Thinking about home. Thinking about art. Realizing that for so many of us, home is where the art is. Yesterday I wrote about chasing the cobwebs out of my mind by getting the space around me in order. I spent lots of time ordering the studio and I posted pix of that yesterday. Whollyjeanne made an interesting observation about that post – she says she has a notion that physical space is often a reflection of inner space. I’ve never thought in those terms exactly, but it makes sense of course – because if we are lucky, we arrange our physical space to be that in which we are comfortable observing and existing. It goes even farther than that however, because I think our physical space can be a reflection of what we would like our inner space to be – or perhaps how we would like our outer life to reflect our inner space.
Our house has always been full of art – my dad’s art (he’s actually a famous artist), my mom’s art (quilting), and then whatever we could afford. Which wasn’t a whole heck of a lot. But honestly, our walls have no blank space – art is everywhere. Yet there was none of my art because I wasn’t making any. I was generating an income however I could for years, then teaching seventh-grade, and when I was 60, I retired. (Thank goodness my husband is still working because becoming an artist is expensive.).
That’s when my inner space synced with my physical space. The art was always in me I guess. Photography always, for sure. But all of a sudden my inner space started erupting with creativity and I started creating collages from my photos. The whole art thing is so exciting that I ran off in all directions at once, but recently realized I have to pull in and create using my photos, which is where I am strongest and where my “artistic” roots are.
So, yes, home is where the art is. Here are two of the latest things I’ve done. When I was snowed in at the cabin I finished these, but with the sadness of the last week I haven’t had time to post them yet. At least I’m pretty sure I haven’t since I came home to all that turmoil during which photoshop decided to quit, etc. In fact, these are not the best scans of these canvases because I have been having scanner problems, photoshop problems, computer problems, phone problems (not that that has anything to do with art), missing tripod-part problems – in other words, it’s been a messy week.
I posted a small study I did in my art journal but I knew it wouldn’t be the final form, and indeed it wasn’t – this is. Most people don’t like this. I do. I forgot to put a second coat on the background (acrylic) so I rubbed pastel all over it and then put omni-gel over it all. I took the photo of the cans in a little country store, the Twin Oaks General Store, in Twin Oaks – a very small community on Caliente Creek Road in Kern County. Had never seen Popeye spinach and it just captured my fancy. The orange circle, the bowl of peas, and Plenti Grand are from vintage fruit and vegetable crate labels.
The background photo for this collage is a stop along Interstate I70 - and the giraffe I actually took eons ago at the Santa Barbara Zoo. I found this photo during the infernal and still unfinished photo-organizing project. So I thought I’d move the giraffe to an unfamiliar location – his inner space and physical space are no doubt suffering a disconnect. Perhaps he’s longing for the familiar. Then I added some art paper embellishments but I don’t like the way the pink meets, or maybe I do, so I’ll either fix it or I won’t. How’s that for decisiveness?
So that’s it for Home is Where the Art Is – and I made a completely ungrammatical decision to capitalize the last I! This construct of Creative Every Day and monthly themes is proving most productive – nice to give a direction for thoughts to roam.
