Magical Monday Morning

My plan was to get up extra early this week, go to the gym straight away, and be at the studio by 9:00ish. Well, nature reorganized my day for me. You see, looking out the window, all I could see was a glittering wonderland. B was already geared up, outside and on his quad, ready to plow out the neighborhood. These moments make me fully appreciate why I fell in love with him. He is so giving of himself and his time. Even though he had to get to work like everyone else, he made the time to plow all of our neighbor’s driveways, including all the sidewalks. This is no small task, and quite time consuming. The only meager way I could help was by shoveling the walkways, and cleaning off our cars, a small effort in comparison. Luckily it wasn't too cold, and just felt wonderful to be outside in the fresh, crisp air. This is one of the first times I have seen snow actually stick to the ground in CT since I moved here. Feelings of childhood and the magic of a snow day overtook me. I quickly decided to forgo the gym, dust off my snowshoes and head to Bluff Point with my camera.

This was the first time I had ever snow shoed on my own, and because it was so early, I imagined having the Bluff to myself. There was only one car in the parking lot when I arrived, and I was greeted by a morning of possibility and fresh, sparkling powder, which cast a mesmerizing spell over me. It was especially beautiful to see the colors dance like crystals as the sun peeked out and cast its warm glow. I soon realized how much I missed being here, and was grateful for the gentle, graceful peace of the morning. I followed the trail of a X-country skier, and for a second wished I brought my skies instead. Because the snow was so fresh I could see animal tracks everywhere and wondered who else was out exploring the morning. This snowy jaunt in the snow made me realize once again how important it is for me to connect with nature, even in the winter. My sullen winter spirit has been revived.

words to live by

People say that what we're seeking is a meaning for life. I don't think that's what we're really seeking. I think that what we're seeking is an experience of being alive, so that we actually feel the rapture of being alive.
-joseph campbell

Thought for the day

"What you believe about yourself determines how people treat you."
~John O'Donohue

Succulent Studio

Hello my lovely autumn roses~

It has been some time since I have checked in, and I want you to know how much I miss you all of you! For those of you who didn't know, I have spent the past four months writing my Portfolio for school. This has been an amazing gift, in which I have been able to reflect on the past two and half years of creative work and research. I never could have imagined that my time at Goddard would lead me down such an amazing path of self-discovery, filled with new friendships, collaboration and shared knowledge. This experience has taught me how to live and be in the world in a way I never had time for before, and is why this time has been so cherished. My eyes have been opened to new ways of seeing, and for that I will forever be grateful.

As many of you know, I have been fortunate enough to have had a great little studio space in my house. It is warm, quaint, cozy, and inviting, but tiny. Sometimes it felt a little isolating, and being as social as I am I yearned to be a part of a creative community. Well, the universe has a way of giving you what you ask for I guess, because it was quite synchronistic that the day I put my final packet in the post last week, I had a studio to go see that had become available. The timing, or the space couldn't have been more perfect. There is lots of room, great light, and three other artists who share the surrounding space, so I even have the community I was craving. Maybe Joseph Campbell was right when he said, "when you follow your bliss, doors will open where there were none before." The picture posted is what the studio looks like right now, and I will post another one after I move in. I have a lot of packing to do, and although I feel somewhat saddened to leave my home studio, this space will allow me to spread out, and finally have room to teach the lessons that I have been dreaming of.

What have you been up to? I would love to know what is going on in your worlds, both creatively and non-creatively, so please share! It would mean a lot to me, and everyone else, so don't be shy.

Colors of life, Woven connections

These gorgeous yarns were created with much love by Karianne and her family. The beautiful girl is her daughter, Emma. She writes, "My grandmother (she died 5 years ago) and two other old ladies, they know all there is to know about colouring wool with things from the nature, plants, leaves and that kind of stuff. Now, when they are getting old, I want to learn from them before it is too late. We do the whole prosess outside and the colours are just amazing. It is like they all fit together. I hope you enjoy the pictures...?"

The gardening adventures...

It has been awhile since I have checked in with everyone, and was wondering how all of you were and what creative projects you had going on now that summer is in full swing. My present creative adventures aside from my schoolwork have been having a new patio put in and working on a garden plan. It is quite an exciting project since this house was pretty much a blank canvas before I moved in. There weren't any flowers here as many of you know and I really have missed them. Since we have decided that we would stay here a little longer than we had planned I feel like I am nesting a bit and trying to make this house feel more like home. The tiny beds that I dug last year have expanded and I have started purchasing many of the flowers that I had a the cottage as well as some that I have always wanted but have had a hard time growing like hollyhocks. I now have tall pink spires that remind of fairytails. I also have my first garden friend in CT who gave me some daylilies, black eyed susans and a tall, red flower with tiny buds whose identity is presently unknown. Does anyone have any idea what this could be? Althouh it hasn't taken so well to being planted in the heat I will look forward to seeing it's vibrancy next season.

