What to do with yourself

I used to get exactly the same fears about attending workshops. Even 3 days seem like an eternity if you can’t do what you’re there for. That is what happened to me until I realized that I could avoid it by taking along sketches or half-finished paintings that I could fish out and carry on with. Since one knows what the workshop is going to be about, one can hand-pick what one is going to take along to match! If you are a resident artist, Caroline, you really don’t have an unsolvable problem. Apart from having the old excuse that you are an artist and therefore temperamental (=temper + mental), you call the tune, so getting everyone to knuckle down and do charcoal portraits, automatic drawing, collage etc are all super ways of getting through – I’ve experienced them all on my travels! Even travelling light needn’t narrow your scope of ingenuity. Take a roll of started watercolours or similar and then if necessary use them to bridge the creative gaps and even hold an exhibition. As for being out on a limb, well, there’s always sketching in the wilds, I suppose. I’m not sure about the kite-flying, though you could get students to make kites and give a prize to the one painted the prettiest (in watercolor inks). One more idea. Get a long roll of paper (wallpaper would do) and get all the people participating to construct a sort of Bayeux tapestry. That will keep everyone busy and you can lay hands on now and again. It’s everyone’s creation so it will make a splendid exhibit at the end of the two weeks. One last thought. No one except the perpetrator knows when a work of art is finished…..Enjoy!

I am glad you were accepted and am sure you will have a great time, especially if you put intentions aside and let it happen! Aff’ly, Susie

How different we all are, and it’s wonderful that way. I once had a student that said, “Dwight could paint in a traffic jam.” Strangely, some of my best work in fifty years has come from the “traffic jam.” Hang in there. Robert is right. People will love you. Your best asset my be your reluctance now. Cockiness doesn’t sell well in the long run.

Robert. loved your”advise” letter. Best I’v ever seen! ;-)

I live near the Vermont Studio Center and have many friends who have been lucky enough to go there for a week or two. Bring something you have been wanting to explore. You will have a studio space of your own (you can leave the door open or close it); there will be models if you want to do life drawing; there is a village and then the countryside if you want to do plein air painting; you can set up a still life if that’s your thing. You can sit and ponder or draw, write, or paint. The time is entirely your own. You can work big or small. You can make a mess if you want. It’s an opportunity to work hard and have fun!

Caroline–I spent a wonderful month at VSC a few years ago. Anna’s advice above is spot on. The other thing about VSC is the community of other artists (writers too): be prepared for lots of art talk and studio visiting. It’s fun, stimulating, and enlightening and can be a creative jumpstart. Consider more than what to take; think about what to leave behind. Insecurity and anxiety, for instance. Try to clear your decks for work and concentration; take a break as much as you can from your daily life (family, job, bills, worries — they’ll all be there when you get home). Have a great time.

How wonderful! I wish I could join you. Is it possible for you to take a painter friend with you? I would love to be there and explore the wonders of nature in that area. How fortunate we are to be artists and really enjoy the beauties of this wonderful earth.

You will absolutely love the VSC. It’s like a spa for artists. To have a studio and all that time just to paint is wonderful. The food is fabulous! You can have as much or as little interaction with the others as you want, although just being together with a bunch of creative people for 2 weeks really gets the creative juices flowing. One must have an ipod or other mp3 player with earbuds if you like to have music to work by so that you don’t annoy the other artists. The studio walls go up to open space for good air circulation. The studios are minimally equipped so if you like to sit while painting, you will have to scrounge a comfortable chair. Take a cushion or two along. I took a little “hot shot” waterheater, as I run on tea and wanted to have an unending supply available. My memory of my VSC residency was that it was a great opportunity to meet other artists, to paint to my heart’s content, and that it was way too short.

I have been to the Vermont Studio Center. You are given a private studio and all you need to do is break for meals, which are delicious. You are visited by the “critique” artists, which vary by week and it is a totally wonderful experience. You will make many friends as well. Enjoy it.

CAROLINE, I WOULD LIKE TO SEE WHAT YOU ARE PAINTING NOW AND THEN WHAT YOU PRODUCED AT THE RETREAT==IS THIS POSSIBLE?? ROBERT , YOUR COMMENTS ARE A TREAT, YOU ARE A FABULOUS COMMUNICATOR. I REALLY ENJOY THIS SPACE.

Thanks so much for your wonderful letter! It really helped. I need to find a kite to fly! I am getting so many wonderful letters from subscribers.

Yep, it’s the après-paint that’s the most self-destructive. “It’s possible to get the idea you know what you’re doing.” Other people can be bamboozled, but by far the most damage can be done to the talker and demonstrator. Painting in public is dangerous.

I have a welcome mat at my door that says “Go away.” So far it has not deterred anyone that I know of. Just in case I take it up when folks come over to buy.

I attended VSC last year and it was wonderful! It took me about a week to get into the swing — but I had a blast. So much supportive time and space and the best part was all the art talk over dinner — you’ll meet people from all over the world. I was so nervous but soon realized so was everyone else! I made some great friends and even made some pretty good art. It’s a beautiful place — enjoy! (and don’t worry about supplies — they have a jam-packed art supply store too.)

