Paint Jams!

In preparation for my upcoming talk on Creativity at the Hood River Library I have been going back through sketches and drawings of what I call 'Paint Jams'. Paint Jams are what happens when I put on good music with no intention of doing anything other than making marks that are reflective of what I am feeling while listening. Perhaps Synesthesia has a bit to do with it.
For me the line is the thing.
Line communicates so very much that music does. There is a thickness and richness to sounds and line- they can have the same qualities in very different ways. Jazz is great for this and so is electronic music. My favorites to Jam to are Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Cecil Taylor, and the more modern Mount Kimbe, Emanicpator, Tycho, and Gramatik.

My talk will touch on three artist spanning mediums and will focus on the ideas of what nurtures creativity. In particular, play, community, and perseverance.  We will round out the conversation by doing a Paint (in this case Drawing) Jam and blind/modified contours.

Click on the links embedded in the artists names for the ear candy. :) Below are some of my drawings from previous Paint Jams.

Inspiring Creativity

Flier for my talk.

Happy Tuesday! This week I am working on getting my thoughts together for a presentation I'm doing on Rekindling Creativity at the Hood River Library.  When I embarked on my journey into learning about creativity, I had no idea there was so much work already surrounding it. As an artist and a bit of an introvert I tend to think of myself like an island. What I have learned the most my googling, listening, and reading is that there is a wealth of information and research already out there on creativity. However, rather than focus on the work of neuroscientists, philosophers, and psychologists I'm most keenly interested in what creative people have to say about being creative. I've been listening to interviews with Miles Davis and some of Joyce Carol Oates lectures. Its fascinating to me how this idea of being creative and generating work has similarities across disciplines.
I now feel much less alone and part of a greater universal community of artists. Stoked to present my thoughts and my research. The opportunity to spark discussion and build a local network of creatives is exhilarating! Since this will be my first presentation since college my biggest goal is to build momentum to drive my research and art making.

This is a taste of what my week has been like, listen and enjoy!

Miles Davis Quintet Live at Teatro dell'Arte in Milan, Italy on October 11, 1964

 

Joyce Carol Oates on Inspiration & Obsession

I've also developed a strong liking for Dr. Nancy Andersen and her work with The Creative Thinking Project.
Some of what she has to say is over my head, but a good bit is fascinating, particularly her take on Dr. Lewis Termin's 1921 study of IQ and what happens to kids with high IQs as they grow up (IQs between 140-200). His subjects went on to live very 'successful' lives, they were well off, had good jobs, and overall possessed a good quality of life. However, Dr.Termin,when setting up this study, excluded two children which went on to win Nobel Prizes. Their answers to his IQ questions were divergent and their IQ scores were slightly lower than the range in his study (120 +/- 5pts). So, while creative types are not typically in the 'genius' range of IQ scores, creatives are still above average. Geeky food for thought. I wish I had the time to go down that rabbit hole too!

Parting shots:

My good friend Natalie photographing my work :)

 

Far right panel of 'Spanning (the distance between us)' as seen in the flyer for my talk.

Art, art, EVERYWHERE! Hood River Library and North Shore Cafe in White Salmon :)

Hello and Happy Tuesday!

A cluster of Small Works at the Hood River Library

Last week I was lucky enough to have my mom visit from the east coast. I didn't get much done in the studio, but I did get my work hung at the Hood River Library! Yay! This week I'll be hanging my work at The North Shore Cafe in White Salmon.

Looking down the East Wall of the Meeting Room at the Hood River Library.

We also took a trip into Portland to visit the Saturday Market, I hope to have inventory for art fairs and markets in the future and would really love to be a part of Portland Saturday Market. 

Add that one to my 'Goals for 2016' :)

I was also able to get more work up on Society6, so there's that to be proud of! Whew! I never imagined back in art school that there would be so much work and not art work to being an artist. At least I love every minute of it! More to come next week. Until then, I'll be in the studio (or working)...

 Here's a parting shot for the week. Its my favorite photo from our visit.

My mother and I in Portland at the Saturday Market.