Since I am on a garden high I thought I would share my magical visit to the Garden's by the Sea tour in Stonington with my fabulous friend Sue and Succulent cousin Suzy. The Stonington garden club organizes the tour every three years and picks a diverse group of gardens to visit in the Stonington Borough. The Borough is a fabulous place to visit just to enjoy the quaitness of the shops, restaurants and historical houses along the seashore. The weather was a perfect blend of warm sunshine with a perfect sea breeze. Many of the women on the tour adorned fun, sassy hats and flowery dresses making the day feel extra special. We all gleamed ideas for our gardens. My favorite plant was a Japanese willow which adorned dainty pink flowers. I was looking for ideas for a natural screening for my new patio area and was quite inspired by how some of these gardens had been screened from surrounding houses with a mix of plants, trees and shrubs as opposed to the tall evergreens that I usually see. Suzy, Sue and I had a perfect end to our day with lots of laughs, lovely mojitos and a delicious late lunch. I couldn't ask for anything better!

I have attached some pictures from our day. What have you all been up to? How are your gardens growing, both literally and creatively? I would love to hear from all of you. You have been thought of and missed! Until then...Happy Summer adventures!

New book adventure posts!

Hello everyone!

Here are the latest posts that I have gotten from "the book." Aren't these pages great? From top to bottom: Liz, Lori & Tomasen

"Love is the pain of being truly alive"

Joseph Campbell once said that “Love is the pain of being truly alive.” Today I understand what that means.

Tricia made me feel truly alive just by being around her. When I think of Trish I think of her infectious, positive attitude. It was impossible to be around her without your heart opening up. You were always greeted with a smile that would light up a room and a hug that enveloped you and made you pause in the moment and appreciate it. She was brimming with aliveness and love and I have learned so much since I met her in college almost twenty years ago. I have grown and stretched over the years as many of us do. This was in large part due to Tricia’s way of challenging my thinking and teaching me not to fear life but to question, embrace it and live it. I would describe her as fearless, brave, loving and often over the top. Her attention to detail could be seen in everything from gift wrapping to preparing a meal~an art in itself.

There are endless things that you could say about Tricia but one of the things that I appreciated the most was her understanding of my “good girl” nature. She was always trying to get me to embrace my “bad girl” self as she would call it. You see I was naïve to many things when we met. Without skipping a beat Trish would discuss topics that often made me blush but secretly appreciated hearing about. You could imagine my discomfort when I was given the nickname of Miss Ovaries in college. Our college professor Dr. Carr misunderstood my last name Voveris to be Vovaries and thus Miss Ovaries was born. Much to my mortification and most likely the fear of my cheeks burning off Trish graciously shortened this to Miss O. I have come a long way since college and have come to embrace Tricia’s “yo yo miss O’s” with love and pride.

The open communication, respect and lack of judgment that Trish gave built a relationship of openness and trust that won’t ever be forgotten. She showed kindness and compassion for everyone she met and saw the world in an upbeat, wondrous way. Everything she did had intention and purpose and has shown me how to live and embrace the journey.

I will remember that “Our lives are not determined by what happens to us but by how we react to what happens, not by what life brings to us, but by the attitude we bring to life. A positive attitude causes a chain reaction of positive thoughts, events, and outcomes. It is a catalyst, a spark that creates extraordinary results.” -Anon.

Forever in my heart goddess sister....love, Miss O

Tips for Artists

While visiting LACMA in California with Liz there was a series of "paintings" that totally cracked me up. I took this picture on the sly and I can't remember the artists name. It is interesting to think about people's perception of art and how it has changed over the years. I wonder what is selling well today or why it matters. Thinking about this reminds me of Fred Babb's quote, "Good art does not match your couch." What kind of art are you drawn to?

Adventurous art book share

These are the first pages of our fabulous book share adventure. From top to bottom: Cheryl, Danielle and Karrianne's lovely work~YEA!!! Karianne's book says "There is a time for love, and a time for work....there isn't more time than that...." Just think, our book has already been to as far as Arizona and Norway! Looking forward to the journey...

Unfolding...

It has been awhile since I have checked in with everyone. Things have been magical, stirring, crazy, uncomfortable and prickly all at the same time. I just got back from visiting Lovely, Exquisite Liz in California. We had a magnificent time driving all over LA, catching up on life, reminiscing, venturing to the Getty Villa, LACMA (Los Angeles Museum of Contemporary Art) and the main motivation of my trip....dunt ta da da.....participating in a workshop with an amazing group of women at the Carol Parks home studio http://www.carolparks.com/. The pictures above give a microscopic glimpse of the magic of this place.

