week 9 : encouragement to the outlier

(originally published september 16, 2022 via my Buy Me A Coffee page)

In the last week I got the chance to check out the annual art fair that is Art On Paper, stroll around Williamsburg in Brooklyn as they held the weekly Smorgasburg. The Brooklyn Flea Record Fair was finally back since the start of the pandemic and a friend and I got the chance to dig through the thousands of vinyls local (and a few non-local) shops had to share. I'm excited to bring back a few musical mementos that will remind me of my time out here.

There also happened to be a fiber art show opening happening right outside my studio last weekend, which I enjoyed. It was sweet to see the usually quiet space bustling with people and artists proud to show off their hard work.

Additionally, I had the opportunity to host a NYC curator in my studio (!). I was a bit (very) nervous considering studio visits are still very new to me and I didn't have my larger pieces fully finished. The potential of this connection could be so helpful, and it was encouraging to hear his thoughts and take-aways on my works in progress and even some of the smaller finished pieces. Being emboldened by a Black man in the arts who can empathize with the very rare nature of a Black woman painting in Abstraction was something I really needed to hear as well. The process of creating can become so isolating that to finally open my door to a pair of fresh eyes and new perspective was the confidence boost I needed to finish off these next weeks.

a show of fiber artists from New York and Iceland right outside my studio door

Toyin Loye, "The Port" at Art On Paper

the last big piece I decided to start last week. I've really liked being able to paint large enough to immerse my whole body in the process and get lost in every corner and edge. beneath the layers the title, "It Still Stands" sits.

Another short recap below~

One more week of painting!

-A

week 8 : realignment

(originally published september 9, 2022 via my Buy Me A Coffee page)

Well, I finally got GOT, y'all. Covid had me laid out last week, but we're back in the swing of things now. Thank God. Initially I was frustrated and discouraged, naturally, but my tune quickly changed once I realized how much I needed that pause, in a way.

I admit, being in a city (NYC) with a big hustle mentality can be quite the test, then throw in social media, then throw in the fact that September is a big art month for New York City with art shows and openings happening everywhere. I was quickly churning questions like, "Am I doing enough?" "Am I meeting enough people?" "How can I be seen?" "How quickly can I finish every piece I've started here?", etc etc. Tiring, draining, annoying, and then Covid. Laying in bed for a week had God reminding me that I've been functioning and creating at a pace that's just right for me. My process is mine and it is sacred.

There are about two painting weeks left before I begin shipping all my progress back to wherever I end up landing in Austin. I'm looking forward to continuing to work out these varying mediums (loose canvas, paper, collage), in which you kind of have to bring a different part of yourself to each. They all require a different approach, mindset, TLC and I'm still so grateful to have the time and space to work these ideas out in.

from day 1 I noticed this butterfly-like bug recklessly flying around every time I'd make it to Jersey City. I discovered that it's a Spotted Lanternfly. A bug that is actually harming the ecosystem of the area, come to find out. There are posters and little warnings to kill them whenever you see them and it's been kind of funny to see adults and children across Jersey and New York call them out and smash them once spotted. A team effort, really. haha I don't particularly like painting with the color red, but felt like I needed to make an ode to the pesky insect.

I think I'm pausing on making progress on that pink one until I can properly stretch it out once back in Austin. I know some of the edges of the painting might not even be visible once stretched, and that alone will give me a new perspective on the piece

Back in the studio, new paintings, art show openings, and street finds in between. Here's a little week 8 recap below :)

Thank you for being here.

-A

another shift

(originally published august 25, 2022 via my Buy Me A Coffee page)

Not gonna lie, there's a little bit of pressure mounting as I sit here at the more than halfway mark. Five weeks to go! I'm starting to finalize and glue down a few of the collage paintings I've been working on. One of the walls is being filled up with small, quick sketchbook paintings, and I've started playing around with larger (16" x 20") works on paper. I've been adding gallery visits and private studio visits and art show openings to the calendar, as well as prepping for this next step in my career during my monthly Artist Coaching meetings with SKM Advising. I'm trying to hold tight to the care-free days of the first month, but art is both a part of me and very much my job - so the work continues.

Since moving to my Jersey City Airbnb about a week ago, my studio days have started a little later and are lasting into the early evenings - my most natural time to create. I'm doing my best to adequately revel in the subtle impending change of season, but it's still difficult for my brain to understand that fall is soon on its way here, unlike the Texas summer that lasts until the final weeks of October. Thankfully though, my new commute is less than a 40 minute walk, so I can slow down the pace of life a bit and watch while the sun from golden hour hits the building and the many empty warehouses around me. Jersey City is quite slow (in comparison to NYC) and outside of downtown, the landscape is not as inspiring as Manhattan or Brooklyn, which is kind of a bummer, but I'm seeing this time and new environment as a moment to catch my breath and give my thoughts the space and pace they need.

A fresh take towards this experience is coming, and I'm with open arms, ready to embrace it.

Here's another recap of week 6 :

Til the next one.

-A