Since I'm somewhat new to the art world, I've had a bit of an identity struggle. It's like staring at a blank canvas - infinite possibilities can be overwhelming. I feel I've found my writing voice, but what's my "artistic voice"? I enjoy looking at the work of others. It's inspiring. But it's not my own...
I found it helps to create artificial constraints. I'm reminded of the show "Chopped" on the Food Network. Chefs receive a basket of four ingredients and have 30 minutes to transform them into a dish. The ingredients are often, um, eccentric and totally unrelated to other things in the basket. It's a great show if you haven't seen it. My son loves guessing who's getting chopped in each round.
My latest approach to creating has been shopping at Goodwill and other thrift stores. I pick out interesting, mismatched sheets, cool print skirts, wool sweaters for felting, and then try to combine them with other finds stashed at home. Like the mystery basket on "Chopped", the more you transform the ingredients and successfully integrate them, the better.
I enjoy the creative challenge, I like up-cycling castoffs, and I like supporting local charities. Seems win-win-win to me. I've come up with some cool combinations, but unfortunately, it looks like Goodwill exploded all over my workroom. :) No wonder companies publish books and mags dedicated to craft room storage!
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