The Creative Process - Play

My new art chair

 During my time as a freelance writer I attended various workshops on writing and keeping the creative juices flowing. The newspaper editor giving one workshop suggested tithing. When you freelance you get to the point you can automatically write to 800 or 1000 or 1500 words. And you know the publications you submit to and can automatically assume the correct voice.

Tithing, which in the case of writing, is giving away your time to write something which has absolutely no hope of publication and totally out of your range of normal. And not writing a press release, which you can do blind folded, for an organization you belong to. Writing something which has no apparent place or purpose. Play. Just play.

I believe tithing is necessary in any form of artistic expression. And not giving a piece of art away to a non-profit to auction, but giving your time away to yourself to just create something out of your range of work.

Ergo the deck chair above. I did the painting and it got ruined (moving work around from fair to fair and venue to venue causes wear and literally tears) by my not being careful enough. I usually take them off the stretchers and roll them up with the aim to do a collage or cut down. Or play. Just play.

Painted Occasional Table 

The little occasional table above is a rescued Ethan Allen which I used as a plant stand for a few years before deciding to develop a design for it. And so it has a flower on it. And a bud spindle to support it. Course it might now be too fancy for a plant stand.

Table in process

Practicality reared its ugly head while I worked on sanding down my next play date: a small drop leaf table. I had bought a series of deep cradled panels a few months back to do some small works. It occurred to me as they sat stacked up on my art table that they can stand on their own on a book case or occasional table. No need to hang. And the could even be bookends. So I decided to paint them as pairs which can be separate or together. Not totally play because it was in my usual style but out of my format box as it were.

Standing cradled panels
Pueblo I and II/8 x 8 x 2

Canyons I and II/ 6 x 6 x 2 cradled panels

Arches I and II/ 5 x 5 x 2 cradled panels

The point of tithing or play is to refresh the mind. And to go outside the box you have put yourself in to be marketable. I have another piece of total play ahead. I small drop leaf table with two stools. I have been mentally tossing around designs to go on the top more in the manner of the little occasional table. And I have one more deck chair painted in reds which I have to find a painting to fit on. So then there will be three.