Defining Moments in Life and Art

I must have heard something while watching TV the other night that guided me to making this page, I'm sure the words were always in me, it just took a trigger to allow them to flow out.  Creating doesn't always take a linear path as one might think.  There are a lot of moving parts that create the line that forms from the past, present and future.    Some of those little dots in life are what I'm calling "Defining Moments".

Those defining moments are the pivotal points in one's life that shape us into the persons we are today.   For all the good and the bad that may come before us, it is the path that we walk along and the turns we end up taking that shape us.  Most of those moments require faith in something greater than ourselves, if for nothing else, than to give us guidance when there is little else to hold on to.
The strength to overcome adversity or to endure in times when life is moving at a pace greater than the speed of life,  is drawn from where or who?  

Can you think of a few Defining Moments in your life? They don't necessarily have to be traumatic or negative moments. More than likely you have a mix of positive and negative events that have occurred that have shaped you into the person you are today.     I know for myself, I have had many turning points that as I look back on now,  are definitely categorized as the turning points for me.

This piece to the right is a copy of one of my first mixed media art pieces ever.   I remember that is was created during a rather dark period of my life yet there was tons of hope in my stride.  But the ability to shine that light was drawn from wells I never knew existed within me.  

Never assume you know the truth behind one's ability to shine......   Why some persevere and some falter is a mystery, but it often comes from something bigger than ourselves.  

During that time of my life, I decided to turn to art as my saving grace.   I have to believe that I had an angel surrounding me helping me to be brave and carry on.     The art that comes out from my heart and head is recipe from all the ingredients from those defining moments that are sometimes never spoken about or rarely focused on anymore....but they are there.  They will always be there.

The more in tune with yourself and your reason for doing what you do....the easier it becomes to allow that flow to surface during your creative sessions.    Turning your truth and recollection of history into a creative memoir whether it be a painting, poem, or short story, is a calling that is hard to ignore.  You never know when that truth will turn another's life around and become their defining moment in life.  

Until next time,

Jodi
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In The Quiet of the Night....Reflections from the studio

 

One of the things "They", forget to tell you or talk about when you work alone and from home...is how lonely and isolating it can be, even if you are doing what you love and couldn't think about doing anything else.  The freedom of being able to walk right into my studio any time, day or night is glorious and amazing.  It's also very quiet at times and extremely, well...solitary.

There are times when I relish the quiet moments, escaping from the noise and clutter of the world as I paint away and make peace with my mind and allow my heart to open up so I can create without boundaries.

And then there are times when the quiet is deafening. I wonder in my head what am I missing, not really wanting to find out truthfully because I've come to feel safe in my studio and getting out would require me to become unsafe and to be seen once again.  

As I finished this set of paintings I started as demos for my last class....one of the few times I really have been around a group of people in quite some time...I reflected back on the slight anxiety I had about leaving my studio for something other than a quick jaunt to the store or out to dinner with friends.  It is becoming quite clear to me just how isolated my world has become the more and more I grow as an artist and as my business grows.    

At times, its' a bit disconcerting.   I wonder if I'll always feel this way.  It's not a bad or a good thing truthfully. I don't regret anything I've done or not done...but I still wonder if the trade off for doing something you are so passionate about, you care less and less about other things...or am I just putting a wall up as someone suggested so there is no hurt or chance of vulnerability.

Maybe the hibernating/isolation/is merely a result of a long cold winter, one where the comfort of home is really the only company I've needed.   

As I completed each Angel (there are others in this group)...I had a slow soft tear wander down my cheek. It was as if I knew that these were not mine to keep, they belonged to someone else in the world, that person unknown for the moment, but they are out there.   Nothing created is truly my own...nor is it any artists. We are all vehicles.  I think there is great joy in knowing that..and a touch of sorrow too. 

 Letting go isn't easy.  When you are in the quiet of your studio, painting in isolation..the revelation that you can't hold on to anyone or anything forever is repeated day in and day out.  It can be an emotional roller coaster sometimes.  

The  release isn't just about the art.

It's about life in general.

One must feel the bad to feel the good. Experience the pain, to know the elation of joys that come our way.  We must truly feel isolated to understand the comfort of being surrounded by love. 

We must feel it all...there's no escaping it, no matter what path you choose in life.

I see how it's not living in any extreme for too long that saves us from the pitfalls and the climaxes that can put us over the edge at any moment in time.

Late night musings as she paints in the quiet of the evening.

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