Art Journaling: Just show up.

Hope begins in the dark,

the stubborn hope that if you just show up

and try to do the right thing, the dawn will come.

You wait and watch and work:

you  don't give up.

Anne Lamott

It never fails.

So much of art applies to life.

When I was a Young Life leader (from about 18 to 32)

Young Life club night would come and I'd be dead and not wanting to go

and listing the reasons in my head why I couldn't go

and then I would just will myself to show up

and I would be blessed beyond anything I can put into words.

And not a {smile}  "Oh, I'm so blessed!"

because I have food and clothes and health...

and I don't have any catastrophes or fatal illness

but a real: God giving me eyes to see this hurting girl {his daughter}right in front of me

and she allows me the privilege of opening up her life to me. and everything really isn't okay.

and get to be a part of what God is doing to bring his precious daughter back to himself.

I get to see the God of the Universe at work.

blessed.

And I almost missed it because

I almost didn't show up.

I don't want to do art.

just show up.

I don't want to be nice to this person.

just show up.

I don't want to meet my neighbors.

just show up.

I don't want to exercise.

just show up.

I don't want to read my Bible.

just show up.

I don't want to be brave today.

just show up.

I don't want to meet new people.

just show up.

I don't want to _______.

just show up.

But that is the whole essence of life right?

I think showing up is 90% of life.

I don't want to show up.

I wanna sit on my couch and watch the bachlorette and be comfortable.

And then I miss the life (that is real life)that God has for me.

So, my art making has been on a long hiatus (about a year)

since I had Joshy last June.

And now I want to show up and make art.

Because when I do, I am blessed.

 

So that is my art plan: just show up.

and wait. in eager expectation.

Making and Making and Getting stuck

Sometimes creating is pure bliss.
You know, when you're in the zone?
And nothing could be better.
Creating is
the perfect escape.

Like when I finished this piece
for our Friday play friends Julie + Gigi.
It only took me 2 years to finish,
but I finally finished.
So satisfying.

And this commission was fun and simple...

And this piece is for a friend who adpoted a little girl from Kahzakstan.
So fun to create for her. I still need to add a little poem.

and then you just
get stuck.
completely stuck.
totally stuck.

everything
seems wrong
looks wrong
feels wrong

I've gotten a few requests
to create a collage with Joshua 24:15
"As for me and my house,we will serve the Lord."
And I thought of all my little houses.
I liked how it was going in the beginning
and then everything just stopped.

I changed the roof from blue to green to yellow
And now the roof looks too big to me.
I think this painting and I
just need some space.

I wasn't in love with the changes I made to this sailboat,

The contrast and colors in the flowers seemed a little too harsh to me.
so I muted the red by adding some white, brown, and yellow,
which made it more pink.
And I think I like it better.
Today.



When I get stuck on a painting
it's always a battle for me
whether to push through the pain,
or get some space and come back later.

I have to admit that most of the time
I leave it.
I have a lot of
unfinished pieces.

But sometimes, when I do force myself to push through
I see a light at the end and
painting emerges
and transitions
into something beautiful.

What a great metaphor for life...

What do you do when you get stuck?

mixed media collage... unfinished.

The good news: I'm a great starter. a dreamer. a visionary, if you will.
The bad news: Not so great on the follow through. If you know me, this is putting it mildly.

I have 17 started, unfinished projects. 17. My studio is filled with them. Does anyone else have this problem?

Can I blame it on genetics, or just total lack of discipline?

Here's what I'm working on...


This commissioned piece with her sister's original poetry as the text. So sweet. and...
FINISHED. yay me.


Part ofthe series I startedwith the commission. almost done.


another one of the same series. getting there...


same series. a long way to go.


These butterfly collages are for a birthday in February. 2009. yikes.



Artfest epiphany #46: Sometimes your art goes through an ugly awkward puberty stage. work through it.