“Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. The only way to do great work is to love what you do.”
~ Steve Jobs
Find what you love to do and by all means do it!
~Stef
"Quantum Cloud XXXIII" by Antony Gormley. Denver Art Museum. Photo taken in January 2011.
From the wall plaque: “One cannot be certain whether the body is a condensation of the energy or the energy is an emanation of the body,” Antony Gormley says of his Quantum Cloud sculptures. He bases these sculptures on his own body. He finds a position, then stays completely still while assistants encase him in a cast. “The whole project is to make the work from the inside,” he says, “rather than manipulate it from the outside.”
When I saw this sculpture my immediate thought was that the energy was exploding from the body. But, I love the idea that the energy is pulling inward and creating the body, too. So, I’ve decided that the energy is cyclical: The body reaches out with what it has, surrounding itself with the cloud, and then pulls in what that cloud absorbs.
If I’m that body, I’m reaching out by writing, taking photos, exploring new places in the real world and online, painting, having conversations with creative people, blogging, trying new recipes, reading books, seeing movies and listening to music. Each time I do one of those things, I pull inspiration from them and reach out to do more. It’s like stretching my arms wide and then wrapping them around me. It’s like taking a deep breath and letting it whoosh out.
If you’re that body, how are you reaching out? What are you pulling in?
Is anybody else participating in author Mary Robinette Kowal’s Month of Letters Challenge? I’ve mailed four so far and there are eight more going into the mailbox this week. The goal is to send 24 total by the end of the month (I’m running out of time, I know).
The four I already mailed were a hit! I got a “thank you” call or text from each of the recipients. See? People love getting fun stuff in the mail! If nothing else, send at least one letter or card before February is over. You even have a bonus day this year! (Whoa. I see a lot of exclamation points in this paragraph. Oh well; not changing it.) 
Carefully placed stamps.
I’ve noticed a few things while doing this project. 1) I need an address book. I have people’s addresses written down on scraps of paper that are floating around in random drawers, which is very unhelpful. 2) My penmanship is AWFUL. When I scribble notes to myself it hardly matters, but when writing out a letter to someone else it becomes glaringly obvious that I’m edging toward chicken scratch territory.
Connect the dots, la la la la…
There’s a really cool place in town called The Alley on Bitters (formerly Artisan’s Alley) that is a collection of antique stores, galleries, clothing shops and restaurants/coffee shops. They also have a farmer’s market, live music and other fun events.
The last time I was there I headed to the pottery studio to see about signing up for a class. Sadly, the studio moved, but in its place is Many Hands Gallery, which has paintings, pottery, ceramics, jewelry and inspiration. (Here’s an old story about the gallery from MySA.com.) I bought a pottery spoon rest for my kitchen and had an artistic a-ha moment, too. There were paintings on the walls (I wish I could remember the artist’s name – I’ll have to go back and see if any are still there) where the artist used dots of paint to give the images a unique, textural look.
My apartment has a very old stove, but at least there's a pretty spoon rest!
I started a painting a while back that I’ve never finished. In my head, it’s what a person would see if they were standing in the middle of a forest and looked up at the tree canopy. After seeing the paintings in Many Hands Gallery, I’m inspired to continue.
Step 1. The light filtering through the trees is mostly green with hints of blue, gold and red.
Step 2. Branches. They'll be coming in from all sides, pointing toward the center. This is where I stopped before.
After I finish the branches (and figure out how to texture them, too), I’m going to try the dot technique for the leaves. It might look ridiculous, but I won’t know until I do it. That’s the fun of art, right? I’ll be sure to post progress.
