See what you Get. And Then. . .
I have now created and collected quite a stack of writing journals.
Meeting with a weekly writing group for several years, I have lots of words on pages. All are ten-minute reactions to prompts, written completely without planning, word after word till the bell rings. Then we share.
As you might guess, this kind of working together is forging very good friendships. The priceless by-product.
As for the words themselves, I am now at a stage in which I am opening the books and reading through them again to rediscover what I wrote.
Some of it surprises me; I have no memory of writing those things.
Some of it offers a little emotional gut-punch; I remember the writing and the events that inspired it.
I am discovering a few gems. A very small percentage. It seems to take a lot of writing like this to get to ideas and phrases that are worth noting. My hope is to sift and refine what I discover to be the groundwork for poetry, or some other kind of writing.
This same process occurs in my artmaking. I have now created and collected quite a stack of cast-aside printed papers and collages.
I spent time going through some this week as part of a much-needed studio cleaning spree.
As with my writing, I discovered quite a range of creating. Some of it makes me ask, ”What in the world was I thinking!” Some of it makes me say, “Hmmm, this has possibilities.” Some of it makes me think I could cut the works up and recycle the parts into something new. Some I will just flip over to use the back.
None of this would be possible without the first step: create something.
Allow me to encourage you: get a pen and a book. Or get some paint, some fabric, some medium and mark-making tools and create an image. You will like some of it. You will not like a lot of it.
This is, I believe, the only way to develop work that eventually pleases you.
And, just as working in a group yields friendships and bonds of encouragement, working alone in your studio builds confidence and connections to your inner creative impulses. Also priceless!
For all the artmakers: Happy creating
For all the art lovers: Happy appreciating
Thank you for reading. I always enjoy questions and comments.
--Bobbi
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