an off-hand remark on a podcast i was listening to several weeks has had a profound effect on how i manage the things in my life that need doing
it was something along the lines of "if it needs to be done, why not do it as soon as you notice it"
and then a pod cast or two later this one:
"if it's such a good idea why are you not getting at it right away?"
one good for life and the other for art?
or perhaps both for both?
simplistic i know, in a busy world, when what might get noticed is the thing you see just as you're heading out the door, but otherwise why wait?
the old, "if not now, when"
i've been using both of these ways of thinking ever since i heard them and am pretty darn pleased with the results
not only are nagging things getting attended to, i've also become much more discerning with just how good my ideas are
one i had last year was after i completed the online course
"Inspired by Nature"
i had several photographs and samples of paintings inspired by them so i thought it would be nice to make a concertina book for them and have a visual record of that connection
I gathered my favourite photos and paintings/prints and even managed to cut the cover boards and fold the paper for the pages but then spring came and the days got busy and my good idea sat in a drawer for 15 months
last week i did a big studio re-organization and in doing that i came across the folded paper, cover boards, photos and samples all bound neatly together
the last of the studio sort-out was completed this morning so today i tackled it
with eight pages i decided on a two by two layout of four sets, a photo and then the work inspired by it
the photos were all taken after an early spring windstorm that brought down hundreds of twigs and branches all around the banks of our little lake
the shore ice was melting and re-freezing, trapping many branches and often icing them with frost
i went back several times over a few days and took at least two dozen of photos, the details changing day by day
trying a variety of techniques to interpret what i was seeing
layers of ice and wood, appearing lines and disappearing ones
freezing and breaking up
water and ice
lots of trials to choose from
the covers are finished and the concertina pages attached - the whole of it is pressing under weight now for a day or two
one side will feature these photo/art duets and the other will have some of my observations i think
having put this project off for fifteen months already I've no doubt it would have languished for another 15 at least as there's no pressing reason to get it done and other things are calling loudly
but if not now, when?
and maybe another, better question might be
if not now, why?
3 comments:
The challenge is discernment, when six things are all shouting at once, but yes, "If not now, when" is a good challenge to give oneself!
The trouble is... sometimes the ideas come so fast that by the time I reach the studio another has taken its place and then as soon as they come they can disappear just as quickly.... I think perhaps I could make a patchwork collage of all the little bits of paper where I have scribbled things as they flit in and out of my head. Now there's a thought... I have an idea.....
Ah - I think the most powerful thing you said in this post were the final words...'if not now, why?'. That brought me up short and really made me think. Being in now what is classed as my 70th year, I know that my time is limited. Couple that with the onset of 'Arthur' in my hands there's a good possibility my abilities to be creative in the physical sense might be more limited as time goes on. So, with that in mind, if not now, why...and if not now, when, resonates with me.
ps - love the thought of the book blending photographs with your artistic interpretation side by side.
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