Starting a Series

Maudeline

5x7 daily collage

Maudeline Patterson was my home economics teacher in middle school and high school. She recognized my creative abilities early on and helped me learn whatever I needed, especially in sewing class. Miss Patterson was no fashion plate but she was interested in helping her students realize their fashion dreams. The only comment I remember disagreeing with her about was... "Martha, chartruese green and navy simply don't go together".

SERIES

With my daily collages I'm turning toward home and homemaking as a series theme, at least for awhile. Although many artists have used the house shape in their art I will try not to look at too many pieces by others and simply see what I can do with a square or rectangle and a triangle. Maybe I can burn through my scrap paper backlog.

I've come to believe that working in series is the way to go. It narrows my focus and keeps me from jumping around so much. I have several series going and I jump around from one to another... home, trees, the garden, spiritual relationships and family are currents interests. 

FOCUS

It's hard for me to focus on just one theme.  One day I feel like doing something about "home" and the very next day I'm ready to draw some trees.  I know, they are all interrelated. And the truth of it is that I'm free to play around with any topic/theme that strikes my fancy, but more gets done when I focus on one or two topics at a time.

My friend Jane Dunnewold addresses the topic of focus in her December 1, 2010 blog post at Existential Neighborhood.  I'm so glad I read it.

Jane reminds me that I don't have to make a decision to do anything forever. I can build paper houses for a month. The next month I can play with circles. I know that my attention wanes at around 6 months. If I take that in consideration when I set my goals I can motivate myself to keep on keeping on with promises such as "if you work on building houses for the next 4 months then you get to paint flowers."  With a single focus I can dig deeper.

LIGHT

LK Ludwig is posting weekly holiday prompts on her blog The Poetic Eye this month with the theme of LIGHT. I urge you to read her post.

Light of the World will be my own theme. I'm already behind because my work day is almost over and I haven't started... but my plan is to make a journal that's devoted to the topic and finish a photo journal page most days during December, using my own photographs, of course.  That's do-able. And focusing on just this one thing leaves me room to enjoy this month of light, including a few minutes for my little daily collage.

Sharpening the focus

Mixed Bouquet in Blue Vase
4 1/2" x 6 1/2" (11.5cm x 16.6cm)
acrylic on board
$30 plus $4.95 shipping and handling in the US
E-mail me for International shipping rates or other inquiries.

I'm going through a period of self-questioning, trying to figure out how to bring a sharper focus to my art-making, though I admit that this is an on-going process for me. I like it all. When I worked in fiberart I wanted to do it all... embroidery, applique, quilting, surface design, dyeing, sewing, and all the little sub-groups of each of those topics. I could never settle on one thing and now that I'm making 2-dimensional art it's still the same.

At my Open Studio last fall there was a recurring comment from visitors who noted that I worked both realistically and abstractly, painted still life and landscape, used oil, acrylic, watercolor, pastels, collage, in all sizes and color palettes. I do have a recognizeable style but produce the unexpected rather than a series of similar work. I'm interested in everything and that's the problem... I need to focus my attention and dig deeper.

Each of us has a measured lifespan and right now I'm so aware that my productive years may be drawing to a close. I've lived 7 decades and while I'm not planning to jump off a cliff anytime soon I feel my body slowing down and my production waning.

I want my life to count, not just today but for eternity. I want what I do to matter, to my family, to my friends, and to God. I think that I've been given opportunity after opportunity to learn skills, to develop an artistic eye, to develop wisdom, to grow spiritually, to be prepared to do work that matters, to finally focus instead of hunting art with a scattergun.

The plan is to concentrate on my Sermon Notes. I've done 46 Notes and I'm aiming for 60, at least. I want to publish them as a book, so I need an agent and a publisher since I don't want to tackle the non-art part of self-publishing and marketing when my talents lie in the studio. Getting all this accomplished takes time and concentration, so for the next few months I will put away the oils and most of the acrylic and watercolor paints, the easel and the fabric and thread, and work on the Notes. Years ago my friend Linda showed me how to set up stations in my studio, so I plan to clear surfaces and set up some more clearly defined stations, one for working on Notes, a place where everything I need is at arm's reach and when I have even a few minutes all I have to do to get something more done is to sit down and do it. There's my reading corner with my Bible and magazines and Morning Pages journal and new books. There's the big work table in the middle of the room where I can spread out when I need more space. And there'll be empty space with a bouquet of flowers off to the side. Lovely.

I'll continue to travel with my little sketchbook and paintbox and draw my world, and I'll continue working in my art and writing journals... all that is related and keeps my skills exercised. My friend Sandy talked recently about making her studio into a sanctuary, a place that called forth her creative spirit when she entered the room. I'd like to do that; aim for minimalism, spareness, and beauty.

We were in Sunriver last weekend and I thought that when I got home I could jump right into my new plan but of course that didn't work because my studio is a mess and it will take time to get myself ready to work. And then there's the rest of my life. I'd love to say that I work at art full time but I don't and never will. I'm first of all a wife, a mother, a grandmother, a friend. All of that takes time and energy. I figure that by the middle of September I'll have the studio rearranged and my new schedule set. And I'll be tweaking it a bit as I go. After all, focusing is a new thing for me.