Plus the Vermont Studio Center has a great art store, so a sudden idea can find its materials-on a line of credit while in residence- rather quickly. And the evening performances of poetry, theatre, music, not just visual art, is constantly inspiring. An artist friend went the first time and sat in her new open empty studio for an hour, in terror, before getting up and slowly closing the door. Now she can’t wait to get back to VSC. I did the same….and now feel the same: every artist should do a residency, there is nothing like! Seattle, Wa.

The luxury of having no one pulling at your time to just paint would be a delicious departure from most of our lives. Distractions interrupt that “zoned out” immersion that can be our most creative. You make this residency what you want it to be. If you have the stamina for ten hour days with brush in hand the whole time, fine. How do you normally work that can adapt to this environment? If “intermittent” is productive at home don’t change it. “This is how I work,” can dismiss a lot of questions. When they invited you they invited your work ethic as well. Dennis Farris was Artist In Residence at Zion National Park for thirty days in February and kept a blog of his experience, including entertaining occasional visitors. You might find his notes worthwhile. http://farrisart.com/

I am never bored when I am painting: once I get started, I can’t stop! I signed up for a workshop on Monhegan Island off the coast of Maine a few years ago. The teacher was awful, but I went off and painted by myself or with others I met. I absolutely loved it and am hoping to visit the 13 US States I haven’t seen yet and to paint my way! If nothing more, when traveling, I take small boxes of various media and use 4×6 or 5×7 note cards. I can later mat and frame them or just keep them in a portfolio to use as resources or in place of photographs. Often I sell them on the spot!

A residency is an endorsement that says to the world, “This artist is worthwhile and is appreciated.” A residency goes on the CV and looks good, no matter what happens.

I think in Caroline’s case, it might be more the reverse: “You can take the girl out of the city, but….etc.” As you probably know, Johnson VT is getting pretty close to God’s country. She will be well advised to head out on some of those back roads to paint, if she’s a Plein Airist; seeking always the road least traveled will help her find some smashing spots, especially this time of year! (don’t do that in the winter). When I have gone to the Studio Center as I used to when they offered a VERMONT ARTIST WEEK every 6 months, I would try to take advantage of all the “Crits” I could get; it’s almost as glorious as being back in school. And like in school, if you use the time to be adventurous in your head, you will be more adventurous in your work. Now, I need to follow my own advice and put down the vacuum cleaner, pick up my Italian easel and get out there! Burlington, VT

Last June I had the great fortune of attending a workshop in El Molino, Spain with Suzanne Northcott. I was giddy with the anticipation of visiting and studying in Europe for the first time. Surely the work will pour out of me. After 4 days of morning mind expanding and settling yoga, the most delicious organic meals, intoxicating beauty of Olive Groves and of course the fabulous creative instructional genius of Suzanne…I was completely paralized. I couldn’t make a mark to save my soul. I started to feel guilty and useless which intensified as time went on and I thought of it more. Until I decided I was “SOUP”. On day four or five our caring instructor asked each of us if we were getting out what we expected. I said I feel like soup. I’ve accepted the fact that I’m just still in the “open vessel mode ” just taking it all in. Sure would be nice if I could put something down but it seems things are coming into me with the anticipation of stewing and brewing into something really terrific when it comes out. That’s my optimistic nature..but she knew I really was feeling bad. Suzanne said ” wait right there” and she ran to fetch this passage by Rumi. Chick Pea to Cook A chickpea leaps almost over the rim of the pot where it’s being boiled. “why are you doing this to me?” The cook knocks him down with the ladle. “Don’t you try and jump out. You think I’m torturing you. I’m giving you flavour so you can mix with the spices and rice and be the lovely vitality of a human being.” “Remember when you drank rain in the garden? That was for this. Grace first. Sexual pleasure, then a boiling new life begins, and the friend has something good to eat.” Eventually the chickpea will say to the cook, “Boil me some more, Hit me with the skimming spoon. I can’t do this by myself. I’m like an elephant that dreams for gardens back in Hindustan and doesn’t pay attention to his driver. You’re my cook, my driver, my way to existence. I love your cooking!” The cook says. ” I was once like you, fresh from the ground. Then boiled in time, and boiled some more, and boiled once beyond that, and .. became your teacher.

From one of Africa’s poorest countries, I read these comments: my god, the only thing ‘poor insecure Caroline’ doesn’t worry about is what to wear! Watch out people, this space is in danger of becoming a wailing wall for insecure artists.

I don’t normally enjoy talking about art, and I think it’s much overdone, particularly in the schools, but on this site it’s wonderful.

Caroline, I would say get to it with an open mind, enjoy the scenery and the people whom you will certainly meet. They maybe as anxious and stressed as you are.

