I’ve heard it said that to be inspired is to be “in spirit.” That is, fully present and humming—alive. And part of why I love making art is that I try to follow that alive-ness. That is, follow what inspires me—what makes me come alive.

I keep thinking that I’ll “figure it out”, that if I think hard enough I’ll come to know what it is that lights me up and then I can just keep doing “that.” I think what I’m wrestling with is trying to find a path—a connecting throughline, I guess, from one piece to the next. Some people might call this “style”—but I think it’s more than simply style. I’m looking for what it’s ALL about.

Anyway, these are a few pieces I made in the last month or so and clearly I haven’t found any such connection yet. And yes, this can be frustrating and confusing…but then I have to remind myself that this is what creativity is all about. Looking backward, yes. We can see where we’ve been and how it all made sense. But looking ahead? It’s all unknown.

In life and in art, by the way.

We can’t know what isn’t created yet. A day. A piece of art. But I know—I know—that the best thing to do is create each day—and live each day—by following what feels most “in spirit”—inspires.

And the wonderful mystery of it all is that one thing leads to another—the path appears.

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Okay. That’s enough woo woo for today! On another note, I do want to share a free upcoming online event you should think about joining—the Sketchbook Revival Workshop hosted by Karen Abend, from March 20th-April 1st

I’m m not associated in any way, I’ve just participated for several years in this annual event and I’ve found a lot of value. Basically Karen brings in a different artist every day for two weeks who teaches a short tutorial by video, delivered by email. And I think she gives another week or so of access to those videos before it closes down. And did I mention this all for free?

I try to survey each tutorial from day to day and then pick and choose the ones I want to do. I always come away learning something new and producing work I love. The benefit for the artists of course is that we might purchase another class they offer after getting to know them—and the benefit for us is that we get introduced to these artists and their work. It’s a win win!

If you’re interested, join now. Karen has some pre-workshop tutorials that are pretty cool. And if you’re going to do it too, let me know! Maybe we can share our work together.