On simplified drawing and personal blogs

Lately I’ve been striving for a more simplified drawing style, so yesterday I decided to practice in my Sketchbook Journal with a photo reference—a picture I liked from Chris Glass.*

If you click on the link, you’ll see that I left out many details from the photo in my drawing—other people, gadgets, furnishings—but I learned again that what you leave out is as important as what you leave in when drawing. It’s difficult to make those choices.

I don’t think I could have sketched this scene had I been present and drawing in the moment. First, I haven’t yet mastered the challenge of people moving all the time. Yikes! And second, there is SO MUCH to look at in one space! I have never been to Five Guys in my life (it must be an east coast chain), but in person, I’m sure I would have tried to draw it all—and that would not have worked for this drawing like it does in the photo.

I have only started following Chris Glass, by the way, and I’m very glad I added his site to my RSS Reader. The photographs from and about his life are lovely and the brief posts allow me to get to know an interesting person.

It turns out that all my favorite blogs are personal blogs: essentially digital journals from interesting people who are expressing something of—and at least partly for—themselves. And by sharing themselves, readers get the benefit of perspectives, ideas, expertise and inspiration we wouldn’t have otherwise.

Sometimes I worry about the downsides of the internet—alienation, fragmentation, social breakdown…But then we also have gifts like this.

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*Just a reminder that I know it is never okay to copy someone else’s work unless one is doing so to learn only—which is what I am doing here. Also, it’s important to give credit to the original artist.

Immediate, Imperfect and Grounding

“In the journal I do not express myself more openly than I could do to any person; I create myself.”—Susan Sontag

I am someone who has kept journals for most of my life. And Sontag gets it right. I don’t write and draw (paint and collage) in journals to share secrets with myself.

I mean, ok, sure, some pages are private, but mostly, as I look at my shelf of notebooks filled with words and pictures, I see that these meditations and ruminations are me becoming myself.

Through this work, I am stepping into my artist self—and I am stepping into greater understanding that what I do might be helpful to others.

So this personal blog is a journal, too, though one I have yet to successfully sustain—or be sustained by. What would happen, I wonder, if I remove the heavy lifting of writing, editing, publishing, and just approach it for what it is: a personal blog—a digital journal—immediate and imperfect and grounding?

What if, like my physical Sketchbook Journal, I take just a little time every day to capture just one thought or idea—one snapshot—as briefly as possible? What would I choose to express? To share?

Links! Let’s bring blogrolls back!

quick sketch in my sketchbook

I’ve added a new blogroll to my sidebar on my website!

It’s full of links to my favorite people on the internet—artists, writers, thinkers and all around interesting humans—who have something real to say and share. I hope you’ll check them out and subscribe to some of them and follow their blogging shenanigans. And maybe share links to your favorite blogs with your friends too.

I also really hope that blogrolls make a comeback so I thought I’d help start the ball ‘rolling.’ Maybe I can convince other bloggers to bring back their blogrolls, too. You never know.

Why?

Because I am a raving blog fan

And I want more people to find the great stuff out there.

And a blogroll, if you don’t know, is simply a list of blogs on a blogger’s sidebar to help people find great stuff.

They used to be a big thing before mass social media. Bloggers linked to other blogs on their sidebar blogrolls and other bloggers linked back to them on theirs. The more links across the blogosphere, the more everyone could find each other.

It was a good idea and we should bring it back.

Have I convinced you yet to jump on over to my new blogroll to check out my favorite blogs?

You’ll find it on my sidebar.

And while you’re at it—I updated my gallery and my welcome statement. You’ll find those directly on my website too. I’d love to know what you think so drop me a line if you feel like it and let me know.

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P.S. In case you’re curious— my personal relationship with blogs

I first started reading blogs back around 2009-2010 (just a few years after they became mainstream social media). I followed people sharing DIY home projects because at the time I channeled practically all my creativity into DIY home projects. And besides, my favorite daytime show on HGTV, The Christopher Lowell Show, had sadly ended.

Anyone else watch that show? AH-MAZE-ing!

I also followed fashion blogs, career blogs, and then I found mixed media and art journaling blogs because, WHAT? I could do this?

Blog reading soon became a daily habit, and several of them literally changed my life. I don’t think I would have ever become an artist if so many generous artist bloggers hadn’t taught me about art making and, even more importantly, convinced me to listen to my creative voice. What a treasure trove!

