The reception & winter's practice
I often finish my work, photograph it and don’t look back. The pieces end up on loan at a gallery, or scattered around my studio and home. It was a privilege to step back and see seven of my sculptures displayed as a body of work. It makes me excited for what the next seven could be…
When art is placed in a space, the space transforms. Suddenly a path a student walks every day can be a space to linger and reflect.
It can be surprisingly difficult in our fast-paced world to slow down and contemplate. But when we do, we start forming opinions about what we’re observing. Opinions give us insight into who we are, and that understanding can shift how we move through the world…
Many women throughout history have tried to be smaller, fit a mold, do what they’re supposed to do. We were taught (consciously or not) it’s unladylike to talk or laugh too loud, to sit with our legs swung wide, to ask for time for ourselves…
Growing up, I think I revered men more than women. As a classic rock lover, my idols in high school were Jimmy Page and Jimi Hendrix (the only woman who snuck through was Joni Mitchell, duh). Then in college, my study of philosophy also made men the center of my creative admiration. I poured over the ideas of Aristotle and Nietzsche, only later finding the works of Simone de Beauvoir.
I now find myself gravitating towards women musicians, authors, and artists. Learning about their strength has helped garner my own strength…
Though beauty is often inherent, viewable, and aesthetic, human suffering and day-to-day struggles exist as the silent sister. Creation itself is fraught with mental and physical struggle. Like our passage into existence, hardship is innate in the birth of beauty…
I knew a man who peered at me over translucent pink glasses. He opened the door to his eclectic studio as one would reveal to a friend the treasure, the bounty they’ve accumulated after a lifetime of roving, ambling the Irish countryside, searching sepia-toned memories for the perfect article of inspiration…
It’s hard letting go of something you’ve given time and energy to. But what’s worse is suffering through something that’s supposed to be enjoyable just because you made a vague promise to yourself that you would.
I’ve said it before, so much of artmaking is really the art of letting go. Many of us try so hard to hold on to what we think we can control…