagination. It’s about letting go of the reality around you and taking pleasure in the impossibilities. It’s about being one with yourself instead of trying to be one hundred things to a hundred different people. And, for me, it’s about relaxation and meditation.

Whenever I feel stressed or overwhelmed, I now take a break and pick up a paint brush, some molding paste, and a recycled jar. I cannot tell you how relaxing it feels to simply be in the moment—to forget about time, duties, hurts, worries, and the hassles of everyday life and just be. Whether it’s five minutes or an hour, I just concentrate on the project at hand and when I’m done, I feel so much better.

Your creative muse may come in one of many forms: art, gardening, crocheting, sewing, woodworking, writing or even photography. My hope for you, today, is that as you think about the things that constantly beckon you, you’ll slow down long enough to make room for them, too.

Until next time,

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Tornado Season

Friday, May 30th, 2008 by Alyice

Last night we had our first official tornado warning for our hometown and we weren’t happy but then again who is ever really happy when a tornado comes roaring through their hometown?

Usually the tornados in our state don’t get this close and it’s one of the reasons I like living here, but last night was a different story. We’ve had severe thunderstorm warnings, on and off, for the past few weeks then last night a severe thunderstorm began making its way towards us. The news had been reporting tornado warnings on and off all night, but nothing near us.

Then we saw our city name flash across the television screen and heard the word: Tornado. We were in disbelief. We’ve never experienced a tornado before and didn’t want to experience one now. But no sooner did we see our city name flash on the screen did we hear it: the warning siren.

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It was time to make our way to the basement. We grabbed our shoes, closed the doors to each room (don’t even know why I did that), grabbed our caged animal friends, and walked down to the basement where we commenced to turn on the radio and await the news that the tornado had passed. There was only one problem, we didn’t have any batteries in the radio so as my husband and I made our way back upstairs I stopped to look outside the kitchen window and pray.

The winds grew so strong that the trees no longer appeared to be dancing in the wind but moving about with anger and rage, the sky grew darker, the seconds between each sound of thunder and the actual lighting grew closer together, we felt the rumbles in the ground, and the house began to shake. For the first time in my life I was afraid that a tornado would touch down on our home, in our city.

I thought about my prayer and realized I wasn’t praying with all my heart, I had allowed the surrealism of the moment to take hold. So I stopped praying. Looked outside the kitchen window again and prayed again. I prayed that the tornado would not harm us. I prayed for protection of my family by naming each member one by one. I prayed for our home, and I prayed that the tornado would dissipate.

Then I made my way back downstairs where I heard my husband say, “this is going to be a long night” and my son say, “it’s going to be a boring night—we don’t even have a television down here to pass the time.” I glanced over at my daughter and smiled as she sat Indian style on the floor, blanket surrounding her, and earplugs in her ears. She was watching a movie on her iPod and oblivious to what was taking place around her.

Fifteen minutes later we were notified that it was okay to leave the basement. A half hour later my daughter received a phone call from her friend: “Are you okay? Were you scared? If we make it through this night alive do you want to hang out tomorrow?”

Until next time…

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AlyiceEdrich.com
I'm a freelance writer, mixed media artist, SMVA, and the owner of The Dabbling Mum.

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