I am writing this entry today instead of yesterday as I was simply too busy to have time then. I had hoped to enter some photos of my recent works, but have spent far too long struggling with a computer glitch that first slowed everything down dramatically and then would not allow me to move photos from my photo file to my blog! Oh how technology can both enhance and frustrate! I am steadily working on my big project, and it is encouraging to see it "grow." Estimating how much I accomplish in a day, I do not know if I will finish on time, or not. Still, I have decided to continue, believing the finished work will be worth the effort, even if it does not make it into the planned exhibit. The hard part for me is that I like to move back and forth between projects. A particular aspect of one piece can stymie me for a while, or if I am (as now) doing repeats of a component that needs to be multiplied many times, it is helpful, and stirs my creative juices more, if I can move to something simpler, in more vibrant colors, or merely entirely different, allowing me to return to the original project with fresh eyes and energy. Working so close to a deadline, this far away in time, I am trying to put all of my creative time into this one project, and that can make it stale. I've divided the project itself into components and that helps. I have worked on deadline many times and appreciate its motivating capacity, but I will just have to take it one day at a time. If the work at hand becomes so monotonous as to make me put off doing it, that will be time to take respite in another work, if only for an afternoon or two, and if I need to do so, it will bring me back with renewed energy.
Here is the second necklace that I had on exhibit at the League of NH Craftsmen's Annual Fair in Sunapee this past August. It is title: Guinnevere. This was the first time I'd used rivolis. There are a myriad of ways to create bezels for them, and I created my own version of several I'd seen in magazines. I alternated the rivolis with my own "imitation" crystal, which was really green beads and pearls in a square so they appeared to be one crystal. Like the Mermaid's Hair necklace, which was inspired by this one, the side pieces are herringbone tubes braided together. Here, I gather them in several places inside peyote tubes, just as one might gather braids of hair in a tubular hair accessory. This is one of several gold necklaces I made in the last year and a half. Each features gold beads and pearls in some combination. This one features gold beads that have an antique feel to them, and that is why I
Today was my youngest son's first day back to school. The weather even cooperated and while warm, has been without the oppressive humidity so much a part of summer. (Alas, the weather reports predict it's return later this week.) I have been feeling that I am regaining control of my own schedule (at least to a degree), and I have been working on that project whose deadline is a good two months earlier than I had originally expected. In order to meet this deadline, I have had to pass up another possibility, which is difficult. Often, there are several opportunities happening at the same time and I must choose between them. I try to select the project that will further my creativity best, or the one I am most inspired to pursue, but sometimes the choice is not really mine to make and I must drive past those roads not taken to get to the destination at hand. If that happens, and I really wanted to create something for a particular exhibit, I may take extensive notes or actually design a piece and put all of the necessary elements in a container together so I can return to it when my schedule permits. It helps to stave off the disappointment of not being able to participate, while also giving me something ready to go so I'm not left pondering when I finish something.
Summer is winding down. Before sunrise this morning I hugged my sisters and niece goodbye. They are the last of our (planned) visitors. My youngest son has already had tryouts for his high school soccer team and my oldest is back in law school. Just a few days ago, I got an email with information regarding the details of the exhibit I am currently working towards. The exhibit is in February and I figured the submission date would be in January. I have been dutifully beading already and even ordered a dressmaker's dummy to display the piece, while working on it and exhibiting it. I was a bit taken aback, though, when I discovered that the submission deadline is Novermber! Yikes! It's a good thing my summer distractions are ebbing so I can buckle down and make progress!
The Sunapee Fair has ended for another year. Last evening, my husband drove up with me and I picked up my works. As promised, here is a photo of one of my pieces. It's a necklace called "Mermaid's Hair." Several years ago I made a necklace and bracelet of shells made from beads. I wanted to revisit that theme and technique, but adding some new elements. I had some sea stars in the first necklace, but I made the ones in this piece in a different manner that gave them more flexibility and I highlighted them at the center and clasp. I added some right angle weave that I fashioned into long strands and then braided together. I let the ends of the braids dangle and curl to resemble strands of hair, with curly wisps escaping along the sides as well. The top section on the opposite side is made of connected beaded disks. It was fun to take an old idea and make it new. At the Fair opening reception, it was exciting to share it for the first time and to see the wonderful work others had created. It was also great to reconnect with artist friends and hear the new avenues they are pursuing. Often there is the shared theme of struggling with a new technique, vision, or project. While we work alone as artists most of the time, it is reasuring to listen and share with fellow colleagues!
I just returned from vacationing with my family, so no blog post last week. I did some bead work, but not my daily routine. I also listened to and read very little news. Instead, I spent my time outdoors (swimming, paddle boarding, jogging, walking, bicycling, and playing paddle ball). I sat on the beach and read and people watched. Inside, we read, played board and card games, and talked. It was relaxing and rejuvenating. Stepping outside established routine can be a valuable change of pace. For me, the first priority of such time is reconnecting with my family, in a place free from distractions. It is also freeing to let go of daily schedules and see which ones I miss and which seem less necessary upon returning home. Since this is an annual tradition, I can see the changes in my three sons and in myself and my husband. As our children mature, we are on more equal footing and even have more time for each other instead of just playing our dual parenting roles. The time out of ordinary life gives me fresh eyes to see where and who I am and want to be and to try to align myself on the path to where I want to be going. It will be fun to see how that new energy infuses my work!
