Artist's manifesto

 

As we've been edging toward the completion of Birdsong Studio 3.0 I've been reflecting on my artist's journey; where I've been, where I am, and where I want to be. After a significant year of transition, our annus intermissus, it feels like an appropriate time to assess and focus.

For most of the past decade, I've put a lot of pressure on myself to produce. That constant attention on creation is what made over 2,500 completed works happen. I'm putting a lot less pressure on myself in High River. It is rare - at least in our current set up - that I spend hours at the easel. Instead, I paint in short sessions and allow time for the works to rest. It's like time is a new tool in my kit.

My work has always been iterative. I evolve and learn by painting and painting and painting some more. The more I paint, the more I learn. The more I paint, the more I discover. I think a part of me is waiting for the studio to get completed to get back into that mode. With the temporary studio, I've become quite comfortable taking my sweet time with things. 

On a day when I was feeling a little out of sorts, I sat down with a scrappy old journal that I keep knocking about and started mind-mapping. I felt the need to draw where I thought I might be going with this creative life of mine.

Here are a few headlines that emerged from that exercise.

TRUST AND FOLLOW CREATIVE INSTINCTS AND INSPIRATIONS

PRODUCING MORE IS PART OF MY PROCESS

DIVE INTO THE BIG/HARD ONES

LEARN FROM OTHERS

SHARE/POST INTENTIONALLY AND MINDFULLY

TAKE TIME TO CELEBRATE/ENCOURAGE OTHERS

Within these six ideas lies a way of being and evolving that works for me. Each is important and have all served me through the last decade of painting. Each contain fuel that feeds my artistic fire. Reminding myself of them will light the way into my second decade of painting.