a year in the life of...

I don’t know about you, but sometimes I get so caught up in the day-to-day of life that I forget to appreciate the “big picture.” A few days ago, I did one of those “year in review” things on Facebook. I sat there waiting while it churned, thinking “yup, ok. another year, not much happened.” Then, when it finished, I looked and my soul smiled as I realized how much I’ve accomplished this year.

One of the things I really started to work on a few years ago was art. I started to really dig deep and create. This year, in the art area:

- I sold some art.

- I created 2 very large abstract canvases. This is one. It's called "Spring."

- I filled 1 ½ art journals (45 pages double sided in each one)

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- I learned to make art journals from blank watercolor paper and canvas cut from a roll, including stitching the binding and creating a beautiful cover.

- I was brave enough to give away one of the art journals I made to someone very special to me.

- I contributed one of my quilts to an auction that raised money to buy a safe house in the Philippines to help victims of human trafficking.

- I volunteered for a day with Habitat for Humanity and helped build a “Minion” themed playhouse.

- I blended a bottle of Merlot in a wine cave!

- My son turned 20. TWENTY! can you even believe that? I can’t. wow. yes, I know, not really my accomplishment, but still. wow.

- I talked about my career with 15 beautiful teenage ladies in The Gambia, Africa. It was a life changing hour and a half. Really. wow.

- I started doing DDP Yoga. I’m still doing it, after 180 days, and I’m down 33 inches and 28 pounds so far. This is a lifestyle I can do forever.

Not bad for a year where nothing happened, right? Even as I close this post, there’s so much more I could add, but I think it’s all good for now. 2013 has been unpredictable and a bit of a roller coaster ride, but it’s been a very good year! I am grateful.

art checkpoint

Recently, I’ve made a decision to pursue my art more regularly and get back to creating the way I was at the start of the year. Somehow, this year has morphed into less art and more of other things. I’ve been reviewing the year, as I do around now, and trying to see what worked and what didn’t. Clearly, being away from my art did not work. What started out as a year filled with painty hands and exciting ideas has ended up with less accomplished than in previous years. With that in mind, I decided to rekindle by looking at what inspires me. I found my artist statement:

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I create art to share the feelings in my soul and express my heart. I create many different kinds of art, including mixed media canvases, pen and watercolor doodles, acrylic paintings, quilts, and photographic works. I am constantly looking for new ways to express myself, and constantly challenging myself to try new materials and tools. I am inspired by color, in nature, in the world around me, and even in the art aisle. Sometimes I will see a color and know that I need it, just because it makes my heart sing. There’s a hum that goes through me when I find the right color or paint, which is a joyous feeling. I am often influenced by situations around me, quotes that I’ve seen, or comments made by people. I am additionally inspired and influenced by the works of other artists, including Georgia O’Keefe and Melody Ross.

I am often daunted by a blank canvas, so a typical part of my process is to just paint something on the canvas, be it a color or a scene, which is often expendable and covered over with other materials and paints, which may or may not be related to the base in color or topic. I love to repurpose vintage and old materials, using them in unexpected ways that may be different from their original intent.

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Having an artist statement is a big for me and being true to my artist statement is something I’m going to strive toward and support as this year closes and 2014 opens.

With all of this in mind, I am going to move forward, create, share, and nourish my artist self!