Reboot, Renew, Revitalize

Have you noticed the growing number of entertainment reboots currently making it to the big and small screen?  If you listen to the radio, you’ve not doubt heard Weezer’s remake of Toto’s Africa.  Broadway is always reviving musicals and plays with new spins.  I figured I would join the crowd and I’ve just become the president of Front Range Contemporary Quilters (www.artquilters.org) for the second time.   I was president ten years ago, and now it’s time for a reboot.

What is it about a reboot, or in my case, a new term that’s so appealing?  First and foremost, I’m familiar with the job.  There is a minimal learning curve.  I know when the newsletter article is due.  I’m familiar with the recruitment practices for membership. I understand the selection process for speakers.  On the flip side, over the past ten years, the membership has changed.  The use of technology has skyrocketed.  I’ve gotten older.

I believe any organization, business, even our own lives need revitalization on a regular basis. Boredom is one of the key components to sadness, lowered productivity, and the numbing of our emotional lives. It dulls our creativity, and as artists, creativity is our lifeline.  I’m not suggesting throwing the baby out with the bath water.  What we know has been working we keep.  Those ideas, practices, and themes not bringing joy to your life gets sent to the trash, literally and figuratively.

I’ve spent the last year regrouping and revitalizing my educational goals and my art practices. I recently completed a graduate certificate program in Health Humanities and Ethics.  This program gave me the energy and impetus to get focused about the art I want to create.  I’ve been in health and healing for thirty years.  Now, with further study I’ve become entrenched, engaged, and energized by the possibilities of the stories I want to tell.  I’m more focused.  My art has a sharper narrative.  My studio time is about storytelling and spiritual practice.  The two combined allow me to serve my community by speaking my truth about the gaps I witness in the world.

My creativity is a way for me to stay connected to my heart and soul.  If I hadn’t delved deeper into my interests, my passion, my purpose, I wouldn’t have achieved this new direction in art.  I feel renewed, I feel revitalized, and I feel reinvigorated.  I believe you will too!  Give it a try and let me know if I can help.  Renewing your vows to yourself improves your creative process!

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Time “Warp”

If you were thinking this was an homage to “The Rocky Horror Picture Show”, I’m sorry to disappoint.  As a side note, I’m sure Dr. Frank-N-Furter would approve of my color choices for this project.

As you know I decided to focus my meditation during the Feast for the Soul on the concept of “protection”.   I’m looking at how the concept and protection is experienced in all walks of my life and those around me.  I’m meditating on how I can better protect those in harm’s way.  Harm can take many forms, and while I’ve been meditating, the thought that keeps floating to the surface is suicide.  This isn’t about my suicidal ideation, but those who are experiencing immense pain with no safety net or protectors in sight.

The piece I’m creating will be based on the design of a shield.  To accomplish this goal, I’ve chosen to weave the fabric that I have cut into strips last week.  The warp for those who aren’t weavers are the long, or longitudinal, strips that are affixed the frame.  It’s the foundation for the weaving, and as you know, we all need a solid foundation.

I met Sarah Haskell (www.sarahhaskell.com) in graduate school.  We both were enrolled in the arts and healing program.  I learned that Sarah is a weaver and during the course I got to see some of her work.  I’m mesmerized by weaving and have considered taking it up for many years.  I may learn to weave on a table loom at some point, but the large looms I’ll leave to Sarah.

Why do I bring up weaving and Sarah’s work?  I’ve followed Sarah for ten years and what I have learned the most from Sarah’s social media posts is the amount of patience it takes to weave.  Setting up the loom takes and enormous amount of time and physical exertion.  The biggest lesson, and that’s what I want to focus on is the amount of patience it takes to be a weaver.

Over the course of my meditation, I’ve been feeling, in my body, what patience feels like.  For me, it has become a visceral experience.  It involves some degree of body tension, but it’s counterbalanced with the release when the warp is set.  It shows what time and attention can accomplish.

