It's been awhile
It’s been awhile since I’ve sat down to share the inner workings of my art practice. I’m sure I’m not alone in this feeling, but sharing anything right now feels hard. I feel incredibly powerless and fatigued from watching injustice and pain from the small screen on my phone. And all the while, I have my own pain taking place in my home. It’s exhausting. I know I’m not alone.
You could say I’m in a bit of a creative rut– not sure what to make, not sure why to make, boxed into thinking about what will sell, wanting to make for me, needing to make a living. I’ve always heard and always said, in order to get out of a rut you must move through it.
I was recently asked to reflect on ‘Creative Living’ for Everpress. I wrote about my neurodivergence, routine, and compassion. They asked me,
“On days when you hit a creative block, what do you do to get past it?”
The first thing I do is offer myself compassion and remind myself that everything is temporary. It will pass eventually. Creative blocks can last a moment, a day, or even months. And that’s okay. When I’m in a creative block, I love to pick up a new medium, or an old one I haven’t tried in a while. I’ll get out my old watercolours, cut up some paper and make collages, get out the crayons, or mess around with clay. Doing this gets me out of my head, out of my projects, and into my body. It helps forge new pathways that ultimately lead me out of my block.
Sounds like I need to take a dose of my own advice. Compassion has never lead me astray. When times are overwhelming, bleak, exhausting, I also lean on gratitude as a tool to soften the edges. Here are some things I’ve been grateful for lately:
The NTS Breakfast Show with Flo, specifically 10/18’s episode – thanks Cheryl & Joe for turning me onto it!
Chili – I love curling myself around a piping hot bowl of chili when the world is cold. I love chili so much so, that I make art about it every year. I also make an accompanying playlist, and share my (semi-famous) Vegetarian Skyline Chili recipe. This year I shared it with my incredibly supportive Catdroool Club Subscribers. If you subscribe, thank you, you contribute to my ability to make art my job.
For the Love of Doing – I was asked to join a group art show celebrating art for art’s sake. The show featured works of local artists who made things from a place of enjoyment, not for a purpose of selling. It was incredibly healing, and I’m so grateful to Laura and Alex for including me, and putting it together. I can’t wait for another one.
Other things I’m grateful for right now:
Halloween - what a goofy holiday
daylight savings – while I think it should be eliminated altogether, that extra hour of sleep is feeling GOOD
the colors of the leaves
earl grey tea with oat milk and Big Sis Bevs Honey
Gratitude won’t heal the world, but it can soften the edges so that we can find the energy to fight for the things we care about. I hope you can find gratitude in your pocket of the world.
As I write this, I can’t shake this song from my head. You’re welcome, and I’m sorry.