It's been a long while since I've devoted time to my blog. Alas, kind readers, I've been busy here in Atlanta...working, teaching, freelance. Life with a "real" job takes up a lot of time. Time that could be used for painting or blogging. What I have realized about the working world is that it leaves very little time for exploration, learning, wandering. I do miss this. I miss the tangents that natural curiosity fueled by time and mental space allow one to go on. I miss the hours of studio time that gave way creative discovery. I feel pressed to go quickly, to get things done...faster, faster, faster. Time for error, time for accidents that can take us down new and exciting roads is not built into the day. Perhaps some artists and creative people do not need this sort of time but, for me, I've always needed time. Warm-up. Jumping into a painting cold...never a good idea. I realize that creativity is a mind-set. It is not something you "do," it is something that you are. You cannot turn it on and turn it off when it is convenient. You have to live in the moments of inspiration and action. You have to be willing to drop everything and tune into that energy when it is upon you. Most importantly, you have to be open to it. It's rather magical in that way and frustrating, too. It is not something you can really control. So, perhaps, my goal is to get more fluid in my creativity. To make more time for it...to be open to it, to live more in the moment of it rather than try to schedule appointments with my painting wizard.