The tension in my body mirrors the tension a weaver needs when setting the loom.  The warp needs to be tight enough on the loom to allow the weaver to maneuver the weft.  I’m affixing my warp strips to a painting canvas.  It’s sturdy so I can pin the strips to the top and bottom of the frame creating sufficient tension for the design.

What are the takeaways from today’s meditation?  Tension isn’t always a bad thing.  We all need a strong foundation on which to build our ideas and actions in life.  Taking time to focus on one thought, idea, experience allows you to go deeper and experience it on multiple levels.  What are you weaving in your life?

Separation Anxiety

Yesterday I shared my venture into cutting strips from a large piece of fabric.  I ran out of strips on my first time through because I didn’t do what they tell carpenters to do, “Measure twice, cut once”.  That was lesson number one today, plenty more on its way.

When cutting fabric to be affixed to a foundation I iron on a fusible web.  It’s like double sided tape, but is used on fabric.  It allows you to iron one fabric to another with a permanent (for the most part) bond.  Even though the pieces are bonded, I still sew the pieces down for a permanent resolution.

Affixing one piece of fabric to another requires peeling the paper off the back.  This is often a time of reckoning because under certain circumstances (older fusible web, not enough heat) the fusible web will not stick to the foundation fabric.  When that happens, it requires the decision-making tree to kick in and begin a process of asking the big question, “What next?”

Obviously, this is what happens in the fiber world, but in your creative genre the signs and symbols may be different. Think about what may go wrong in your medium, and what actions you take to rectify the situation.  It can be one of the most creative avenues available to you.  When I first started quilting, my teacher told us never buy more than a half yard of fabric because it will force you to exercise your creative muscles.  Don’t get me wrong, the first time I ran out of fabric I felt like I was dropped in the middle of the desert with no compass.  I eventually found my way and have progressed to new and more complex forms of separation anxiety.

Truth be told, we all have scary moments in our lives.  How we handle it depends on our previous preparation protocols.  Think of problem solving in other areas of your life and what your process was to resolve the situation.  This is one of those moments when art imitates life.

Stripping

Now that I have your attention we can talk about my form of stripping.  Don’t worry, there’s no poles involved and nothing exposed except your vulnerabilities as you continue on the journey.  One of the key factors when preparing for a journey like a pilgrimage is preparing for the expedition.  You wouldn’t try and climb Mt. Everest without training, having a complete list of the supplies necessary for surviving this treacherous trek, and having a Sherpa to help carry the heavy load up the mountain.

Yesterday I explored the inventory of my supplies and filled in where I had gaps that would impede my progress if I didn’t fill in the gaps.  When I started on this journey I spoke about the theme for this pilgrimage, “Protection”.  It’s important that I keep the focus of my actions and meditations on “protection” because it will guide my design.  The creative process is an amazing way to give yourself a visual representation of your message.  For me, the theme of protection brings up the idea of a shield.  My design for this work will focus on how the shields I create serve to protect me, and the world we live.

Are you wondering where the stripping begins?  You’re in luck, it starts now!  The fabric I chose for my visual protection is a stripe.  I’ve decided to cut the stripes into strips and will move forward on a design that punctuates the protection theme.  What can I tell you about stripping? Stripping is tedious.  It’s requires focus and accuracy.  It is the starting place for the design.

Obviously, your work may not involve stripping, but what it represents is breaking anything down to its component parts.  When you reduce things to their smallest components they are manageable.  The pieces give you flexibility to rearrange the components in multiple forms.  You can do this no matter the artistic avenue you choose to follow.

What are the components of your creative enterprise?  It’s like Legos, you can pull the pieces apart and rearrange them in a variety of ways until you find one that works for you.  What’s the theme of your journey?  Thinking about your medium, what are the smallest components?  How is this process moving you forward on your journey?  The Feast for the Soul is a process, don’t rush it! (This is only day three, we have thirty-seven to go)

Preparation for the Journey

Over the years I’ve studied with a number of amazing professors.  Each of them focused on human potential, healing, and making the world a better place.  I owe a note of gratitude to Jean Houston, Lucia Capacchione, and Angeles Arrien.  These three women gave me the tools, preparing me for the journey and the path I’ve chosen.

