Two weekends ago, I was invited to spend 48 hours off site to focus on my art. It was a wonderful retreat that provided lodging, prepared meals and a quiet place to create among a small group of 3. It was short and sweet and I focused on drawing and painting. I didn’t know what to expect so I brought A LOT of art supplies because I couldn’t narrow it down and grabbed my old sketchbooks in case I needed inspiration.
I started off the time by looking at old drawings and notepads of mine. When feeling a bit lost or starting something new, reflecting on my process over the years can be really helpful and it reminds me of where this art practice has come from. It evolves in some way, but it can also bring comfort and familiarity. I don’t keep a lot of stuff from my past but over the years, I’ve never gotten rid of my old note pads, ceramic journals and other art sketchbooks. They are visual diaries that are very important to me.
There are new paying subscribers here and thought I would share with you a dozen pages from various phases of my art practice. This is an extra post for y’all as a small token of gratitude—thank you so much for the support, it truly means so much! I go in detail about a few of the spreads—some are from over a decade ago when I was in college, some are from my graduate school days and others are related to travel and ceramics. Although sharing this feels vulnerable, it’s also joyous because I can still remember the playfulness and excitement I had in some of these thoughts and sketches. These pages are extra personal for reasons I’m not sure why—as if I’m spilling secrets without the proper code.