Hooray! Today I did the finishing details on a necklace that will be in Craftwear at the August League of NH Craftsmen's Fair in Sunapee, NH. I have been working on it for several months and after the delays and distractions of the first half of summer, it is especially sweet to have it finished. All that is left is photographing and delivering it. I am always anxious whenever I drop off a new work. Having put so much of myself into it, I hope others will appreciate it and see some of what I see in it. It is the big "unveiling." Usually, most feedback is positive and constructive. I have learned that I am (and should be) my harshest critic. If I am satisfied with the results, the piece is successful. In addition to any trepidation of sharing my work with others, there is also the sense of parting that comes with finishing a work and releasing it to the world. More than once, I have worked right up to my deadline and then sold the piece in the exhibit, never to see it again. That is a permanent separation. Even if the work does not sell immediately, once it is completed, I am no longer actively engaged with it. While finishing a work is a terrific feeling, there is the loss of that daily challenge, and the anticipation of how it will evolve. I think that is what drives me to be an artist, the thrill of discovery as an individual work takes shape in my hands. That may also be why I usually have several projects in various stages, so I can move from a completed project to another piece in process. Sometimes it feels a bit disjointed, but it staves off artist block and keeps me moving forward! To see my latest works, "Mermaid's Hair" and "Guinevere," check out the Fair August 4-12. I'll post photos when the Fair ends!
Hello! I was out of town last week, across the country at a family reunion. It was busy but fun catching up with family members, many we had not seen since the last reunion at our home two years ago! The weekend before we left our home was filled with visitors and with all the activity, I did precious little beading. (I did pack some portable projects for the plane, but as we left at 4:00 am and returned on a redeye, I mostly slept enroute!) So, I was anxious to get back to my work! Last night I sat down after dinner with my current piece, which uses a couple of dozen different shades of blue and turquoise. Dinner was finished, the dishes were washed, and I was planning to watch a movie with my family while doing some beading. Not two minutes later one of our puppies appeared in my lap, scattering beads everywhere! It was so frustrating! I spent the rest of the night collecting and sorting, instead of beading, and I am almost back to where I started.
I've been chronicling the interruptions summer has been wreaking on my work schedule, and the past two weeks is a good example. Whether it's trying to catch some sleep on a plane or being the object of affection for a puppy who'd been missing his family, summer can make it challenging to continue the pace of work I'd like. On the other hand, spending time with family members I rarely see, exploring a different part of the country, and appreciating the demands of a puppy are a vital part of my life, too. Rather than bemoan the lost time, I choose to enjoy the variety of my life. My father died of a sudden heart attack at the age of 49. I was just 25 at the time, and that has served as a reminder all of my adult life and tomorrows are not guaranteed, so I need to re to stop and smell the roses
Sometimes it is easy to feel like an artist. Other times, it is easy to feel inadequate. Last week I wrote about deadlines and my changing schedule due to the arrival of summer. The seasonal change affects me beyond simply when I have time to bead. My usual artist connections disappear over the summer for the most part and I can find myself immersed in the day-to-day routine of laundry, meals, and driving. My "self" that is an artist is as starved for support at times as my garden was starved for water in last week's heat wave. At such times I can allow myself to fall into self doubt and question my abilities. Those are the times when I most need the support and encouragement of my small couterie of fellow artists, most of whom are women, too. Those peer networks are vitally important in keeping me engaged in myself as artist. Since it is not possible to maintain my usual arrangements (or I'd keep doing it), I look for substitutes. One way to feed my support is seeking out podcasts to listen to while I'm beading, or even while I'm simply putting away groceries. Every summer my family spends a week at Cape Cod, and I have found a wonderful podcast from the Cape's public radio station that I listen to in chunks. It is broadcast as a weekly 5 minute (or so) segment, but I will skip it most of the year and then listen to a handful all in one sitting. Robert Finch, the naturalist who reads his own short essays, has a tone and style that lift the spirit of the artist in me. His words transport me to the ponds and shorelines of the Cape of my memory, loaded with family connections and treasured moments, simultaneously awakening the sense of creativity within, grounding me. Just as I switch from winter shoes to sandals, I substitute one method of support with another as my routine changes. Because my support network is as necessary as footwear!
As I write today the shades are drawn, the air conditioning is on and summer is here in earnest. Today (7:09 PM EST) is the first day of summer. It is my son's first full week without school. Schedules are shifting and obligations are changing. Contrary to my "work every day" goal, I have missed a few days in this transition period. I need to stay on task and carve out new routines for myself. One motivating factor is deadlines. I am entered in a couple of exhibits in the next few months and I have mentally committed to bigger projects that will be due in year's end, so I know that I need to keep working steadily. Deadlines can feel onerous and arbitrary, but I try to view them as tools to help keep me on target. Life has a way of insinuating itself between me and certain objectives. As a mom who has stayed home with my children, I put a high value on those earnest life moments, but as an individual and an artist, I realize that achieving my goals requires commitment and completing projects. In also requires participating in exhibits and keeping my work in the public eye. That means meeting deadlines. So rather than view them as coldhearted taskmasters, I see deadlines as my morning alarm clock, a tool that helps keep me on track for what I hope to be doing every day!