It is officially the last day of Art Every Day Month. Am I the only one that feels like this month just flew by? Seriously. I'm shocked that tomorrow is already December!!!!
But first, I would like to give a huge standing ovation to Leah for all the hard work she did in hosting this awesome blog challenge. The poor soul had lots happening this month, but she still found the time and energy to commit to an art every day practice ANNNND keep the posts going on her blog to support all of us participants. Thank you Leah---you rock big time!
But now that it's only hours from being over, what did I get from it? What will I be taking away?
Well, for one thing, even though I didn't make a whole lot of art---art is a constant in my life EVERY single day. Being an art teacher, writing this blog, and just the way I approach life--I feel is a big part of my art practice.
During this Art Every Day Month period I came to a realization that art doesn't have to always be on a canvas, or sit in a gallery, or have a price tag attached to it. Art can have many intentions and purposes in this world...and don't let anyone tell you different.
Ok, to be really honest, this is sometimes a hard pill for me to swallow. Sure, I can blurt it out and say this stuff to YOU Lovelies....but fully believing it...sometimes I struggle with that.
Why?
I could blame it on my art training. I could tell you all that money I borrowed in school loans went to building this insecurity, into creating a sort of elitism in my mind, into thinking only one way is the right way. Sure, I could use those excuses. I paid for them, didn't I?
But if I REALLY buy into that, all I do is keep myself from creating what my heart wishes to express. I keep myself from feeling that freedom and release that comes with picking up a paint brush. I keep myself from being true and honest and in the moment. I keep myself from the biggest part of me. I keep from simply being Creative Juicy.
So, do you really want to know what I learned from this challenge?
I learned that my art--how I define what art is to ME--has changed over the last year, evolved, turned into something I never expected. Such as:
I love my art journal. Like really love it...hence Art Journal LOVE!
I love my students and teaching and making fun artsy, imaginative, crafty stuff with them!
I love blogging and think of it as a major part of my art practice.
I love playing with video and incorporating it into my art journal experience.
I love that my art is a practice and not a profession or even a vocation!
I love appreciating art--and encouraging others to create and define what art is to them.
I love that my life--my CREATIVE JUICY LIFE is art as well.
I love that what I make is fully for me and I can share it if I want, but I don't have to.
What does Art look like for you? How do you define it for yourself? For your Creative Juicy Life? Please share....I would love to know!
Peace & Love.
8 comments:
this month has been a total burst of inspiration for me and YES, it FLEW by!
i, too, see the creative in almost everything. i feel like art for me can be as simple as being in the present moment with my baby boy, or as messy as working for hours on a huge painting.
what i love about the art every day challenge for one month was it really moved my creative focus to the forefront. rather than it being something i saved for the weekends or late nights...it ended up being the first thing i did in the mornings. and almost before i made my cup of coffee! i know this will continue 'cause it's now in my blood.
it's really helped me shift my priorities. rather than burn my best energy for housecleaning...i create. i make art. i explore. i journal. i blog. i get messy.
...and I'm the happiest I have ever felt.
Shannon,
That is AWESOME!
Peace & Love.
what does art look like for me??
fabric of all colours, scissors, sewing machine, needles and thread...but also my beloved camera..
this month has been a great learning experience, not the way I thought it would be. I had in mind to be very productive, every single day, no, instead, it was to realize that maybe I had to listen to my heart, my intuition and do art when I felt the need. Forcing myself to sit there every single day doesn't work for me. Nothing like telling me what I am supposed to be doing for me not wanting to do it! So I realize and appreciate and honour that my art comes in waves, and might not be a daily thing.
pheeewww..that was a long response!
xox
My relationship to my art has changed dramatically over the years. It used to be a compulsion to be in the studio, then it morphed into how much product I created, then how much time I spend in the process. At this point it has seeped into my pores, I feel like I have embodied artist, so nothing I do is truly separate from it.
I've heard so many stories about not really becoming a true artist until your forties. Ridiculous. Then I got into my forties and realized what they were talking about. There is certainly a new ease to the relationship, less angst and struggle.
I too had an academic background to overcome in appreciating the diversity and inclusiveness of Art. Fortunately for me, I guess, I was in the ceramics department where our creative activities were often looked down on. With this chip on my shoulder I was encouraged to think a lot about the nature of Art and why the things that I and my colleagues were doing had as much legitimacy as things going on in other departments. It occurred to me that it isn't simply a matter of the materials used. Doing something with pigments doesn't make it Art (Art isn't, by definition, a material), so why are only some things but not others Art? Do gallery owners and patrons of the Arts get to decide what qualifies? Is it only what gets taught in Art schools?
What I arrived at is the conclusion that Art is a capacity of human nature, and it is exercised or suppressed in how we live our lives. I like to think of it as a relationship to the world we live in rather than a specific type of activity. It seems to be more of an attitude about ourselves and how we approach the world than a particular kind of object. And so, acting creatively and artfully can manifest itself in transcendent and also rather mundane ways. Even cleaning one's house and enjoying a morning cup of coffee can be an expression of Art. Everyday we are given the opportunity to decide how our lives will turn out. I contrast this capacity for artfulness with activity in which Art is absent. Doing things merely through force of habit, addictions, and letting others decide what we think and do lacks creative impetus. Repainting the Mona Lisa with "paint by numbers" may require consummate craftsmanship, but I would hesitate to call the activity Art. Rather, Art seems to have the character of independence, exploration, and of deciding for one's self or together in collaboration with others. Nurturing this creative capacity is a vital mission, and I applaud you for your efforts in teaching children and in sharing your thoughts in this blog.
thank you darlin, for your sweet words!
This month absolutely flew by for me as well. And I have to say that although I sometimes still have those annoying inner-critic-art-school-type-voices about what art is and isn't sometimes, mostly I can wave them away and *know* deep down in my bones that art and creativity is every where we look, that we are all creative every day without hardly even trying, it's just our nature to be that way and oh my, i feel a bit emotional about it! But that's part of the reason, I do what I do, to know this for myself and help others know it for themselves too.
Big love to you.
Beautiful expression of what art means to you Ms. Connie Chica! I love it. It is all about what feels good -- giving shape and form and textures and colors and movement to all the wondrous enegies and feelings that reside inside our magnificent beings -- and having FUN with it all.
Thanks for stopping by my photography blog. I've no idea what I would do without art in my life. And I agree that blogging is a part of the creative process.
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