Recently a wonderful man named Michael Cunningham asked me a question worth pondering.
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| #21 by Michael Cunningham |
I'm with you Michael! Mostly. No work? No commitments? Sounds like a dream. Full days of studio time with no deadlines and no housework in the way? Gotta admit it sounds heavenly. That darn life thing and work and commitments!?
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| Circles |
Except that I like my commitments. They largely consist of my family and religious duties and they will always be a higher priority than my art. That doesn't mean that I make three course meals every night and devote every waking moment to volunteering at the school or driving them to a million extra-curricular activities. I do enough - but there make room for art. Things here often fall apart when I've got a deadline approaching but it tends to be cyclical - life tends to balance out over the month - definitely not on a daily basis.
So Michael - instead of talking about keeping the passion for art right away - I'm going to start out talking about balance. To me the two are intertwined.
I'm one of those very fortunate people that doesn't need to support myself through what I do so I can say no to too many teaching gigs or to commissions - both of which would tip the see-saw completely too far away from the family. This also means that I have an awful lot of "life and keeping a household" (if not the making a living part) getting in the way of being a full time, productive, artist. I've always envied those who are able to crank out piece after piece. Then I remember - five kids and Mr. Almost Perfect. Being heavily involved in my religious community and with my friends. Ah. I chose these commitments and they're all good.
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| Tiny Sun |
My mantra this past year has been "it's all good." When people asked how I was doing - I used to say "crazy. I'm going crazy." I think I'm a whiner by nature. I could list all the looming deadlines and the million hours of driving and homework and such. I needed to stop the complaining. I hate it when my children whine and complain - especially about the good things that they don't appreciate. So now I say "a little crazy but it's all good" because, truly, it is. I don't have to look far at all to find many, many people who are much less fortunate than I. It's all about perspective, expectations, and vision.
1 - Perspective. Looking at my lack of art time during the intense years of having infants at home from the depths of those trenches was very frustrating. No time. No creativity. Exhaustion. It took a number of years to realize how quickly that time passes. My oldest, who was a baby last time I blinked, is leaving the next this year. With the last baby I told myself - focus on this. Focus on now. Don't wish this time away. Hindsight is perfect right? I could see that this time would fly and chose be happy with what was.
2 - Expectations. Keep it real. During that "trench" time I told myself I was on sabbatical. No worries about getting into the studio or producing anything or entering finished work into shows. I kept a sketchbook so if an idea happened to bubble up through the baby-induced-fog I could catch it before it slipped away. Because I didn't expect any more than that - I wasn't disappointed. Or frustrated. A few art related things actually did find their way into existence and they were a happy and unexpected bonus.
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| Three Leaves |
3 - Vision. Because I had a longer view of my past experience to draw from, I could envision life further into the future. Life is short - but it's long enough. I knew time would be mine later and I had a plan. I spent a lot of time thinking about what I wanted from my art and how to make it happen. When I was ready to get back into the studio I knew what my goals were both long and short term. I had a few immediate goals and many 5, 10, and 20 year goals. Still do. I can manage a few goals each year. I know when I might be able to start work on the more intense goals. I've got some big dreams for waaaay down the road. Even baby steps can get you closer to the top of the mountain!
Perspective - appreciate where you are
Expectations - keep it real
Vision - know where you are and where you are headed
Next week - PASSION for our art.
Where does it come from? How do you keep it burning?
So go check out Michael's daily quilts here.
And tell me how you find your balance.
this was a good read Lyric, thank you.
ReplyDelete~Monika
Thank you again for being such a wonderful teacher Lyric! Your blog once again has touched me. I don't visit often, as life does have a way of pulling me in all directions at present, but when I do I always come away with a seed of hope, of faith and of inspiration!
ReplyDeleteLyric,
ReplyDeletePlease use anything from my blog that will help you teach us all. I am flattered that you want to use my work…Thank you! Love what you have to say…it was just what I needed to hear. I am looking forward to your next install. Balance is a good thing. I need to learn to do it better. I am more of a “all or nothing” kind of guy. I need to set limits and goals. One goal I have this year is to enter a quilt in a show. Now just to find the time to work on them…Balance, I know, balance… Thank you for your words and inspiration.
Oh Lyric, your blog was just what my heart needed. I'm coming out of a very unbalanced week of health issues, dear-daughters busy-ness and big deadlines quilting for others. Thank you for the inspiration. As Michael said "I am more of a all or nothing kind of" ..girl too. Balance is definitely needed.
ReplyDeleteah yes....balance. I chose that word for this year. my goal is to balance life and art.... only two kids, but I am in the same spot as you...thank you!
ReplyDeleteWell said Lyric. I only have one 10 year old but even so it's so difficult to balance the home life and the art life. Luckily she's a mini-artist herself so I frequently spend time with her making art. If I devote too much time to my art and neglect other household duties I feel so guilty! It's a fine line, this balancing act...
ReplyDeleteGlad I found your blog through SAQA- I've done art all my life too- have a degree- but it is through being a wife and a mother that I now have something to say- don't know how you could have anything to say- if you didn't live life!
ReplyDeleteDear Lyric,
ReplyDeleteThis is a good topic to revisit often. Whether it is children (I have 3, all away from home now and mostly grown up), aging parents, another job, or (fill in the blank here), many of us find it very frustrating when we cannot give art enough of our time, or we are frustrated in trying to find a balance between that world and the other elements in our life.
I recall being very frustrated at not having the time to devote to my art when the children were younger, when I was commuting out of state to care for my mother, and when I was still practicing in the clinical setting.
A wiser woman than I am told me that, "there will be more time" once the children get older. It certainly doesn't feel like it will ever change when you are in the throes of it!
Now, I find that I have more time for art. I am still faced with this issue! How much time should I dedicate toward teaching? Studio wet work? Writing?
I think it never changes: but the things pulling at you for time do.
Thank you for this insightful post. I hope we continue to share and discuss. I think it is very helpful to know that most of us wrestle with it, in one way or another. Sorry for my windy post!
Lyric, Your struggle is one many of us have dealt with over the years. I am a senior citizen now and know of what you speak yet would not trade the time I spent raising three successful children for anything. I also had commitments through my husband's work but was able to stay home to raise the children and run the household, once having to move it four times in five years. I quilted with a grandmother when I was young, sewed clothing through my youth, sewed children's clothing and home goods in young adulthood, tried many, many crafts and arrived back at quilting when the children were beginning to leave home. I still struggle with balance because we moved to a ranch and I have six grandchildren, one of whom I am babysitting right now while the rest of the family is skiing. The search to balance it all never ends though I now have much bigger chunks of time in which to be creative and to produce art that is less hurried or harried in the process. Deadlines still loom and I give my art much more priority at those times. I am happy with my art time now and know you will get to that point also...be patient! Life is good and family will always trump all else in importance because they are there for us unfailingly! XXOO Sandy Mehall
ReplyDeleteI love your comments about balance and your comments on Dieter F. Uchdtdorf in a past blog. I have been a quilter and mother a wife and a library director in Utah and I have found that if you do a little at a time...you can accomplish a lot. I am not quilting at this moment since I am trying to learn to draw and do journal watercolor with Jane La Fazio online class. I can only so much this from a person who has always felt she had no drawing ability.
ReplyDeleteSue Hill
Brigham City Utah