Thing-a-week!

When New Year's rolls around, I tend to do a little scheming.

I think, 'Maybe this is the year I'll finally lose that freshman 15/walk the dog twice a day/paint more often!' (The list is actually longer and more embarrassing, but I won't bore you).

Some people completely eschew New Year's Resolutions, but to a small extent, they work for me.
The scheming gets me in the groove and I'll take a few baby steps towards my goals. I go to yoga, throw on the woolies and take the dog for a stroll when it's -30 (ugh), avoid the frozen pizzas in the grocery store, little things like that. Progress isn't terrible, but it can be slow.

Here's the problem: keeping my plans in my brain makes it all too easy to back out when I'm tired/grumpy/hungry/stressed/sick/etc. Procrastination is a hallmark of a creative mind; artsy types like me benefit from structure and, most of all, real accountability.

That's why I'm doing a Thing-a-Week with fellow writer/artist Mike Kendrick, who shares my goal of getting artsier in 2011. Each week, we'll both be posting a project of some kind on our blogs.

It's not always possible to finish a painting in just seven days, so I'll be posting drawings, crafting projects, and other creative stuff here. With plenty of canvas and paint stocked up, a recently serviced sewing machines, tons of beads for jewelery making, and a neglected digital SLR, I've got everything I need to get artsy.

So, stay tuned for all kinds of creative projects from me in the weeks and months to come. To kick it off, I'm posting a recent painting created for Deep Freeze 2011, an Edmonton art festival running Jan 8-9, 2011 (next week!).


This piece is titled, "Whole, from the parts 1," (acrylic paint on stretched canvas).