This has been the week of tropical storm Nicole. Our part of the state received nothing more than a few rainy windy days. But it was enough for many activities to be cancelled. For me, hunkering down = studio time.

I have one portion of my brain focused on the Fall Festival of the Arts in downtown DeLand, one week from today. Time for showing.

But, this weekend I am finishing up some last-minute smaller projects. Time for creating.

Here’s what I’ve been looking at today:

The results of lots of color-mixing. I may only mix a few spoonfuls of color at a time, but there’s usually paint leftover. I put plastic wrap over the palette (a Styrofoam plate) hoping to save it for the next day when I might need just a pinch more of that color. (I know this tabletop will not win me any good housekeeping awards! In the middle of projects, this is just how it looks.)

Silkscreens washed out and drying. I had some productive fast-n-furious screen printing sessions this afternoon.

A few collages-in-progress on my worktable. These are monotype printed thin papers collaged to watercolor paper, with screen printing as part of the composition.

Now, sitting here at my computer to write is a welcomed change of pace in the day. I can begin to shift to the longer-term project: showing the artwork.

I only do a few in-person events each year. They provide a chance to meet lots of folks in person, show my work, and talk about it.

As I do the work of gathering and packing my display parts this week, I hope to provide my brain some space to remember the purpose of all this artmaking.

Why do I spend time in the studio?
What are the things that interest me?
What do I hope a viewer will see?
What questions will be raised?
How do the ideas that interest me mesh with my ways of creating?

My experience from talking with festival-goers is that people are really interested in what the art means. They enjoy hearing the stories behind the work and inserting their own stories and experiences in them too.

Within the family of artists, when we get together we frequently focus on the “how-to” part of artmaking. What brand paint? How do you achieve that effect?  And that’s all OK.

Talking to people who are not artists, however, is the chance to remember and explain the “why” part of artmaking.

In addition to the smaller works I’ve been finishing this week, I’ll have some larger quilts and textile collages to show.

You are invited! If you are near central Florida, I hope you will visit downtown DeLand Saturday and Sunday November 19-20 to experience our fabulous art festival. I’m in booth 133. Come by and say hi.

For those further away, I appreciate your notes and well-wishes.

Cheers.

For all the artmakers: Happy creating
For all the art lovers: Happy appreciating

Thank you for reading. I always enjoy questions and comments.
--Bobbi

bobbi@bobbibaughstudio.com

How I keep in touch:

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