Every nook and cranny of the house engages you and stirs your imagination. Tiny, colorful birds sing in birdhouses so artistically placed that they become a part of your surroundings. They blend so well into the background that it took me until the end of the the first day to realize that they were even there. Pots of bright red begonias scattered on tables with twinkling lights overhead all adding to the magic. Curtains hung with clothespins, old suitcases from years of travel form a wall reminding you of where you have been and where you are going. Every nook and cranny of the house is filled with wonder and imagination. This is only the inside...The garden is a magical place all on its own. Bright colored flowers are scattered throughout the garden. Birdhouses dressed in their best jewels glow in the temperate sunlight, an inviting swinging bench worn from years of enjoyment sits nestled under an umbrella of vines, a succulent lemon tree is nested among a wall of bamboo and an enchanted red standing mailbox which awaits further engagement. There is no end to the energy and liviliness of life that can be found even in this tiny nook in a big city.

The workshop allowed me an opportunity to get messy and not worry so much about the outcome. I sprayed, spritzed, collaged, painted, wrote, dreamed and got still for the first time in a very long time. Liz and I both have more to express within our pieces and promised each other that we would share when we were done. If we are brave we will post a part of our work with you when we finish. One of the things we reflected on was what we are holding onto. I wondered if any of you would share what you are holding onto?

Synchronicity

I have been thinking a lot about synchronicity. In fact even today just going out to lunch with my friend Sue seemed to be sychronistic for her. We had been talking about Elizabeth Gilbert's, Eat, Pray, Love awhile ago and I learned that she had never heard of it. I thought the book would resonate with her so I decided to get her a copy. Talking with her today she told me that as she was going through some of her old yoga magazines yesterday she was surprised to find that she was reading an article by Elizabeth Gilbert. Thinking this was too much of a coincidence coincidence she pulled out her copy of the book to read and was delighted to find how much the book resonated with her. After our lovely, leisurely lunch we meandered into a shop called, The Art Garden. I had been driving by this shop for some time but had never stopped. It turned out to be a bead shop and the owner, Jewels was showing us some of the beads that she had from India (I can't think of the name of them right now) and asked us if we had ever heard of Eat, Pray, Love. After talking with Jewels we were shocked to learn that she had the same Guru as Elizabeth and had been to the same ashram three times. It was such a random chance meeting~or was it? I then came home and checked my email to find that my cousin had sent me a link about noticing synchronicity. Here it is in case you were interested. http://www.dailyom.com/articles/2008/12278.html

I am wondering if you have noticed any scnchronicity in your life lately or could share a time that you have experienced it.

Liminal space in a winter wonderland

Joseph Campbell stated that “(art) is a presentation of forms, images, or ideas in such a way that they will communicate, not primarily a thought or even a feeling, but an impact.” What qualities do art, architecture, literature, performance, dance and music have which create this impact-this “aha moment” allowing us to see from a fresh perspective? This impact is liminal space where participants cross the threshold beyond which creative expression is experienced as a powerful and mystical source of meaning.

I am wondering if any of you have experienced this “liminal space" with one of the arts or in your own life?” Does it sound too abstract? This was the theme of my residency at Goddard and I am curious as to what you think.

New Adventure (book)

Hello everyone! Here is the first page of our collaborative book which I am SOOOOO excited about. There is no particular order that it will come to you, so be anticipating a surprise in the mail. It should take about eleven weeks for it to travel it's cycle and should be a great adventure. I will look forward to your participation and posts along the way.

Eat, Pray, Love discussion

In reading over many of our past entries, I have noticed that the book "Eat, Love, Pray" has come up several times. After reading the book myself, hearing from others, and watching Elizabeth Gilbert on Oprah, it seems clear that the book touches many different women - mothers, daughters, divorcees, widows, wives, single women - in many different ways. As part of this weeks discussion, I was wondering how the book resonated with you, as it seems that many of us have read it. What part of Elizabeth's journey spoke to you the most? How did the book make you relook at your own life? Has this self-exploration caused you to make any changes?

gentle movement (2008~1)

gentle movement for 2008

"It may be that when we no longer know what to do we have come to our real work and that when we no longer know which way to go we have begun our real journey. The mind that is not baffled is not employed. The impeded stream is the one that sings."

