| Things are progressing progressively. ~ Sam French |
The quote above was my granddad’s reply to the question, “How are things going?” There’s a lot of wisdom in that response. What more can we hope for, than to be making progress? Sometimes progress feels like a leap forward, other times it seems like two (or more) steps back for every step forward.
- This week’s artist is – Kate Jarvik Birch – whose work I ran across in this interview. I’ve always been intrigued by the idea of daily art projects and am drawn to her brightly colored paintings. Be sure to check out her instagram and tiktok for even more!
- After seeing photos of these straw creatures in Japan, I feel like I might need to step up my fall decorating and jack-o-lanterns!
- If you’re a fan of comics, you might enjoy reading a never-ending comic. It’s a collaboration between over 500 artists (and you’re invited to join!) Learn more about the project here.
- The discussion in the comments of this blog post about the most influential landscape painter was pretty interesting to read.
- For the literary arts, here’s a fascinating look at writing only through the punctuation marks (and the tool used to do so).
- Speaking of tools – this is a comparison between works created by Artificial Intelligence and an artist. It makes me think of the phrase wabi-sabi.
- As a fan of stationery and writing (even though my handwriting is pretty atrocious), I enjoyed reading the history of Library Hand.
- Need a bit of inspiration? Pick a random color palette and see where that take you. (I love reading the names of colors.)
- There is a lot of live music scattered around town. See who’s playing where here.
- The Durango Arts Center has a lot of things going on – classes and workshops for kids of all ages. Check them out here.
- In case Ignacio is more conveniently located, the Dancing Spirit Gallery also has classes for students and workshops for adults.
- Just in case that’s not enough, Artsy Crafty Studio on 3rd Avenue also has classes and workshops.
- Are you ready? Saturday, October 30th is 2021’s last 5th Saturday event at the Art Supply House!
- The leather and wood-working sections have been shuffled around. We definitely needed more space for the wood and tools. If you haven’t seen the updated areas, be sure to swing by and see it for yourself!
In an interview, Kate (today’s artist) shared the hints she commonly offers to people asking how to start their own full-time art careers.
- Paint often and post your work as consistently as possible.
- Try to find your own unique voice so people recognize your art as yours.
- Find places to show your art like local galleries, art shows, or farmers’ markets.
- Don’t get discouraged and don’t be afraid to fail. Like my art teacher said, it might take 100 paintings before you make anything good.
Number 4 is important for anyone who wishes to improve at their craft. We so often have “near-misses” that just aren’t great. They’re part of the process, however. Maybe we have a string of near-misses and then, suddenly, one of our pieces turns out great and we’ve taken a leap forward. With a toddler around my house, I’m commonly reminded of something I once heard somewhere:
When a baby tries to take a step and falls down, we don’t say, “Well, walking just isn’t for you.” We encourage them to try and try again. Eventually, those stumbles provide the practice and knowledge of what not to do so that the baby grows into a toddler, a walker, a runner… and generally a mobile person. We don’t expect them to walk perfectly at the first step. Yet, we expect that of ourselves.
The world needs your art. Maybe you aren’t thrilled with where your current abilities are – but you can get there. Keep on progressing, progressively!
Cheers!
Matthew & the Art Supply House crew