The Return of Small Things
Spring is my favorite season. It's this continual unfolding of things returning, of "firsts." The first robin, the first leaves, bike ride, beach day, etc. The world returning to life. I could go without the return of allergies, though...
It's also been a profound season of return, on a personal level. There was a song that I remembered hearing in my childhood and for the life of me couldn't find. I had searched for it off and on over the years, going down many rabbit holes, but it wasn't until a few days ago that I just happened to overhear it on a Reel that my wife was watching. I yelled "oh my god, that's it!" and ran in from the other room.
Similarly, I came across an essay that I loved several years ago. It was only 3 paragraphs, just the perfect little punchy vehicle for an idea. I had made a note of it at the time, but at present couldn't remember where said note was located. So I scoured a couple newsletter archives, and eventually just started going back through old journals, one day at a time, until I finally found the entry.
The thing is, on those journeys, wandering around trying to find a specific something, I came across a bunch of other things, too. I discovered some new music, and I found several ideas for prints that were written years before I owned a press. Austin Kleon calls this "the art of finding what you didn't know you were looking for." AI might give you the answer faster, but maybe finding a quick answer isn't the point.
Ink on Paper
My time in the studio has been more focused on cleaning up from painting and moving the last of my office over, but I did take some time to mess around with a tree ring print.
Not quite there yet, but it was an old piece of wood and even older ink. Looking forward to further experiments!
Words Elsewhere
Submitted a short essay to an online publication. It was kind of on a whim, but it felt good to just work on a piece from start to finish and get it out the door. Stay tuned!
Upcoming Events
June 14th - Pride Fest! - Lower Harbor
June 24th - Art Week - "Painting With Words" with my pal Josh Brindle - Marquette Commons
Other Rambles
The song I was looking for ended up being The Mummer's Dance by Loreena McKennitt, and the essay was Generation Gap by Sarah Moss.
See you out there,
PB