Wednesday, March 4, 2015

Art Making Is My Lifeline.


Music is playing in the studio.  I've been hand-building some experimental new little sculptures.  Today, I got out the wax to begin the glazing process.  Even though, this is not my favorite part of my art making process, I found myself singing along with Wicked while I worked and the waxing whizzed by.

My art work is my lifeline.  I couldn't imagine a life without it.  Yes, I've been doing something creative since I could pick up a pencil, but it's much more than that.  Creativity is my soul's refuge and art making is nourishment in good times and bad.

Last week was bad.   My sweet Jilly, the bounciest of doggies, wouldn't move.  Tests revealed a mass on her spleen and the prognosis was not good.  I was sad and shocked and scared.  

And that's when art making is magic.  

As I worked in the studio, Jilly rested on her dog bed a few feet away.  I could hear her breathe while I under glazed and notice her restlessness or a need to go out.  The more I worked, the more I relaxed, I now see, the more Jilly relaxed too.  She rested while I worked and we both got stronger.

This week, Jilly is up and around.  She's barking and walking around the neighborhood and chewing on her favorite bones.  She's eating up the chicken liver and rice combo, demanding her favorite peanut butter cookies and beef jerky.  Sniffing, eating fresh grass and napping outside in the sun.

I'm waxing my pieces and smiling and sighing with a certain contentment that I didn't even know I had in me.  

Sun shines on my heart as I work on my art.  It's magic.

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