~Wendell Berry (poet)

Buon Natale

The top picture is from Karianne. These are some of the candles that she has been making for gifts. The watercolor was created by my friend Sarah Chase who I teach with in Deerfield. We were talking about how we would always get inspired by the lessons we were teaching and seeing what the kids would do. She was teaching a pen and ink lesson and was inspired to make this for her Christmas cards this year and said that I could share. I just love, love, love it!

discussion question (6)

HAPPY NEW YEAR! It is hard to believe that another year has gone by so quickly. I would love to hear how your holidays were and what you have been up to. Taking a much needed break from all of my school work has been good, but I have been itching to get back into my studio and connecting with all of you. The holidays have been filled with guiltly pleasures and too much TV watching. This made me realize how important it is to stick to a routine for my reading, writing and artwork, however small. Traveling back and forth to NH didn't allow much time for artful projects, but I savored the time spent visiting with family and friends. I am ready to get back to work, start some new projects and to hear from all of you. What have you been up to?

I just started reading Signs of Life by Angeles Arrien. It is about symbols that hold meaning for us, specifically the circle, square, triangle, cross and the spiral. I was wondering if any of you have had a symbol that has been significant in your life. If so, what meaning did it hold for you? What kind of things do you find yourself noticing?

discussion question (5)

Do the holidays help or hinder your creativity? Are you inspired by any of the many different forms of creativity that surround us this time of year?

(view from the inn that Danielle and I stayed at in Sedona~not too bad, eh? )

sharing...

gentle movement (14)

Love, LOVE, love!

gentle movement (13)

discussion question (4)

I know how busy everyone will be with Thanksgiving but I wondered if it would be fun to share some of our favorite holiday traditions or foods that we look forward to. Maybe you have a favorite holiday memory or story that you would like to share?

gentle movement (12)

This is another gorgeous photograph from Cheryl called, "Tiny Bubbles."

gentle movement (11)

"I am realizing that I am enough as is--a work in progress. I have looked at the love that surrounds me...the new love and hidden love, and desired love but something changes when I slowly turn my love towards myself. That's when life becomes vividly full color. I can see the life in me. I can stop hiding my freckles. I can look deeply into my own eyes, and high up into the branches of the trees. I can become myself...."


~Sabrina Ward Harrison

link

I thought that some of you might be interested in these artists under "current exhibition", especially you photographers. The artist statements I found to be informative. Also, there is a section on their sculpture part which I have been to that is quite spectacular as well.Let me know what you think...http://www.averypointarts.uconn.edu/

gentle movement (10)

Forget about good. Good is a know quantity. Good is what we all agree on. Growth is not necessarily good. Growth is an exploration of unlit recesses that may or may not yield to our research. As long as you stick to good you'll never have real growth.

~Bruce Mau (An Incomplete Manifesto)

• This is one of Cheryl's new flower portraits. There will be more to come. If anyone is interested in posting work or something that they find interesting let me know. It would be welcomed with tenderness and care.
  

"Guerilla Art"

Guerilla art is another area that I have been experimenting with. Keri Smith describes it in her book Guerilla Art Kit, as “any anonymous work (including but not limited to graffiti, signage, performance, additions and decoration) installed, performed, or attached in public spaces, with the distinct purpose of affecting the world in a creative or thought-provoking way.” (11) She further explains that “Guerilla art can be anything you want—an idea, an expression, a movement, an experience, an outlet, a way of connecting, a way of documenting, a challenge, a form of play, a statement, a performance, an attitude, a practice, an improvisation a ritual.” (14) I loved this idea of putting a message out into the world anonymously. It has been exhilarating to think that you can make someone think about something differently or “make their day” with an encouraging message. My experiments have been messages left around Bluff Point on or with natural objects such as shells, leaves and branches. They say things like, “listen”, “you are special”, “what do you care about?” and “wonder” to name a few. I have left hundreds of them on park benches, hiking trails, the beach, large rocks, and most recently in different places in the airport.

I believe that a message like this would make me stop and think if I came across it in the course of my day and can only hope that my work can inspire the same reaction that Smith describes when she says, “For a moment I am taken out of my known world and presented with an alternative, one that is unexpected and daring, one that makes me think about the space a little differently. These little gestures encourage me to not take our life so seriously, to contemplate for a moment something outside the predictable. They reawaken a sense of connection to the environment by pointing out something I might not have seen, by adding a new image to the world that is unexpected, or by presenting and alternate point of view.” (10)

Although my message isn't what one might consider "deep" I just wanted to see if I could effect someone's day in a positive way. These small gestures are an experiment for me with public art, which is different than my studio work, although I think that I am always striving to relate to the world in a positive way with my art. I am open to suggestions for more meaningful messages and possible ideas for the winter months. Also, I am wondering what you would think if you came across a message like this on a trail or a park bench? What would you want someone to say to you? Would you think of this as graffiti?

discussion question (3)

In the very first post Liz had wondered "if any of us struggled with letting our creativity "free" without worrying about it's "value". This is something that I think we all struggle with. In what ways do you censor yourself? Is it only with art? What are some ways to get past this?