Paper cut
For someone who claims to be an artist, I have a problem with paper. Don’t get me wrong, I have it strewn everywhere, and I think handmade papers are sumptuous. But, I recently realized that I am a total tight wad with it. Not sure where I picked up this thrifty habit, but I’m actually afraid to use it.
This bizarre quirk certainly didn’t come from my mom. She was famous for having stacks of legal pads all over the house with her chore lists on them. You know, things like ‘dung bathroom’ and ‘H2O plants’.
Now…my aversion to list making definitely sprung from those piles of yellow paper. I became a master of tactile tricks to access all those lists I kept cluttered in my mind. I mean, writing lists meant using paper – duh!
So, as I sat down this month, for the first time in my life, to review 2019 in great creative detail, I had to face two of my weirdest demons: consuming copious amounts of paper to create extremely long lists!
All good intentions
The first time I heard about writing down yearly intentions was while on a creative business retreat in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico in 2018. My coach, the amazing Desha Peacock of Sweet Spot Style, gave me a journal and told me to sit quietly and write.
Thank you, Desha Peacock, for standing by my side on this creative journey, San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, March 2019.
Not only did I not want to ruin the beautiful custom journal she gave me by…gulp….writing in it, I also had no clue what I would actually write.
Funny enough, with a few guiding prompts, one of which was to write in the present tense, I let the ink smudge all over the pages of that journal.
And did I write! Once I started, it seemed to flow out of me with wild abandon, and I didn’t even flinch when I turned the 3rd page of that journal and just kept writing.
The page in my journal where it all began: setting intentions in 2018.
It felt decadent - so many words, and even some lists.
It felt reckless - didn’t even stay in the lines and my handwriting got really messy.
It felt amazing!
Watch, rinse, repeat
You can imagine my surprise when two months later, in Nicholas Wilton’s Creative Visionary Program (CVP), I was asked to set my intentions all over again. Having recently decided to chase my creative dream, I did exactly as I was told. I figured, if I had heard it from two people I trusted and admired for building successful creative businesses, it must be a worthwhile activity.
Plus, this time, the paper got a whole lot bigger (24”x36”) and I could mix up the words with some pictures!
The extremely cluttered Desire Board of 2018. Thank you for all the visualization, CVP!
Once the intentions were set in my journal and the dream board was up in my office/studio, my only job was to read them over and over again.
I should have known something was going to happen. But it would take hindsight and that old standby of 20/20 vision to really understand the magic of it all.
Color outside the lines
Fast forward to today as I sit with my 2020 Leonie Dawson’s coloring book of a creative planner. As a first timer to this whole ‘plan a year in advance’ stuff, and with my strange aversion to writing paper and lists, Leonie’s planner is a perfect place to feel like I’m playing and creating, instead of being so darn serious. I don’t mind doodling, crossing words out or using as much or little of the pages as I like.
It’s actually quite fun.
The first planner of my creative business should be bright and colorful, no?
So, what about this magic outside of the tattered pages of my 2020 workbook? And what, if anything, did my intention setting and dream boarding from 2018 have to do with what I saw in my 2019 year in review?
Very simply: Everything.
First rate
2019 was a year of firsts in my creative practice and newly built business. Seems while scribbling in that journal and pasting cut-outs on that board in 2018, I predicted many of those firsts:
A few of my 2018 intentions that came to life in 2019.
Fully funded art residencies: My very first artist residency happened in February 2019 in the Westfjords of Iceland. Although it wasn’t fully-funded, I was a finalist for the Mary Olson Farm Residency in April 2019 which is a paid program. I wasn’t ultimately selected, but I got my eye on the prize this year.
Large scale global installations: My very first gallery sponsored installation was in March 2019 in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico. Global – check. Large scale – for me, yes. I created a hanging abaca installation of 100+ pieces that was 13’ high and two 5’ tall exterior installations. Thank you, Galeria Manuk, for letting my swizzle sticks sizzle.
New mediums – glass and wax: Dabbled a bit in wax in 2018, but the new medium in 2019 was bioplastic. Sure has a glass-like vibe.
Bioplastic urns made from gelatin, glycerol and organic dye soaking up the surf on Cannon Beach, Oregon, Nov 2019.
Clutter-free: 2019 saw some huge life changing events, one of which was a serious drive to release as much clutter, both physical and mental, as I possibly could. This process of simplifying has brought about more creative abundance, and I couldn’t be happier.
Healthy mind, body and spirit: I suppose this intention is a life-long desire for most of us, but I experienced a surge of passion and focus on making these 3 pieces a priority. It’s a work in progress and high on the list for 2020.
Full-time artist: Funny – I now see I’ve been doing that my whole life.
I plan to keep the rest for now. Reviewing them today, I wouldn’t change a thing, but I’m excited to work on adding to it with 20/20 vision.
Bucket list
Maybe building lists is not so bad after all. I may still need to work on my paper chase, but I’m not afraid to use a few more pages in my journal to continue setting intentions.
And as I do so, I’m going to refer back to one of the first lists I wrote in 2018. It’s simply a list of the feelings I’d like to surround myself with as I walk towards my goals in 2020:
Follow the feelings to find the experience.
No need to cross anything off of that list.
Cheers to 2020! Please share a word from your list in the comments below…
Kisses - Margaret