And it wasn’t just art. I found so many people in different fields and parts of the world who shared their expertise and perspectives. Technology, economics, philosophy, science, spirit, business, life wisdom…my world expanded too.

And it does to this day. Every morning when I wake up I pull out my iPad, grab a cup of coffee and fire up my Feedly app —and every morning in my self-curated feed someone smart has something insightful, thought-provoking, inspiring, informative, funny and/or useful to share (so unlike most of what we find on social or mainstream media!)

At this point I might mention that now I don’t just read blog posts, I write them.

This only happened in the last couple of years. Before, I did try my own blog but I ran into walls. Nothing I wrote felt authentic or true. I thought I wanted an audience to share with—but yet I was afraid I was not enough and I hid.

In hindsight of course I can see that I was just starting out on my creative journey and I did not yet have a real sense of my own identity. I hadn’t yet become the artist and the person I knew myself to be on the inside. I wasn’t ready to blog.

Today, I can say I am an artist who is further along on that journey and hosting a blog feels much lighter. There’s a certain ease now in simply knowing that—just like making art—if there’s something I want to create and to share, I can.

And now maybe you will know that you can too.

P.S.S

People follow blogs either using an app called an RSS Reader, which brings all the blogs you want to follow in one place on your computer and/or devices (I use and highly recommend Feedly). Or some blogs offer the option like I do to subscribe by email or to e-newletters, which are also essentially blog posts delivered by email.

I’m here to help if you have more questions. Just hit that email icon in the top right corner of the blog (or reply to this post by email).

10 Things I'm Doing Lately

Greetings! I’ve wandered away from the blog a bit, but now I’ve come back. Blogging is one of those items on my “all the things” list from #4 below that I am prioritizing. It’s something I want to do consistently, reliably and meaningfully.

Why? Well, because writing helps me think clearly and I like to read blogs. But I think what keeps the flame burning is that it simply feels important to share what moves through me. There’s something to share.

Yep, that is why. So this blog continues and I hope you will find it interesting and useful and that you will subscribe. It’s free and you can get new posts by Email or RSS Reader.

So - to bring you up to date, here’s a list of 10 things I’m doing lately:

1.  Cards—lots of Cards.

I’m loving my 52 Cards Project, happily creating one card a week all year—and that’s the only thing I’ve really blogged about consistently, card by card, so I won’t say more (but you can read about each card to date on the project page).

I’m also creating a boat load of index cards—one a day for 61 days for the Index Card A Day Challenge (ICAD) hosted for the 12th year by Tammy Garcia at Daisy Yellow. I decided to join ICAD at the last minute this year and I’m so glad I did. It’s an opportunity to create something small and free of expectations—it’s only a lowly index card—with optimum levels of experimentation and participation with others doing the challenge on Instagram.

Instagram, BTW, is the only other place I share my work besides this blog—Instagram despite all of its other toxicity problems is actually a lovely tool for artists to share their work and connect with and see other’s work on a daily basis—while a blog is a great place to dive deeper.

Anyway, I haven’t yet blogged about ICAD, but can see them all on Instagram—and I’ll be writing about ICAD here soon, too.

2. Sketchbook Practice

I’ve been experimenting like crazy in my sketchbook over the last several months, but I haven’t shared much of my sketchbook lately on any platform, maybe mostly due to a lot of self doubt. I know better. I know you would benefit as much or more from learning about my challenges as from what I’m proud of making…but somehow I couldn’t write about the struggle here. I was too much in the weeds.

Finally, though, I think something clicked and lately I’ve been really learning how to abstractify—which I see now is where I’ve always been headed, creatively.

Lately I’ve been filling pages with abstractified drawings. I’m drawing from life and I’m closely studying several other artist’s work with the intention to learn (NOT copy) how others do it and build my own visual language. This is a relatively new direction, but I feel some traction and I’ll be be sharing more about the process.

3. Creating systems in my work

Any adult who successfully gets through a day knows the value of systems. Designating one place in the house to keep your car keys. Adding to a rolling grocery list. Instituting a laundry day. Systems ward off chaos.

The creative process is just as easily overcome by chaos. We are constantly challenged by piles of art supplies, mounds of ideas, waves of feelings…and then there’s the chaos of simply keeping track of projects and processes AND progress.

