Who, what, where, why, and how? A complete blank slate. Today marks the first day of school, a stranger of its own. An open mind, an opportunity, an empty room.
Joseph Cornell (1903–1972)
Cornell worked nights at the kitchen table, sorting and assembling materials for his boxes. It was not easy going. Some nights he felt too fatigued from his day job to concentrate on his art and would sit up reading instead, switching on the oven for warmth. In the mornings, his quarrelsome mother would scold him about the mess he’d left at the kitchen table; without a proper workroom, Cornell was forced to store his growing collection of magazine clippings and dime-store baubles out in the garage.
In 1940 Cornell finally mustered the courage to quit his job and pursue his art full-time—and even then his habits changed little. He still worked nights at the kitchen table, while his mother and brother slept upstairs. In the late morning he would head downtown for breakfast at his local Bickford’s restaurant, often satisfying his sweet tooth with a Danish or a slice of pie (and lovingly cataloging these indulgences in his diary).
- From Daily Rituals: How Artists Work by Mason Currey
#dailyrituals #inktober #JosephCornell @masoncurrey
My last finished painting of 2020. A morning in the woodlands of Ystradfawr Nature Reserve near my home. This is the final result of one of my colour sketches - Spring on the Line. It sold to lady in a care home who's lost her mobility. I hope it gives her a bit of the great outdoors when she's sitting in her room.
Tending to, Caring for, Generous Sun, Deep Hydration, Thoughtful placement, Grooming and trimming, Healthy nutrients, Mineral Consumption, Clean release of Oxygen from intake. The parallels of endless.
This artwork was requested by @lanahyawnuwuw. You asked for people in dresses, I give you people in dresses! Except now I want someone to use this for a movie. I can just imagine one of the trailer scenes: a guy talking to someone and says “what are they gonna do? They’re just girls with guns.” And he proceeds to get shot by one of them who comes into the room. Someone please make this into a movie.
My mother actually used to say this to me and my brothers when we asked her to do something while she was in the midst of doing something else...Magic marker, then worked in Photoshop.
Woody Allen (b. 1935)
I’ve found over the years that any momentary change stimulates a fresh burst of mental energy. So if I’m in this room and then I go into the other room, it helps me. If I go outside to the street, it’s a huge help. If I go up and take a shower it’s a big help. So I sometimes take extra showers.
“I think in the cracks all the time,” he has said. “I never stop.”
- From Daily Rituals: How Artists Work by Mason Currey
“Some guy hit my fender the other day, and I said unto him, 'Be fruitful, and multiply'. But not in those words.”
― Woody Allen
#dailyrituals #inktober #Woody Allen @masoncurrey
Being autistic and neurodivergent means I’m liable to mishear things quite a bit, especially when watching films where the sound mixing is utter shite (thanks sensory differences!). On that note, there’s a bit towards the end of Alien where Parker shouts “get out of the room” which I always interpreted as “get ready to roll” for years on end. Only recently did I realise how wrong I was!
Considering it was the final act of the film, I guess I can’t be blamed for assuming as such, right? If you know, you know as they say...
little project of collage, about woman in their daily life at home, using primary colors.
Here Fanny in her parisian flat with Kelloggs her cat
collage, acrylic painting, colored pencils, charcoal, aluminium
"My possibly late husband never learned to appreciate modesty and humbleness, im afraid." Being married to a pirate in the kings service comes with a lot of material perks, but makes it difficult to host a fine ladies party. im just glad to have finnished, i sat for three days painting patterns.
Hello! :) Drawing this was really fun. I was working on it in different places. In our living room, on the balcony aand at the beach. My sister, my mum and I went on our first road trip together. I feel so grateful that we did that together. Drawing digitally outside while the sun is shining is fun. I mean i dont always see everything on the screen but yeeah;) Thank you for reading.
I wish you a beautiful day!:)
There’s a lot of waiting in life.
Waiting in lobbies.
Waiting on answers.
Waiting for braces to tighten, kids to grow, hearts to heal, or prayers to be answered.
I sat at the orthodontist, watching dollars tighten on tiny wires, and made this sketch. A tree. A house. A street. Color helped the moment breathe.
I remember once hearing a chess master say, “There is no waiting in chess.”
It confused me—wasn’t there always a turn to wait for?
But he explained: “There’s no waiting. Only planning. Plotting. Analyzing. You’re always thinking.”
I once repeated that to a FIDE master. He got mad.
Maybe because waiting and patience aren’t the same thing.
We can be still and deeply active inside.
We can pause without being passive.
And then there’s Lindsey’s voice in the back of my head:
“That sounds like a first-world problem.”
“Speak life.”
“Be thankful. Rejoice always.”
And she’s right.
So here’s to filling waiting time with something creative.
Something kind.
Something that turns a delay into a doorway.