2013 Studio Time

Pumpkin with  Squash Bugs, Acrylic, 2013, 24"x36"

After years of feeling frustrated and even resentful that I had no time to create, I took a real good look at my schedule and asked myself a hard question: Do you really want to make art or do you just want to complain about not being able to?

I instituted Studio Time (yes, capitalized): setting aside one afternoon a week to spend in the Studio. Just think, I told myself, if you have one afternoon a week you will always know you can work on a project. If you have one afternoon a week, say even 3 hours a week, you will have 156 hours you don't have right now to work on your art. Since then I have painted 17 paintings for friends that I call "mug shots." I have painted 1-10"x36" painting, 4-18"x24" painting, 13 paintings (24"x36") and 1-36"x48". I have made 4 papier-mache chickens and 5 coat-hanger, paper and mixed media ladies. All while designing 15+ Christmas cards/year for my business Walton Laser Graphics. And, because energy begets energy, I have written 18 original songs and performed 12 of them.

Could having those extra hours set aside really make that much difference?

I think so. I immediately felt freedom that I didn't have to stew over never having any time. I had time. I was more excited about what I was working on even when it wasn't going well. I knew I had time to let it rest and I had time to get back to it.

Above was one of my first paintings made during Studio Time. It was an idea that had been rolling around in my head for a long time. Finding my garden infested with squash bugs gave me the last push to start and finish a whole project.