This whole pandemic has been a big anxiety inducing creative block. I had huge plans to finish the impossible cities series back in April and get it submitted for all the summer exhibitions. Except now everything is digital and I can’t seem to get the creative juices flowing in order to finish. However, what I’m learning is that I have to work at my own pace and there is no one putting any sort of pressure on me but me. This period of isolation has been a weird one for sure. While I’m having trouble putting material down to create, it hasn’t stopped my future creative plans. I’ve continued to submit my current works to different exhibitions and while they may mostly be digital/not hosting opening receptions/limiting people inside the gallery, they are still happening. In fact, my work The Unexpected was accepted into the ‘Unleashed’ exhibition by the Gallery Underground in Arlington, Virginia.
chapter vii: wonderland
The last time I was here I told you about my epiphany and the art that came as a result. This is an expansion of that. I am so excited to venture outside of the box that I had put myself into. This new series is an exciting take on the idea of impossible cities. Through this theme I’m getting to explore my favorite materials (hello resin and gold leaf!), plus I am able to research through stories and talking to friends and family about what they would consider an impossible city to be. Through this I’m learning about collaboration and how to grow my interpretation of it.
Collaboration is important. I’m learning that it can help the creative process to talk things out—to hear other peoples perspectives. That collaboration, that meeting of the minds is necessary for growth. I’m learning that it doesn’t always require talking to other artists either. Talk to engineers, talk to counselors, teachers, retail workers, nurses, and everyone in between. I’ve started to gather all of these different viewpoints and then interpret it into my own art. There are so many interesting takes on the idea of impossible cities and I would love to hear what you would consider an impossible city to be!
chapter vi: everything has changed
I had this weird epiphany this summer. I realized that I was boxing myself into specific themes for my art and I was therefore feeling very restricted creatively. I was literally holding myself off from creating something because I was telling myself that it ‘wasn’t in my wheelhouse’. That realization came while on a trip to Mackinaw. I was missing Louisiana and biking around one of the islands. This got me thinking about the way water moves through the state—and poof! this idea was born.
I almost didn’t pursue making this. I almost talked myself out of it. I almost missed this crazy exciting exploration of water movements and boundaries. Realizing that I didn’t have to be within a certain theme in order to pursue art was a big moment for me. It makes me that much more confident in proclaiming “I am an artist” to those who ask what I do.
chapter iv: call it what you want
All of those chapters leads me to this one. My current life chapter--the one where creation balance is important and overall designs mean something. I've come to realize that I don't have to recreate images of things that already exist because I have started to find my own voice. To design something purely inspired by the story, to extrapolate and interpret through design. This is what I've been searching for in my art. A way to be a fan of something without just recreating what someone else has already designed. I'm taking my passion of books and stories and creating my own imaginings around them. Forests of Fiction is the name of the new series. The book pages have taken on new meaning, they are no longer exclusively used as a background. All along I've been intrigued by the use of them as a material, and now that is finally starting to take shape--quite literally.
I want to create. I want to learn. I want to continue to grow as an artist and I want my designs to reflect that growth. This is just the current chapter that I'm living. Cheers to whats next.
chapter iii: speak now
Finding your place in a field that you're passionate about is difficult. People pretend like there are rules, but there aren't. There is no formula to follow. You have to be genuine. You have to be open. You have to be willing to work and put yourself out there. You have to be constantly striving for better--not just best. So I was doing those things (well mostly--openness does not come easily for me); I was being genuine, working, and striving for better. And somehow I made a place for myself in my small community. between all the shows and events people started recognizing my style. it was exciting and terrifying all at the same time.
I was creating these canvases that were intriguing and selling but somehow I was still separated from the creative process. I was recreating existing designsusing my mixed medium methods. I wanted to be inspired by these things, not just reimagining them.
chapter i: begin again
I believe, much like in our favorite novels, there are chapters to life. Each chapter represents a different stage of your life or career or relationship or any number of milestones or setbacks that you may encounter throughout your life. While I can attribute many things to what has led me here--my career as an artist begins here. These are the stories I told, these are the canvases that came to life out of a desperation to reach for the creativity that I was hiding from in my everyday life.