Over time, I’ve tried a lot of systems to create order in my practice. From bullet journals to baskets and bins to filing systems and more, much more, I keep turning over and refining systems…but lately? I think I’ve nailed it.

My art supplies are just where I can easily use them.

Ideas are at my fingertips.

I know where to put what—and where to find what I made—thought or felt—in the past.

This will take a whole blog post to describe—and I will soon—but creating systems that work for me is definitely one thing I’ve been doing lately.

4. Choosing what to do among “all the things”

Now that order is restored (for now at least), I’m tracking all the things I want to do—and it turns out there is MORE than I can do at once. I have so many projects and several kinds of mediums I want to work on and with. I am in need of so much practice for practice sake. I came to art late in the game and there’s much skill to develop and learn. And there’s all the other things—like reading and this blog and classes I want to take, and ways I would like to show up in the world creatively…not to mention life things.

So. Like all of us with the same 24 hours in a day, I must choose. And I don’t know, mostly I’m overwhelmed with too many choices but lately…I think I’m making good choices—and yes, I have more choices to make. But at least for now, overwhelm is at bay.

5. Reading

I love to read. I’m a life long inhabitant of libraries and fictional worlds. With that said, the proverbial stack of books on my nightstand (now residing in digital lists and in my e-reader) grows ever larger and I’m just not reading enough books.

However, at least my Reading Project has kept me reading one book each month (and sometimes I get in another). The first six months are about behind us and the project has now become an online-no-obligations book club of two members (who both hope more people will join us!)

Currently, I am finishing the last book on the list—the wonderful Utopia Avenue by David Mitchell—and next week I’ll announce our next list of six books for the rest of the year. If I’m good, I’ll share more about the experience and try to persuade others—you?—to join us.

6. Exercising

One day in my late forties I woke up, got up out of be bed and my body was so stiff and achy I could hardly make it down the stairs. That very morning I started looking for an exercise program I could stick with—and soon after I found the most wonderful Oliveyah Fisch who in those days trained individuals in small groups in both a gym and outdoors. Most trainers either train individually or run classes, but the magic for me—and all Oliveyah’s clients—is that she did exactly what I said: trained individuals, but in small groups of an average of 6 people. Very few people train this way.

Anyway, that was the beginning of my fitness journey. I was very out of shape but over time—a lot of time—I built up endurance and strength, confidence and commitment. Now, I exercise 4-5 mornings per week in outdoor classes and hiking with friends. I feel much better in my body—which is my number one goal, especially as I age.

7. Spiritual connection

I am not a believer in Religion, but I am spiritual. I know that we are spiritual beings and lately I’ve been on a path of slow awakening to the Mystery inside and all around. In the last few years, I’ve engaged pretty deeply with spiritual teachers and therapists to help me understand, heal and honor the many parts so that I can fully engage with body, mind, heart and spirit. This is what I am doing always and lately.

8. Enjoying my cats and these early days of summer

We lost our dog Rufus almost one year ago and I still miss him as we enter another summer without him. But life with cats, though different than dogs, continues. And our cats Oliver, Leo and yes, even 19 year old Tiger Lily give me the gift of love and laughs and just pure presence I need these days under bright blue skies.

9. Attending a graduation and preparing for a wedding

Our youngest daughter Valerie joyfully graduated from Western Washington University this month—and the whole family can’t wait for the wedding of our oldest daughter, Abby, in September. I very much believe in finding joy in every opportunity for celebration—and wow, do we have a lot of opportunity this year!

10. Movie Nights

Meanwhile, husband Dennis and I instituted Friday night movie nights during the Pandemic and we continue. Every other week one of us chooses the movie and arranges for takeout dinner—and the rule is the other person has to watch that movie for a minimum of the first 30 minutes. So far, no one has walked away AND we no longer argue over what to watch. Win!

Okay, so that’s 10 things I’ve been up to lately. I hope you enjoyed this summary and I’ll be sharing more about my art practice soon so—one last gentle reminder—I hope you’ll subscribe.

What does earth and spirit have to do with art?

EARTH LOVE does MATTER

You might notice that I’m dedicating my blog to my three passions—art, spirit and earth—but it seems that mostly and so far, I talk about art.

