Creative Process

What Value Matters Most?

December 12, 2020March 15, 2021by Sidewalk Face at Eagle-Crow-Owl3 Comments

Kindness.

Essay done.

Okay, that’s true for me personally, but I’m asking in regard to the creative process not human relationships. Here’s why.

Voyage LA magazine did a profile on me in 2018. A few weeks ago, they asked if I wanted to participate in their Shoutout Series by answering one of several questions. Well doesn’t that just sound super up my alley! I would love to, thanks! I select What value or principle matters most? Would you have rather heard the answer to: What’s the end goal? Where do you want to be professionally by the end of your career? The answer to that one is easy; I want to have made an absolute ton of art and I want to die suddenly while doing it. I don’t want to be anywhere professionally, hopefully I will die on my own free time. Not up to me though and I definitely don’t want advance knowledge. I do however, very much want to know the answer to the question I’ve chosen, but what is it?

I sit down to write it out and get this: Repetition. Repetition. Repetition. Cute start but then nothing else comes. I know repetition is important, but it doesn’t seem very inspiring. I move to intuition, much more mysterious. Maybe too mysterious? I need to write something that helps people foster that value and don’t know how one can become more intuitive. Could observation get the job done?

I throw all three out to my Instagram friends. What do they think? Should I write about Repetition, Intuition or Observation? A wealth of thoughtful reponses helped me see all three were related. If for some reason you are a curious weirdo (I know I am so it’s not a slur) you can read their insightful responses here: https://www.instagram.com/p/CIYVPgyHqmh/

The overwhelming consensus was observation. I was leaning that way anyhow so it’s a slam dunk. I am going to write that one. Because it’s for a general audience that doesn’t know about Sidewalk Face, my offering will probably be a bit light so I’ll also attempt a deeper dive here, for you guys, and really try and nail down once and for all how these three skills interact and contribute to the creative process.

Will post more when more has been accomplished!

Creative Process, Striving to Be Better

Tough Year Photo Album – Make the Obstacle the Solution

December 7, 2020December 7, 2020by Sidewalk Face at Eagle-Crow-Owl2 Comments

We can’t see the grandmothers this year. You know why. You probably have a similar problem. I’ve been trying to figure out what I can do to make it one degree less sucky. I had an idea that we could make them a photo album. I used to do this every year and they loved it. It’s so easy when you have a toddler. Toddlers are adorable. It practically makes itself. We aren’t as cute as we used to be, but I bet the grandmothers won’t care.

I quickly gathered up the mish mash of 2020 and imported to Shutterfly. They do their best to “help” get your book going and immediately I had some spreads to look at. They put the absolute worst photo on the cover. It’s an iPhone selfie of us three all masked up. You can’t see any facial features except eyes and I’m thwarting that with dark sunglasses. Everyone looks awkward and unhappy. This was my Aha! moment. Lean into the awful! Make the obstacle the solution! This stupid photo album would showcase our stupid year. I’ll keep the masks on the cover!

Here’s some of the text that accompanied the spreads:

• 2020 was a tough year

• We had to learn to wear masks

• We were online a lot – so many pictures of us staring into screens. Normally super boring but now thematically on point!

• We also played games and did puzzles. We wish we could have done some of them with you. – Still wishing that.

• We made a lot of treats and watched the first woman become VP – We happened to have a photo of us watching the Biden/Harris acceptance speech with freshly baked cookies on the table. Otherwise those two categories would have stayed separate.

There was other text, but you get the idea. It was actually fun to play up the negative. Black humor is a weapon against bleakness. That’s what creativity is really good for, turning poop into fertilizer. It’s a transformative act that takes the worst and makes it the best. Every tv show and movie is built around conflict. Drama sucks but it’s interesting when filtered through story so take your drama and make it amuse you. I know our grandmas will like it. They are the ones who taught us to view the glass as half full.

Art, Creative Process, Sidewalk Faces

Do It Now – Foil the Inner Critic

November 23, 2020by Sidewalk Face at Eagle-Crow-Owl4 Comments

There’s been a lot of road work in the neighborhood; lots of large metal sheets covering the plumbing underneath. I pass by one with a turquoise paint splotch and the color catches my attention. I stop and stare. There’s already an obvious eye, that’s promising. It would need another one, something kind of big, the little seeds in my purse aren’t going to get the job done. I glance around but don’t see anything useful. I’m in a hurry to get to work. It doesn’t matter. I don’t need this face.

A few feet later I come across a chain and hook, probably used to lift and move those slabs. Not this again. I don’t have time to monkey around with a cumbersome object and I already learned my lesson about taking stuff like this home. I’m not assuming responsibility for the next two years. I walk on.

Wait! It hits me. The hook could be the eye and the chain could be the nose for that splotch. Okay. You win, imagination. I’m turning around and doing this.

The lesson from the two year bike chain saga (chronicled in the Bags of Crap Series which you can find on my home page) is that you need to act on opportunity right when it first walks through the door. What you do, gets done, what you don’t do fades like fog on a hot day or becomes a big headache. I’ve trained myself to get to it and get to it quickly. No over thinking, just get her done.

Besides the lack of nagging dissatisfaction that missed opportunity often creates, I usually get something really unexpected from acting quickly. I most certainly didn’t pre-visualize this anxious fellow. The hustle forces me to bench my inner critic. No time to consult him. He’s such a drag anyway. He only approves of things the world has already vetted, meaning, he only likes what other people like. Too much originality makes him nervous and then he starts chattering away in my ear, blowing my confidence. For example, he might say, that hook doesn’t look like an eye to me. What’s going on with the bottom of the nose, there’s no shape there. Too bad you don’t have any darker sticks. A shame you threw them all away when you were cleaning out your bags.

Stop! This is not helpful!

Is this a portrait of him? I think it is! He doesn’t seem to like it. Too bad. Go away if you don’t want your picture taken. No one invited you on this walk anyway.

That’s mean. I am sorry. Let’s be friends. Why don’t you enjoy the stroll and help me out when I get home and we’re trying to select the best picture to post. You’ll be good at that.

Why is that critical people are always the first ones to get there feelings hurt? I could ask myself if I really cared to hear the answer. Moving on! Gotta get to work.

I didn’t leave this face in place, not good for car tires. I put the chain on some road work related stuff so it could be retrieved. You’re welcome LADWP and thanks so much for keeping everything in good working order!