Sunday 4 November 2012

The Beginning

Where do I begin? What is my purpose of this challenge, and where could it possibly lead me?

What feels like quite a while ago, a friend of mine (who inspires me very, very, much), was doing her own version of the time based creativity challenge. She made some or did something creative every day for an entire year. She is already an incredible artist, and the work she produced during this time was fantastic. Somehow, doing this kind of challenge struck me as deliriously fabulous. The idea of pursuing creativity and creating art every day... it's wonderful. Somehow even more so when the person involved in this challenge is already an artist, and makes their life of it.

Personally, this is what makes it more challenging. I already create things every day, because I am in art school, and I create items for sale on Etsy. Such a challenge should be a walk in the park, right?

Wrong. I am going to try to step away completely from the things that I do for school and work. Every day, my own challenge will be to pursue something different, and engage in different things that I don't give myself the time for. I create art every moment, but it is not the art that makes me happy. I'm not necessarily trying new things or engaging myself. I tend to not finish my own personal projects, and the things that I dream of get pushed to the side. It's like I'm regularly neglecting the excited and intrigued part of my soul to waste my time or spend my time doing other things that "need to get done".

Of course, these things get done any ways. So.... why on earth am I not making myself happy for a few moments every day to create something different, and continue pursuing the projects and small works of art that make me feel like I have genuinely accomplished something, without being told to? Good question indeed.

Don't get me wrong. I like the work that I do for school and my small business. I just also like creating things that I don't have to create, and that cause me to be thrilled with myself while doing them?

This challenge is a challenge to create something new and creative every day, for an entire year. I chose the name '12 Months of Alice' for this project because I know that madness will pursue me in every stitch, every ink blot, every bit of work I do. In pursuing this project, I am falling down my own version of the rabbit hole, into unknown territory. It could be wondrous. It could be a dream. It could be nightmarish and prove to be incredibly cruel to myself. Ultimately, it could be anything, just like Alice's adventure in Wonderland and through the looking glass. Perhaps my work will be more influenced by Alice in Wonderland, as my mind is already. Perhaps she and the world of Wonderland will continue to only inhabit my mind, and nothing about my work will change.

Only the hands on the white rabbit's pocket watch can tell. Now off I scurry... To whatever adventures lie ahead.

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