Week 12 - Creative Lull, Application Hell
I asked ChatGPT (this is an AI generator) to write me a short poem that pretty much summarizes my week, so here you go:
In the dance of life, a constant strive,
Studio dreams, but work's alive.
Balancing act, a daily feat,
Full-time grind, life's busy street.
Friends and self-care, essential too,
Yet the studio calls, a passion true.
Workday echoes, a relentless beat,
Yearning for the studio's retreat.
In twilight's calm, a chance to find,
A space where dreams are unconfined.
Balancing life's vibrant score,
The studio whispers, yearning more.
Documented my sculpture!
I am in a making lull. This week was spent mostly on application work and maybe a bit of creative avoidance. The shorter days have definitely gotten to my spirit a bit, and I’ve been wanting to put my energy into friendships and work, rather than clay. I’ve been working a lot, though, and it’s hard to balance working full time with my studio practice. I’m not tired of clay by any means — there is always a little voice in my head nagging me to go create — I just wish I could double the amount of time in the day.
Anyways, some exciting things happened this week! On Wednesday, Molly, GH, and Autumn opened their collaborative show in the Spacelab, and it was pretty epic. I am super inspired by the way that they were able to create harmony within their very different art styles and paint a cohesive narrative in their installation. I appreciated the humor and play in their show, and it really got the gears turning in my head on what Hailey, Max and I will do for our upcoming show, and how I might use the space to explore in the future (I am definitely planning on renting it out for a solo installation next semester).
The IUS Juried Show opened on Thursday night, and I’m honored and grateful to have received the Artist & Craftsman Award for my Propriocepta sculpture. This is the first award I’ve won for a ceramic piece!
Speaking of portfolios, the Penland Studio Assistant Scholarship application really took a lot out of me; I am out of writing practice and it’s really, really hard for my brain to write essays to begin with. I also want to apply for a general scholarship, but it’s difficult not to feel discouraged when it took me two full days to complete a simple application. Completing this application also made me realize that I have a lot of documentation organizing and website refining to do. I’ve been slowly working on that today and will continue to put my energy into this on days I don’t feel like going into the studio.
I did put in some hours adding coils onto my big two-part sculpture project, but it still has a very long way to go.
I’m eager to see my some of my bisqued work (specifically my large sculpture and some of my cups/goblets) through the wood kiln and can’t wait to spend the end of next week firing it. If they turn out good, they will really boost my portfolio. We've done some wood fire prep this week, and I’m so, so giddy!
weekly gratitudes
~ Receiving an award at the juried show
~ Being able to apply to great opportunities
~ Studio and work community
artists on my mind
Erin Berry, Nalani Stolz
thinking about:
Reminding myself that I only just started doing ceramics three years ago, and I am here to take creative risks and build my portfolio in preparation for big applications. Part of that journey is completing applications that I don’t feel entirely proud about. Putting energy into the invisible side of being an artist is just as valid as producing tangible work. I am growing as an artist, even if I am not actively pushing out work.