Have you ever had to have "the talk" with yourself? No - not the S-E-X talk. The S-T-U-F-F talk is what I mean. That's when you have to tell yourself (sometimes repeatedly) that you have enough STUFF already and you don't need another pencil, pen, tube of paint, bit of ephemera, or whatever the stuff happens to be at the moment. I've had this talk with myself over and over this year. Expenses are higher, income is smaller (lost my PT income). But the real breaking point for me is there is just no more space to put the stuff I keep bringing into this house! And I live alone in a 3 BR house with a huge attic and full basement so there just is no excuse for this. Also driving this new clarity for me is that I've been working all year, a little at a time, on cleaning out parts of my parents home in preparation for selling it. I'm seeing the detritus of 50+ years in one home and while I'm tickled to find things my mom saved, like our letters to Santa, written 40 yrs or more ago, there are things that I'm wading through that just didn't have to be saved all these years. Like every bill they ever paid. Like every old DayTimer filler from 30 yrs. of business calendaring. All this sorting through the bits of a lifetime is making me take a long hard look at my own home and the things I choose to save. And, as I discovered this afternoon, when I removed the cartoon-y band aid from the site of my flu shot, and I thought - "hmmm - I should use this in a journal layout - it would be cool to have this little bit of my DNA immortalized along with my thoughts for the day" - then I realized, ok kid, you
definitely have gone OVER the edge if you are thinking about keeping a used band aid as fodder for artwork! Yes, I know - EVERYTHING can be recycled or upcycled and everything is fair game for our artistic creations. But enough is enough! So tonight I am having "the talk" with myself, yet again. Sigh. I'd be interested in hearing how (or where) you draw the line on the "stuff" you choose to keep for your art.
3 comments:
Ha! this is SO me too! (only no attic)and I didn't consider keeping my band aid from my blood work today...but I also know that my mom has saved stuff that I never took from their house too! How can I trash that big box of art work from high school? well, you know the chalk pastel of Pres. LB Johnson on velvet paper is going to bite the dust...but drawings of Greek sculpture and fashionista girls...I just don't know. how will we ever get brutal enough to clear it all out? I did clear out a couple of tubs of paper. magazine photos that I don't really use in my collages any more. but still so much more to deal with. maybe we would do better if a non-artist helped us do the clear out? or maybe we wouldn't want anyone to see the actual disaster!! I have been dreaming of a new craft room, but there is a snowball effect (into other rooms) and it's so hard to begin. I am so with you. you are not the only one! just wish I knew the solution...guess we need to just start and do a little bit at a time...
Well I have had that talk. When I look at what I have I realize that all of this stuff represents time. How much time do I or will I devote, give, dedicate my life to. I only have one life and some many days, and reasonably a lot of it is taken up with living and fooling around. So how much do I need, why is it, stuff a blanket of security. Why do I identify so hard with stuff?
I love this section from your blog banner.....me too!!
"I'm another one of those crazed artists. I just have to be creating something everyday or I'm not happy"
I'm glad I stopped by your blog today :)
Micki x
Post a Comment