i recently discovered a statement made by georgia o'keefe. she speaks about how she physically burned all work prior to that we can now identify as her art. i began thinking about how i can metaphorically do the same thing. create a burned, charred ground perfect for becoming more of who i am but in a different direction. the one year haitus from shows i'm taking to spend with my art has proven to be quite challenging. creating for the sole purpose of well,...creating. no destination in site just journey. stirring my purpose, my spirit, my creative juices, planting seeds for what's to come. it is not the lack of ideas but the abundance of too many. forcing myself to edit myself visually. i suppose one way to do that is like georgia o'keefe and throw it all out and start fresh. i think there is more of a bridge from where i was... to where i'm going and instead of burning it completely down, unable to go back, i may just keep the creativity bridge in tact.
“My soul is from elsewhere, I'm sure of that, and I intend
to end up there.” - Rumi
"i didn't choose art, it chose me. I came into this world ready to create and every day I have breath, creativity will abound...sometimes if only in my own imagination"~kottavei 2012
this has been a week of imagining & contemplating the possibilities. i'm finding that when you have the ability to do multiple things that editing is very important. i have nine avenues i want to take & explore with my creativity but simply put, i have to start with one. love it. develop it fully then see if it takes me down a light filled road. and should i follow my creative intuition and it lead me to a dead end.... i'll just turn around, go back and retrieve the next idea waiting to be loved.
an idea should be well loved like a beloved book or stuffed animal
looking forward
this first week of 52 spending time with my art has been eye opening to me. i realized that sometimes you have to finish to start fresh. finishing is part of the process. day one was counterproductive. no art was made in the process of looking for myself. then i got a burst of energy and cleaned the art studio. so a clean space is vital in the producing of new art. right? ideas are running a round in my head like birds fluttering. finding ways to make my inspirations mesh. finding ways to make the mediums i choose blend into one seamless visual cohesive piece of visual wonderfulness. in the discovery process i found brokenness, decided to repair me then see what my inner self has to say to my outer creativity. what art will i manifest while being honest and telling my truths? note to self: don't look back we're not going that way!
what potential looks like....the potential to be anything and everything
so i've decided to take some time off to spend more time with my art..... as of july 1,2012 i am claiming a year to delve deeply into to who i am, what i want to say and how to say it visually as an artist. it's easy to get lost in creating a livelihood and paying bills. i had to remind myself that the art i make is for ME first and foremost. the goal is to create those things i wish to. however, i'm always happy and appreciative of those who enjoy it! i will still be selling all the current work listed on the website and there may be a few new pieces added here and there. i will still continue to paint live for my community of poets & musicians! i do look forward to what the next year of creativity brings! all the days of discoveries and days of angst. they will be part of the process. part of this journey. "i am a quiet spirit with a loud presence"~kottavei 2012
"even when surrounded by others, some paths and journeys are meant to be traveled alone. you can't force companionship in these moments"
~kottavei 2012
“Art is a process, not a product.”
MaryAnn F Kohl
"what would you do if you knew you could not fail?"
let me say in advance that operate under the assumption that i cannot fail. it's not that i have not had failures. i happen to see "no" as an opportunity to find a yes somewhere else. how many times have i wanted to give up just shy of the finish line that i have set? MANY! but i force myself to remember that life is about the journey itself and not necessarily the destination.
then there are the daily reminders....i love white daisies. they remind me to remain humble, beauty can come in simple packages and the most unassuming thing a can be powerful. i always call myself
"a wildflower among roses"
so!... i've been told that i have a beautiful mind...not so very different from the movie of the same title....i concur that i don't think like the masses. i concur that i process what i see, hear, touch, taste and smell unlike most. i concur that i'd rather create than sleep or eat. i concur that my imagination is my favorite place to spend quality time. i concur that i can make wonderfulness from barely anything in a MacGyver like manner. others call me strange or not normal...WHAT does THAT mean anyway? no such thing exists...."normal people scare me!" when you look at me and see an oddity,
i see an artist.
but... i must admit it. i've been slacking on my blog but life happens in the most unexpected ways. i've been moving forward and pursuing dreams and an amazing thing has happened. the universe is facilitating it. i ask and it comes. ok, well, the million is not here quite yet but the phenomenal creatives are! poets, spoken word artists, musicians, visual artists, curators and just beautiful people. some even strangers. one such day i was standing in line in the store and after a brief conversation, this gentleman told me i had "...beautiful intellect". BEST compliment ever! as for the direction of my creative self, lovingly named, inner child, she is thriving. i am paring down to grow. sounds crazy but makes total sense. don't reduced sauces on food taste better because the flavor is more concentrated. same concept!
i feel humbled to be doing what i love for a living creating....
what i've been up to
did you know, that what you give to your children you will most surely receive back?
my parents gave me the gift of freedom. freedom to be who i was anyway. they fed the animal (my creativity) and encouraged it to grow. i've been doing the same for my 5 boys and now that the chickens are beginning to come home to roost, they appear to be happy, well rounded children. music, art, cooking, singing, writing, athletics.... they are simply awesome!
it's no secret that i tell people...
1) i'm raising global children, not local children
2) i'm raising leaders not followers
3) i'm raising thinkers and doers
4) men not boys in men's bodies
from their own mouths, so far i have an architectural engineer (age 12), a chef (age 12), a game designer (age 11), a rock star (age 4) and an artist (age 4). will they become these things? doesn't matter! the point is they are thinking about their futures! not lost in the woods or falling into the stereotypes set before them. anyone can offer anything but that doesn't mean they have to partake of it. they understand choices.
i've caught myself daily telling anyone who will listen that i have good kids. you know what? i REALLY do!!! i thought all this time i was teaching them but guess who got schooled? LOL the lessons have been mine as i continue to learn from the wise. do not discount the children because they are unexpected teachers.
"good parents give their children roots and wings. roots to know where home is, wings to fly away and exercise what's been taught them"- Jonas Salk
my beautiful sons
Boy, n.: a noise with dirt on it.
~Not Your Average Dictionary
_ ARTIST STATEMENTkottavei
“i do not attempt to be a particular type of artist. i create in any medium based on my current inspiration. everyone and everything i encounter has the potential to become art”. rarely will the global female figures i portray be in conjunction with another. i attempt to divulge who we are in our solitary moments , inside our own skin, inside our own minds and deep within our psyche . expose the unrevealed portions of our inner workings that we rarely serve up to others. show women and girls as we are in spirit. what does the spirit of a women look like when interpreted as living and inanimate objects and thoughts? understanding the dynamics of a solitary figure in relationship to very little or nothing at all. it is my intention to show the everyday woman as an icon. my art may come across as unpredictable but it is my wish that i retain my childlike wonder.
for the majority of my life i have pursued my visual art talents and somewhere along the line found I have the gift to alchemize words into something phenomenal others want to read. the process of writing for me is a wish, a meditation and a prayer all rolled into one. i fell in love with the limitations and opportunities found within the traditions of haiku, however, i also write in free form.
"she as fire" acrylic on wood - SOLD
i love tedium. all those traditional arts that have fallen by the wayside due technological advances, i LOVE doing. cross stitch, embroidery, smocking, miniature dolls, knitting, crocheting, quilting by hand, baking from scratch, basket weaving, etc...there is a solid pleasure for me knowing i made something from very little....
artisan bread i made
socks i'm knitting
miniature doll i made
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