My neighbor across the street has a front yard full of what I think are oriental poppies. I loved how they looked before they bloomed and they got me thinking about this paper cutting. I’ve been mulling it over for a couple weeks and I finally decided how to approach it. I’ll be adding color to this one and the previous one over tonight and tomorrow. Finished paper cuttings coming soon…
Some more things in progress… I’m doing lots of drawing this morning before I move into coloring my previous piece. Actually sitting down to draw a design out is the hardest part of the whole process. It’s easiest to put off.. it requires the most thought.. you don’t really know what’s going to come out… it might look terrible (I have a few drawings meant for paper cuttings that will never see the light of day).. Once I get the pencil on the paper, it’s more difficult to stop working because I’m always eager to see how it will turn out.
This is another that I’m not totally sure where I’m going with it. I had a basic idea in my head, sat down and started into it. I’ve got all the major cutting work done.. now for deciding on color and a couple other finishing details.
I guess I could safely say that I’m entering the thick of art fair preparations and I’m adopting my seasonal schedule of “up at 4am to mat prints..”. I usually get up early, but my early morning activities generally only entail sitting around with a cup of coffee for a couple hours. I’m hoping to actually be prepared this year without stressing. Last year, I traveled with lots of extra supplies to Colorado so that I could keep working while I was there and it really took up lots of extra space in my vehicle (even had to ship some stuff..). I’m trying to travel lighter this year..
Things I didn’t accomplish: I didn’t get my animation finished for the Free State Film Fest – that’ll have to wait. Couldn’t match my ideas/ visuals/ available time in my head. And I bugged out trying to update my website – I have an outdated version of WordPress and I need to back up my blog, update software, etc.. This is something I’ll have to pay somebody to do. I’d likely accidently delete the whole thing if I tried to do it myself. Any takers? .. Gonna wait on it for a bit anyway.
Back to the cutting, matting, printing, framing, day-dreaming, coffee-drinking grind.
“Synchronicity is an ever present reality for those who have eyes to see.” ~Carl Jung
Colorado, 2011
…and breaking screws, chipping frames, cutting fingers.. This is my least favorite part of the whole process.. Without fail, once I get something in the frame and sealed up, I find dust on the inside of the glass. But, once I get it cleaned out (again and again and again), I get to my most favorite part which is seeing the paper cuttings under glass.
I’ve been really careful to be really mindful about the seeds that I planted last month.. and these two sunflowers were growing beautifully, so I decided that I would put them out in the direct sun and fresh air (rather than in my kitchen window) for the afternoon in a place where my squirrel friends do not frequent (I did it yesterday too, without incident). Well… I went to check on them and found them chewed off at the base of the sprout but uneaten. I suppose the remaining stalks will likely grow again. Alas, I can’t be mad at the squirrels — I’m sure it was done with no ill will. I will not deny that they’d eat me out of house and home if I’d let them. They’ve completely eaten my hibiscus tree and have just about devoured my hanging bird seed bell, and several times I’ve witnessed them falling about 7 feet off of my roof onto my deck trying to get to it, yet they get up and start plotting again unharmed.