Commissions and Creativity

Are you an artist?  Have you been asked to create a commissioned piece?  How did you feel about that?  How do you handle commissions?

I suspect that some people thrive on them, can see them as a challenge to get their creative teeth into and love the ideas and energy that flows when creating something outside the realm of what they may normally consider doing.

[caption id="attachment_820" align="alignnone" width="206"] Pre-Goddess[/caption]

There is another side to the coin though and if commissions leave you feeling blocked you may need to find a way to say 'no' gracefully.

In the past I have created commissioned beads, eager to try some new technique or thought process, but I have come to understand they are not what I want to be doing.

[caption id="attachment_821" align="alignnone" width="300"] Early Goddess beads[/caption]

Recently I've had requests for certain styles of beads I have made and sold in the past.  Each time someone would ask me if I was going to make 'more of those....' my immediate response would be - 'yes, I hope to have some in the near future'.

A recent conversation on Jani Franck's Blooming Business Facebook group got me doing some serious thinking.

[caption id="attachment_824" align="alignnone" width="289"] Evolving Goddess[/caption]

I learned some important things.  I learned why I said 'yes' to each of these requests -- turns out there was more than one reason.  I said 'yes' because I didn't want to let people down, I said 'yes' because I wanted to keep customers and make sales and I said 'yes' because I honestly thought it would be no big deal to make more of a certain design.

While these might be good reasons to say 'yes', I now realise I had a bigger reason for saying 'no'.

[caption id="attachment_823" align="alignnone" width="266"] Perfecting shapes[/caption]

I found myself not wanting to light my torch,  feeling blocked and weighed down by the thought of recreating beads I had made before.  Several designs loomed as deterrents to my creativity and joy.  I wasn't just not making these requested beads - I wasn't making any beads!

How does this affect potential buyers?  At best they may drift away forgetting that I exist, at worse they will come to see me as someone who doesn't deliver what she says she will.

[caption id="attachment_822" align="alignnone" width="266"] Learning skills - becoming more intricate[/caption]

The lack of momentum, the not following through, the finding excuses not to torch all left me feeling guilty which added to the list of reasons I didn't want to make beads.

At this point I probably should say -- I am eternally grateful to anyone who has ever bought one of my beads or even requested a particular style.  It's a huge thing to feel accepted and validated by somebody else - to have my art appreciated and purchased gives me the ability and desire to continue.

BUT  I now know that next time someone asks me for a bead 'like this' or 'one of those you made before', I will be proactive.  I will gently explain that I cannot guarantee that I will replicate any of my previous designs, that this uniqueness  is a part of what makes them special.  I may make something similar in the future, but the designs are always evolving and changing --- AND improving!

[caption id="attachment_825" align="alignnone" width="300"] Gaining skills, evolving desings[/caption]

As artists we are not mass producers, we create the ideas that flow through us.  To be true to ourselves and our art - AND our customers we need to understand the things that make us feel blocked and if necessary how to politely say 'no'.

Colour Wheel

As our earth and the  year spins through it's seasons we are treated to nature's palette of colours.

None of these are more glorious than at this time of year - Autumn. 

 

It seems to me we may not have as many reds this year but instead have been gifted the most beautiful oranges and golds, set like jewels in the sun on blue skies.



 

I've always enjoyed the crunch of leaves underfoot, and breathed deep on those Autumn days that were still warm and glowing.  It's only recently though that I have come to really appreciate Autumn for the season that it is.  The season of slowing down, of preparing for the Winter ahead and the season of glorious nature giving us one last show before she sleeps until Spring.



 

Autumn is the most wonderful time to look around and really appreciate all that we have.  Not just in our own lives but in the wider world, in the procession of time and the changing carnival before our eyes.



 

On this walk I found a young oak.  The sun was lighting up the leaves in blazing greens, yellows, oranges and reds - all at once.



How can one small tree be so many things all at one time - show so many different facets of itself in one instance.



After all is not 'just' a tree?



 

A walk in nature at any time not only stretches our muscles and cleans our lungs but also refreshes our spirit and our mind.



 

This walk was a reminder to me - to let all of my colours shine, especially the elusive red!

 

Fungusumungus

It's Thanksgiving weekend here in Ontario and the weather is unseasonably mild.  We decided to make the most of the sunny afternoon and take a walk along one of our favourite trails in our area - the Tip to Tip trail in Burritts Rapids.



 

It's a beautiful path that climbs gently up a spit of land between the Rideau River and Rideau canal.

What a perfect day!  The geese were honking and the trees are glorious - not quite so red this year I fancy, but bedecked in glorious shades of gold and orange.



 

This one is one of my favourites - leaves long gone but it's oozing with personality.

I wish I were a gatherer, I wish I knew what to pick that is edible but I don't.  I suggested we look for fungi and see what we could find.  Not to eat of course, no, no!  Just to take pictures!  I was actually surprised at just how many different kinds we found.

There were tiny ones clinging to branches -



 

And drifts of others looking like a flock of moths.

[caption id="attachment_798" align="alignnone" width="480"] Turkey Tail fungus - thanks Jane :D[/caption]

 

Dead and dying trees are great places to look, this tree had a huge hole on one side - I can't help thinking someone must find that rather cozy.



On the other side look what we found!



 

They look like fairy mushrooms growing in pairs up the trunk!



 

 



 

Another tree was sprouting these -



 



 

If anyone knows their fungi I'd love it if you emailed me to let me know what these all are :)



 

I read something about mycelium once - the root system of fungi and mushrooms - I have the feeling if we had x-ray vision and could see through the forest we would be amazed at the network that runs everywhere bringing these otherworldly growths to life.



 

It will probably be Spring before we get to look again as over the next few weeks we'll see temperatures fall away and that will mean that the snow is not far behind.

The colours on this walk were so beautiful and I'll share them in my next post ;)

 

Otherworld

As I let Raff out this morning I saw the mist and it called.



It said "Come out to play, come find the cusp of the Otherworld just the other side of  your door"

And I went.



And I saw how my world melted away, how now empty branches had poems to say.



I saw in the farmer's field rows of hay laid bare, lines to circles of stone that aren't there.



I saw looming barrows just off in the mist, where I know for certain they do not exist.



And down by the river the wild geese were calling, my soul was flying as raindrops were falling.



This liminal world of mystery and shift will fade as the sun comes and dew starts to lift.



But I know deep inside in my heart made of myth, there are ways I can wander in stones, barrows and mist.

New beads heading to Glastonbury!

If you are in the UK and anywhere near Glastonbury, or planning a visit I've just mailed off a package of new beads to the Glastonbury Goddess Temple Gift Shop and estimate they will be there in a couple of weeks.  Here are the beads that are heading that way.

If it seems I've been quiet I've been busy with my day job and taking some courses.  I keep hoping things are going to slow down a bit ... soon! ...soon! I've also just sent a package of Goddesses off to Australia to The Goddess Grove - it's all rather exciting and now I need to catch my breath and get some made for my Etsy shop!

I have some of my brand new Avalon design almost ready to list so keep your eyes open, they should be available in the coming week ;)