You might suspect there’s some kind of struggle going on with me—and you wouldn’t be wrong.

So here’s the truth. I LOVE to draw and paint and creatively problem solve and share my creative life. Which is what I do every chance I get—online and off. I’ve mentioned this journey several times lately—I love art making and I’m all in. That metaphorical plate is spinning in the air.

As a multipotentialite, however, there are more plates.

I love to read fiction, for instance, I love story and I enjoy writing. And I love animals. I love to hike and be in nature, in and near water. I’m deeply concerned about the climate crisis. And I’m equally fascinated by the science and the spiritual elements of life.

In short, I want to spin more plates in the air.

But you know, time and focus and attention and energy—all the challenges—sometimes bring those plates crashing to the ground.

My “earth” interest is one example. I’m taking small actions in my own life to more closely align with my love for the earth and to do my part to reduce my own impact on it. I’m on a personal journey to become more aware about both the real problems and the real solutions to solving the climate crisis. And to align my life to support those solutions.

But I also want to do more. Global warming, mass extinction, ocean acidification…this is a crisis in our lifetimes, but a crisis we can solve if we all get behind the solutions.

So I have made attempts to share what I learn about the climate crisis over the last several years. I wrote about the climate crisis on my website.

I also started a drawing project a few years ago called It’s Possible and posted a series of drawings on Instagram about the need to see that we’re not doomed yet.

Finally, in January of this year I started an earth-focused instagram account called earthlove.matters. where I made drawings and paintings about climate crisis issues.

In all three cases, however, I am sorry to report, that it didn’t take me long to lose momentum and become overwhelmed. In all three cases, I started and then stopped. And I have to say this did not feel good. Cracked plates at my feet, to continue the metaphor.

So where am I now?

I’ve learned that I can’t sustain a project that solely focuses on creating art about the climate crisis. Not only does this project take so. much. time—but it requires singular devotion. Working full time. And the truth of the matter is that I don’t believe that’s what I’m supposed to do.

Earth love DOES matter. The more we LOVE all of life on this planet, the more we will protect it. The more we will see ourselves in the fabric of all existence. Art. Spirit. Earth. All of it. Connected…

Love, I think, connects it all

…My own personal journey to love the earth more. My love of art. My love of reading. And loving up my animals and all of nature…life! I have to follow ALL of my interests.

Art AND Earth AND Spirit…

And that’s where I’m going. I intend to write here about my art and creative life, about the earth and my own place in it, and yes, about spirit (because in fact, spirit is not another spinning plate, but part of it all). No big commitment to Big Projects, for now. Just creating and sharing, here.

So that’s where I’m headed now. I’m putting another plate back on the tip of the rod and giving it a good, fast spin.

I invite you to my creative, learning life

I have to tell you, I’ve started blogs before, but I failed to sustain them. I don’t want that to happen again.

So I’ve been thinking . What will it take to DO this over the long term? It’s really important to get super clear about what I want—for you and me—out of this blog, and why.

I know what I don’t want

I don’t want to feel pressured to churn out posts in order to please any algorithm to get more views.

I don’t want to worry about “getting” anything—certainly not readers. Not approval, either.

I don’t want to feel obligated.

I don’t want to sacrifice making art in order to make this blog.

I don’t want to feel like it needs to be perfect and polished—just real. I don’t want this to be a job.

And I don’t want to bore people. I’d rather they were uninterested and move on.

What I DO want?

I want blogging to be joyful and fun. Something I look forward to doing each week.

I want it to be as nourishing as writing in my journal, where I write to think and gather all the thoughts. Something that propels me forward with renewed energy.

And I want it to be as nourishing for others as well—giving inspiration, learning and renewed energy too.

Finally, I want—I hope—that what I create here will somehow help me connect with an engage with other readers, writers and/or artists of all kinds.

Other humans who love to learn and discover and create treasures.

I’m not sure how that’s going to work, but I’m putting it out to the universe and we’ll see. To begin, I’m going to show up and fill this blog with what I learn about what I’m passionate about—art, spirit, nature.

I’m going to write because I know I have so much to share and I need to share it—but I’m not in control of who wants or needs to receive it.

Sharing is enough.

(My new mantra.)

If this is something you’re interested in, please subscribe with your favorite RSS Reader!

Thanks for visiting!