How artists identify.

While driving home from Bowling Green today, I heard Herbie Hancock on the radio doing an interview. He was explaining how his music had progressed recently, and he said something that stuck with me.

He said that before, he had considered his identity as that of a musician. Now, he says, being a musician is what he does. His identity belongs to humanity, though, and he uses themes in his work such as environmental change and whatnot to emphasize this.

I have heard something similar coming from the Dalai Lama. He says:

"In general, I always state that I have three commitments in life. Firstly, on the level of a human being, my first commitment is the promotion of human values such as compassion, forgiveness, tolerance, contentment and self-discipline. All human beings are the same. We all want happiness and do not want suffering. Even people who do not believe in religion recognize the importance of these human values in making their lives happier. I remain committed to talk about the importance of these human values and share them with everyone I meet. Secondly, on the level of a religious practitioner, my second commitment is the promotion of religious harmony and understanding amongst different religious traditions. Despite philosophical differences, all major world religions have the same potential to create better human beings. It is therefore important for all religious traditions to respect one another and recognize the value of each other's respective traditions. Thirdly, I am a Tibetan and carry the name of the Dalai Lama. Tibetans place their trust in me. Therefore, my third commitment is to the Tibetan issue. I have a responsibility to act the free spokesperson of the Tibetans in their struggle for justice. As far as this third commitment, it will cease to exist once a mutually beneficial solution is reached between the Tibetans and Chinese. However, my first two commitments I will carry on till my last breath."

We all have groups we associate with our identity, and as an artist, I believe my identity should be shaped first by my commitment as a human, and second as an artist.

Doodly goodness

It's time for another doodle entry!
These are all from the same sketchbook.
I tend to take my sketchbook with me everywhere I go, so if I get bored, I have something to do!
Occasionally, I'll see something really grand, which I will then put to paper, and so the creation happens.
Regardless, here are some general musings:

This was a fun personal project. I was obsessed with smoke for a while, and I thought I would try to render it in as many ways as I could. This is one of them. I covered the sketchbook pages with blue tissue paper, then stitched the smoke pattern through the paper, and colored on top of the tissue paper.

This is my loving partner, who I adore. He has been subjected to many candid drawings over the course of our five-year relationship.

Halfway through this drawing (done at the cafe I work at), I found myself asking, "Mindy, what the hell are you doing?This is way too detailed for you to be sane!"

Through my relatively short life, the one thing I have found to be true is that change is the only constant.

This was drawn from memory of a Ratatat concert I attended last year. Amazing.

How to stay inspired as an artist

Recently I visited an open-gallery event in my city at a building that hosted art studios called The Pendleton.
While walking around viewing the artwork, I conducted an informal interview with a few artists I could find. I was terribly surprised at their answers to the question "What is your greatest challenge as an artist?"

They all said they had trouble staying inspired!

Now, with every creative discipline, we all struggle to create fresh, inspiring works. Authors have writers block, and artists get artists block. I asked these artists how they deal with these periods of dead air, and these are a few of their suggestions:
-Go to a place that inspires you (suggested by a landscape painter), and just keep trying!
-Change the size or medium that you usually work in.
-Work on other work during these periods, and engage in other creative activities such as gardening, quilting, or sewing- anything to keep your creative side engaged!

This is a hints-and-tips sneak peek at how I keep myself inspired day-to-day:

This is my inspiration wall. It consists of drawings I've made, articles I've clipped, work that people have made for me, inspirational photos, notes about what I need to work on in my art, etc. It keeps me creatively-focused, reminding me where I've been, and inspiring me about where I need to go.

Keep some books around to flip through for ideas, reference, or just to get some creative juices flowing! I keep old sketchbooks around too, to remind myself of my previous styles.

Just keep some things you like around your place- whether it's your studio, or your living space, or wherever you need that comforting aspect added to your daily environment. It's important to feel comfortable in your own space.

Other suggestions:
-Have a slide show of inspiring photos playing on your computer, to the tune of your favorite iTunes playlist.
-Find a great, inspiring website that offers little tidbits of beauty every day! *Cough*likethiswebsite!

I hope this helps you find your creative niche!

A snippet from one of my artistic heroes:
Miranda July

Interview Magazine: "What is the purpose of making art, in your opinion?"

Miranda July: "I'm just gonna go for broke on this one and say that we do it because life is so ridiculously gorgeous, strange, heartbreaking, horrific, etc... that we are compelled to describe it to ourselves, but we can't! We can not do it! And so we make art."

I'm going to start a new art thing.
One day a week, I am going to designate as "Doodle Day."
On this day, I will post (you guessed it!) Doodles!
These will be fun visual aventures into the crazy universe I call my mind.
I know you're on the edge of your seat.
Today: random sketchbook day!