Do you want to know a secret?
Welcome to the fourth edition of The Pulse -- The State of the Art -- a survey in words and pictures of the online artist community. The Pulse is a collaborative project that aims to introduce you to new artists, help you get to know familiar faces even more, and allow you access into the creative hearts and minds of a very talented crew of individuals.
Over 150 (!) artists have answered a series of questions which make up The Pulse. Their responses will be presented as a series of online and print projects. And the first continues right now!
Join the The Altered Page every Sunday for "Secret Sunday." Here the secrets of all your favorite artists will be revealed. It could be a technique, a product, a secret source, a little-known website, a hidden shop, an inspiration, just about anything! If you missed any, no worries. You can find links to all the secrets on the sidebar of my blog.
Today's secret.......Musings!
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Robert StocktonArtist Portfolio:
Robert StocktonWabi-sabi is a Japanese concept which has increasingly had an influence on my artwork and my life. Though I may be stretching things a bit to call it an “art secret,” I find that the ideas that wabi-sabi represent are often present in my artwork, and are also frequently on my mind during the creative process. It is loosely associated with Zen Buddhism, and can actually mean quite different things to different people. To me, it is a recognition that nothing in life is permanent or certain, and that everything in life is in a state of change: of being one thing at the moment, but also being in the process of becoming something else.
It is a recognition, also, that in this life of impermanence and uncertainty, when you are able to be “open” to it (and can avoid holding on to things too tightly), a great deal of beauty can be found there. It is the beauty found in a decaying leaf; the rust stain on the wood left by a nail in a weathered fence board; a once splendid mansion that has fallen into disrepair with crumbling foundation, and overgrown with weeds and moss.
Some basic precepts of wabi-sabi include:
Things are either devolving toward, or evolving from, nothingness
Truth comes from the observation of nature
“Greatness” exists in the inconspicuous and overlooked details
Beauty can be coaxed out of ugliness
Acceptance of the inevitable
Getting rid of all that is unnecessary
I think, more than anything, the concept of wabi-sabi can give one a real sense of the place of the individual in the natural order of things.
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Jacky WilliamsBlog:
ART4MOIMy secret is a quote by Sark that always helps get me going... I'm such a procrastinator. "Remember: First comes action, then inspiration". I have this pinned in my art room and on my fridge to encourage me to just get in and start and it will all come together.
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Jayne Harnett-HargroveBlog:
Harnett-HargroveI am an artist that practices the bastardizations of traditional crafts when needs direct. I think we all know much of process comes down to intuition/intelligence. In the designer/client world knowing how to change the intention, the media, and the expertise level to please the project introduced is imperative for me. I’ve learned how to deal with the real world while living in the creative flux. I have been collaborating, with Hanzon, on a cross-training dictionary of sorts and here is a few of our simple revelations:
1. Materials-altar / Method-alchemy / Inspiration-spirit.
2. There exists in everything the potential of transformation.
The marble not yet carved can hold the form of every thought the greatest artist has. -Michelangelo
3. Try to know if that was the easy part or the hard part.
4. If something is not changing you are not looking close enough.
5. Muse: Learn to work this. Most successful freelancers can't afford to wait for inspiration. People in other professions work everyday whether they feel like it or not.
6. Keep the iron moving.
7. Use gravity to you own advantage.
8. In a proposal I like to always throw in something terribly wrong... just to see if they are watching.
9. Inner-directed / Outer-directed.
10. Edentulous; Without teeth. I just really like this word.
11. Dynamic Change; Change that happens positively, immediately and, is not irreversible.
12. Great creative works are hard work and not simple. But if one is in true quiet profound excitement, and, being in this slipstream of the creative flux is indeed our element of trusting the outcome.
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Leighanna LightBlog:
Leighanna Light ThingMakerBlog:
ThingMaker StudioEtsy:
Leighanna's Etsy Shop1000 Markets:
Leighanna Light ThingMakerJust do it, get yourself in the studio everyday no matter what. If you don't know what to do or don't have a plan, just start by playing.
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