It shouldn’t be a surprise that one of the key ideas I’ve focused on over the years is The Odyssey and the idea of embarking on a journey that is life altering.  Pilgrimage like The Odyssey start with a call that we often turn down or refuse at first, but the clues keep pouring in and show us that the call is part of our calling.

When starting out on a journey of any kind we need to make sure we’re prepared.  What tools do you need for your individual journey?  I made an assessment prior to the start of the Feast for the Soul about the tools I would need so I can maximize the outcome of this adventure.  I do feel that it’s an adventure because it has any many unknowns as knowns.  It is driving me to begin a deep dive into my consciousness and will show me where it intersects with my community.

I have found that it’s important to have the right tools for the right job.  Recently we bought new furniture for the office.  I measured twice before making the purchase and finally once delivered I realized I’d need to take the hinges off the door.  I tried to use a screwdriver but the hinges didn’t budge.  I watched a YouTube video and the “tutor” used a nail sink to boost the pin out of the hinge.  I went a bought a nail sink, lo and behold the pin came right out.

New Cutting Mat, Two Bolts of Fusible Web, Book of Poems by Nikki Giovanni (things I needed for the journey)

Given that example, I went to the store and bought some supplies. These tools will make the journey more productive, and will keep me stocked so I won’t have to run to the store in the middle of a studio session.  It will also keep me focused on the project, the journey to mindfulness.

What will you need before setting out on your own “odyssey”?  The planning will bring you to the present, help you focus, and as Stephen Covey states, “Begin with the end in mind.”  Obviously on a pilgrimage you won’t know every conclusion, but think about what you hope will be the conclusion.

I’d love to hear about your own journey!  Feel free to share and let’s start a dialogue.

Doing Something Religiously…?

This is one of my favorite times of the year.  Even though it’s the dead of winter here in the northern hemisphere, the Feast for the Soul is a springboard for renewal, spiritual renewal.  It’s a good time to spend time in silence, following my breath, my heartbeat, and my motivation for inspiration.

Preparation for the journey

Unlike many, I don’t meditate sitting on a cushion, chanting, or burning incense (although I do often burn a candle).  I use my meditation time to work on one piece of art, forty minutes a day for forty days.  I delve into the consciousness of my soul and how it shows itself in my art.  I give myself the space to allow the art to tell a story, a theme that is the focus for the length of the meditation.

I find it interesting that when someone asks if we do something regularly, we’re often asked if we do something religiously?  I’m not sure how this came about, but I don’t believe it had anything to do with organized religion.  I believe it relates to the idea of creating a practice.  Engaging in something with regularity and intention.  Intention is the key because it drives my focus, and in turn allows the release of negative energy.  It gives me the opportunity to allow the energy to guide my actions and provides me with a forum for something that is utmost importance to me, and in many cases, society.

We live in an unsettling world.  The amount of uncertainty is enormous and that provides a state of anxiety for many of us.  We’re hyper-vigilant impacting our sense of calm, perspective, and focus.  The media has heightened our need to be informed.  Our safety is threatened by politics, the environment, and the recent repeal of human decency.

The focus of my forty days of meditation is “protection”.  The desire, need, and right to feel safe in our country, our homes, and our hearts.  The work I’m creating will provide me with a sense of safety because I have the freedom to create.  It will provide me with a sense of calm because I’m choosing to be mindful (anyone who doesn’t think textile art doesn’t require mindfulness has never been cut with a rotary cutter or burned with an iron).  It provides me with a sense of community and purpose because I’m hoping the work will share the common story we’re currently living.

Join me on this journey (www.feastforthesoul.org).  It can have transformative capabilities and will reinforce the feeling of being in community.