I think I spend more time cleaning and organizing my studio than actually working on art. In fact, I KNOW it! Is that a bad thing? I actually love touching and sorting out all my treasures. All those pristene sheets of paper, full tubes of paint and sparkly piles of beads. How can I mess them up? Maybe that's the root of the problem. If I actual use my treasures to create something, maybe it won't be any good, maybe my things are prettier or more valuable in their original state???? When I take classes, I am forced to sit down and DO something. In reality, it's almost always a good result. Why is it so scary to face that quiet studio, so full of potential? I actually found myself cleaning baseboards today when I could have been making art. Am I psycho or what?
This blog is my first baby steps toward putting myself out in the world as an artist, not as a stay-at-home mom who makes 'stuff'. Not that there is anything wrong with being a stay-at-home mom who makes 'stuff' but I have been hiding behind that label too long. I am hoping the tiny pressure of keeping up this blog with kick me into creating more regularly. If you have any good advice, feel free to offer it up.
15 hours ago
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4 comments:
If you're psycho, then I'm only a half step behind you! I spent my first two days home re-vamping my workspace...and the last seven staring at it. Although I did get to finish the 'wee book,' not much else is happening. I'm going to email a few gals from The Fort to see how to get in on some swaps or trades. The deadline to create and get it 'out the door' might do the trick.
ps
love that picture...i'm gonna hunt down a picture of my dancing days just to see what my clavicles looked like!!
I can relate, why is it that doing the dishes or playing Tetris (?!?!) on the computer holds so much allure when I could be making something? I think you're right when you say it's the fear of "ruining" all that good stuff.
I once read a book where the writer protagonist handcuffed herself to her desk, put the key in a file cabinet drawer and closed the drawer - the handle was out of reach with the drawer closed! Then she would be forced to either sit at her desk doing nothing or write. She would write until she was soooo done that she was willing to embarrass herself by asking a passerby (her office was in a university) to get the handcuff key out of the drawer for her.(or until she had to use the bathroom) Funny.
Laurie
Thank you for the lovely comments on my blog - artspaz.blogspot.com. I'm a stay at home mom who makes stuff also. Stopped working full time in Graphic Design about 9 years ago. I now freelance here and there to finance my making stuff. My office is a huge mess...next thing on the list.
Julie Collinge
Kent, WA
ok, well if you're psycho and Stephanie is only a half step behind you, then in all seriousness I should be sporting a strait jacket by now! i don't know what the deal is...i think perfectionism rears its ugly head too much over here...if it's not gonna be perfect then why bother kind of thinking...but i recently found and posted prominently in my workspace a quote from Anahata, and have been repeating it as i work..."Make lots of crap! Crap is the recipe for success! You cannot make your favourite pieces all the time. Make lots of mediocre artwork while you wait for your breakthrough favorites." Makes me feel better when I know that at that very moment I am soooo making crap!
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