PoppyRow

May 25, 2007

This ride may make you dizzy..

Filed under: inspiration, getting started — jen @ 4:58 pm

I have to work overnight at the hospital this weekend, and that’s a bit depressing to me. I need my sleep, for one. And two, it usually wipes me out and I end up being mud for a few days afterwards. It surprises me that I can work the shift pretty well, actually, and it surprises me more than I get through a two-day weekend or sometimes even a three-day stint and I’m still alive. But with a six year-old it’s not easy to get good sleep during the day to recover enough for the next shift. (more…)

April 26, 2007

Child’s Play

Filed under: inspiration, growth, self-examination — jen @ 3:44 pm

I had the good fortune to be able to see a new exhibit when I taught at the Chaffee Art Center over the weekend. It wasn’t quite your typical show- it was a kid’s exhibit featuring art from preschoolers to seniors in high school from the Rutland, VT region. It was an excellent show, and on day two of my seminar, I decided to take my students on a tour of the galleries so we could talk art. After all, art is not created in a vacuum, the inspiration is interactive, the process is interactive, and the results are definitely interactive.

Art created by children is so wonderful. Not simply because (more…)

April 24, 2007

Weekend Retreat (well, sort of…)

Filed under: inspiration, contemplations, education — jen @ 8:53 pm

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I spent the weekend in Rutland, VT at the Chaffee Art Center teaching a two-day watercolor seminar. I love the Chaffee, and I love teaching there. They always treat me like an honored guest, which I’m never opposed to! The class consisted of four ladies, one of them being my mom, and we just really enjoyed having two full eight-hour days, back-to-back to hang out and make art. I was able to begin a new painting that is actually a flower, but just the greenery. I am very excited to see the end result! (more…)

April 19, 2007

Spring has Sprung..

Filed under: inspiration, contemplations — jen @ 9:31 pm

Finally. Spring. It’s here.

This past Sunday winter lagged on, dragging its slushy heels, making me cringe as the white stuff fell. I went out to my car after work, scraping off the snow with my ID badge, having thrown the ice scraper into the recesses of the garage to wait out the summer season. I saw the weather forecast, but did I think to put snowbrush/scraper back into the trunk? Of course not. I’m not ready for winter; I’m waiting for spring! And today, just a few days later, it’s pushing 65 degrees without a snow bank in sight. What is up with that?  

But it’s exhilarating and causes me to pull myself out the winter-induced lethargy (more…)

March 4, 2007

Honestly!

Filed under: inspiration, growth — jen @ 3:46 pm

Critiques can be a valuable tool in your maturation process as an artist. That doesn’t make it easy, though. Someone picking apart your efforts feels like someone picking on your child. It just seems unfair! (more…)

February 24, 2007

Putting Your Work Within a Context

Filed under: inspiration, getting started — jen @ 8:45 am

So, today I am returning home after a glorious week in the tropical paradise that is Jamaica. I honestly think I could live here! We are staying at Tensing Pen, which we would happily recommend to anyone. The ocean is amazing, the employees are friendly, the cottages are comfortable, and a little grey cat named Princess has adopted us. I have tried to tell her we are leaving today, but she just looks up at us with her sweet pointy face and says “Meow?”

But all good things must come to an end. I leave invigorated, and inspired. I have taken countless photos, wondering how I plan to tackle them. I have a piece at home, unfinished, awaiting my attention. I’d like to finish that, but when I am stuck, I am thinking of doing a series, dedicated to this fabulous place. I like working in series, because it puts you in a particular mode of thinking, which can carry over from piece to piece. And then I like to see the work as a conversation, and a sentence can carry more impact than a single word, a paragraph more than a sentence, and a great work of literature more than just one of its chapters. Why is that? Perhaps it has to do with the idea of context. Sometimes, when looking at a single piece of art, without a title, or a blurb of explanation, it doesn’t feel quite whole. It seems to the viewer that some sort of context is needed to better appreciate what is being viewed.

I am not completely ignorant, I do realize that there are times when it is the artist’s intention for us to make our own inferences and come to our own conclusions. But placing a work within a context can do so much more than just making something pretty to look at. It says something. (more…)

February 23, 2007

Studio Space

Filed under: inspiration — jen @ 6:03 pm

   So yesterday, the idea of inspiration was tossed around. I’d love to
hear more ideas- what’s your muse? But I want to talk about some of
these things I find most important. I do think studio space is a key
element for most people. I don’t want to say all- because I do know
of one or two rare folk who can set up at the kitchen table for a
few hours, and when dinner is ready, break it down and tuck it all
neatly away. But honestly, for the rest of us poor saps, the idea
of setting up to work can be as daunting to our creative process as
starting a new piece.
   I have found that many of my students who have issues finding time
and motivation to work simply lack the physical space necessary to
devote to the pursuit of their passion. But even a card table that
says “mine” can go a long way toward encouraging work. You’ll pass by,
glance at the piece in progress, and feel more inclined to think about
the next stage, or how to fix a troublesome area throughout the day.
You’ll realize that more time is available to you, even if in smaller
chunks, simply because everything is ready to go.
   In my studio, (more…)

February 22, 2007

Inspiration

Filed under: inspiration — jen @ 9:50 am

art-inspiration-supplies.jpg     One of the most common questions I get when I am either doing a free demo or teaching a class is “How do you stay inspired?”. This is a tough question, because first of all, different things inspire me at different times. It’s also hard because people are so unique, and each one of us is moved in an infinite manner of ways. But, when asked, I do my best to answer. (more…)