I loved the distraction-free environment that allowed me to do nothing but paint when I served as Artist In Residence at Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore last year. I also enjoyed that the NPS staff and visitors were excited about my presence. They helped me understand that I have a gift that has value only as I give it. Instead of messing around for 3 weeks, I was inspired to do what I could to paint bigger and better and with more people watching than I’d ever thought possible. I grew immensely as an artist and person. I know there are people who get blocked more easily than I do and perhaps NPS residencies simply aren’t for them. I suspect it’s true however, as you say,”life’s a residency” — each day we have multiple opportunities to face ourselves and decide whether or not to get on with it. Frankfort, MI

I have to get on with it right here in prison as a fancy residency isn’t an option for me just yet.

Wow, is the entire third world so judgemental and abrasive? No wonder they need to be helped.

I spent a month at the Vermont Studio Center and I know it is a special place to be. Don’t worry about what you will do. Take the materials you think you’d like to work with and go from there. They have an art store on campus as well as easy to get to shops for whatever you may need. I am a painter and eventhough I drove and took a carload of materials, I ended up not wanting to paint. However, I absorbed so much from being with the best, finest artists — visual and literary — (of all ages from 20-80) and attending the lectures from visiting artists. Just absorb it all!! Two weeks will go by amazingly fast. Enjoy. Dianne

I once had six months with nothing to do but paint. I had plenty of supplies, but no funny money, so there wasn’t much else going on but painting. Because I tried to keep up appearances, everyone thought I was the happiest of campers. I don’t ever want that to happen again. My life became incredibly one dimensional. The work suffered. My mental outlook suffered. When suddenly my circumstances changed and I had to cobble together time to paint, everything else changed as well. The work improved, as did my attitude. In recent years I’ve taken entire vacations and painted with sequestered and monk-like devotion. But there is an end to these periods, and I’m as willing to stop as I was eager to start. A couple weeks of residency is just the ticket.

I got a laugh about the “wailing wall for insecure artists”. We need to paint ourselves out of insecurity, and the work ethic really helps. Everyone reacts to a social environment differently, however, if you have your own space and you don’t need to teach students, then it sounds like a cool deal. I too have spent entire vacations painting without time to kick back and enjoy the scenery! The balance of studio time VS family/housework/job is tricky, but after painting & art-making for many years, I have fallen into the habit of needing to “go to my room” each and every day. No wailing wall for me- I’m counting my blessings. Still, the opportunity to have dinner with other artists, poets, writers, etc. sounds inspiring and bound to get the creative juices flowing.

For Debbie, who said: “Wow, is the entire third world so judgemental and abrasive? No wonder they need to be helped.” That was nasty Debbie; half the world wonders where their next meal comes from, how to stay alive. Caroline’s whiney worries seem ridiculous in that light. Judgemental? Maybe. Abrasive? Walk a mile in my moccasins. Liz Reday gets it. Do you now?

There are always going to be ignorant people who ride along on Robert’s investigative odyssey

Kamoos, Most Americans forget how fortunate they really are, even the least fortunate of us are still more fortunate that most in 3rd world countries as I am sure you are well aware. Sadly, this set of blinders is far to common here in the states.

For someone who has never separated herself from the normal life and go and just paint for two weeks can be scary. The thing is that maybe two weeks might be too much if you’ve never done it…and always the first time can be tough. What she needs to do is start by doing it for a weekend, then add more days, then one week. She will then know if she can do it. If she can and likes being by herself and just paints and surroundings, then she might be ready for two weeks. Like most artists who enjoy plen air, being by ourselves and paint, and paint can be an exhilarating and vibrant experience, but it takes time. It would be good if she lets us know how her experience was.

American artists give to charities and help less fortunate again and again with nothing but enthusiasm. Giving is not done to get any thanks back, it’s done from the heart — so comments like those are a stab in the heart. Caroline shared her most natural feelings of worry in her situation. It hurts to be seen as dumb if you worry what to wear at a well deserved trip. I am happy for her and for rich and poor who do their best to help others and not judge, envy and ridicule. Why don’t you sit in my dungeon gray cubicle for 80h per week without moving your eyes from a computer screen, and see if you would be excited about an art trip?

Poverty is not noble. Wealth is not noble. Bridging the gap is noble. Widening the gap is evil.

Only a fool would look at a computer screen for eighty hours a week, Debbie. And what does this have to do with Caroline? It was about her, not you. I like what Kodo says, let’s narrow the gap. So, let’s end this discussion and paint.

It doesn’t matter what you say, Debbie. The third world won’t feel sorry for you or Caroline, ‘most natural feelings’ or not.

I agree with Thierry, only a fool works so hard and then give away her money! Revisit your priorities Debbie and enjoy your life, work less, travel more, make art, splurge on yourself, don’t be called a fool. There will always be a third world. There will always be rude stupid people. That will never change, whatever you do or say, whether your heart bleeds or not. If you like to give, give to someone you know who will appreciate your gift. Paint your disappointment into a great painting, sell it for a lot of money and go on a luxurious trip! Life is too short! Think art, not people! Enjoy every moment!!!

I pray that God of All Creation shows you, soon, that ‘your’ greatest creation is riding on your back. Years from now, no one will care about your current pile of paint on faded canvas. It won’t matter, believe me. Your ten-month-old human being needs YOU – the MOTHER. The world has its artists for the time being. Granny