Friday, June 15, 2012

Soul Saturday - studio time

before the paint
...sank into my studio a Saturday afternoon a while back felt the better for it
I had hoped for a blue sky walk in the hills day
but instead was delivered the grey day from a null and void blue sky (I know its up there behind those clouds!)
found it hard to break out of my own greyness today
wanting to paint yet again but still not in that painting vein ...perhaps I shall never be again
I reached for the altered book I use for all sorts of things
I'd already written my own words this morning but felt like working with another's, kinda like blackout poetry
I tore a page out
page 101
funny it happened to be page 101
as I started my words came boldly to the surface page
demanding attention,
but I wondered what was behind those words
teasing them out this was the tonic I'd need since that Wednesday.
It felt so good to be just there with no demands, no expectations, no need other then my own being turned and tossed by printed page and two black makers. Two pages later I paused.

Reclaiming my scalpel from my husbands tool box I returned to my design desk where I like to paint, play and create I cut with a ruler one of the pages into strips - this destruction and reconstruction seems to be a thing in my process now... I took the other page and cut precise marks in the page. The scalpel its blade blunt snagged on the soft fawn brown old printed page. The paper folded in tiny mounds like an accordion of unwanted noise.
I replaced the blade wanting crisp sharp cuts in a regular pattern.
I looked at the strips of paper working in silence. Letting my absorbed attention be.
I liked the roundness of loosely woven paper 
Funny how splicing up paper, writing and using makers, cutting, folding, weaving and stitching two torn leaves from that book seems to have appeased my soul turned off my brain off and allowed me to switch gears and ungrey my humour.
after the light layers of painting, inking and printing
Last weekend it was out in the garden that's what my soul demanded then. Saturdays seem to be about nurturing and caring for my soul which has been ravaged recently by family illnesses and bad news.
But I wonder has my soul been sulking? and I also wonder is painting still too flat...

What do you do to recharge?

2 comments:

Dee Sewell said...

Outdoors and alone is where I tend to my soul. Unfortunately my lifestyle doesn't permit too much of a creative lifestyle (and if I'm honest I usually end up more frustrated!) but nature always has a way of putting me to rights. Love picture of a sulking soul... had never quite thought of it in that way before.

Ballygarrett Art Studio said...

Thanks for the thoughtful comment Dee - I think gardening is very creative don't under estimate the work you do in community gardens or tending your own garden & the photos & blogging I think that is all creative too.
I hear you though being out doors - the alone piece is an interesting one - we both work with people so yup the alone time resonates with me too.

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