Well, I don’t have a photograph to prove it, but I did happily manage a few hours in the studio this week. Six, to be exact, over the course of two days. I did some shuffling and rearranging, to make space to work among all the disparate items stored in that small room. I did some tidying, just to make it more pleasant. Finally, I worked on some art.
Not the finding-flow/following-the-muse/wild-inspiration type of art-making. No, this was a necessary – but not as glorious – aspect of the process.
I dismantled one large collage that I’d assembled a couple weeks ago, spread the elements out so that I could recall their positioning, and – one-by-one – glued them into place. I tweaked the design a bit before calling it done. Then, I coated both sides of the heavy paper collage with gel medium, wrapped it in thin plastic, layered it between two sturdy plywood boards, and tucked in between my mattress and box spring to dry.
Art is one of those activities that sometimes brings great excitement, at other times just soothes. Sometimes decisions have to be made every moment; other times it is just going through the necessary motions.
I like all aspects of the process.
cindyricksgers 
I love all aspects of the process too. It almost doesn’t require an end product. Although, I do have to say I’d love to see your collage. PS – love the mattress tip!!
Well, the collage still needs work as you can see in my more recent post…but thanks for the encouragement. It is okay…as you say, it almost doesn’t require an end product.
i’m glad that you’re making progress! putting the work between the mattresses is smart… i have pondered hanging frames against the ceiling — i think we both need some serious studio space!!!!
company is arriving tomorrow, so i’m trying to get the little apt ready… yesterday i managed to saw two boards to the right size, which all but exhausted my energy reserves… then i nailed them in place for a luggage rack and put a coat of white so it didn’t look so ugly…
trying to bounce back from a virus is taking more time than expected…
one of these days we’ll both be in forward throttle mode!!!!
Lisa, you always put me to shame for all you manage to accomplish! Good for you! I still take comfort in whatever small time I can give to making art…and hope for more soon!
Yay you! I’m glad you got to spend some time in the studio. Though I don’t consider myself an “artist,” my craft work requires many processes, and it’s always so nice to get through each step. It’s the little steps that create the great works.
Yes, sometimes the quiet, non-thinking aspects are what I need; other times the excitement. Now, when I don’t get much time in the studio, I don’t always have a choice…but nice to get up there anyway.