January 29, 2012

Inspiration


I'm not sure if it was a dream...or if we were actually there...but I remember walking with Cutie through a wooded glen, climbing over a large wooden road block with peeling paint, and walking into the woods beyond. No, it was definitely a dream. After walking quite some ways into the woods and then down a small embankment, we came upon a wide stream. It was the kind of stream that no one knew about, undisturbed. The water was cool and shallow and flowing over solid rock. It looked like a huge boulder buried under the ground. The surface of the boulder was smoothed by the constant flow of water and a little slimy with algae.

I observed.

I watched the water flow over the boulder and swirl into eddies downstream. I remember the colors (see the picture above, those were the colors I saw). I put my feet in the water and felt the cool current. I felt the boulder with my hand and I noticed little pockets in the boulder where the water was deeper than other spots. I clearly remember the mud on the banks of the stream.

And so, this is how I am inspired. Sometimes it's a place, a person I love, or a significant moment. Sometimes inspiration is merely a feeling or an image from a dream. Wherever inspiration comes from, I have learned to trust it. I build on it and thesedays, I let it run my creative process. I have heard artists talk about their creativity flowing "through" them and at times linked to a higher power or divine association. I can't help but relate to this as I find inspiration coming to me from simple everyday sources, and all I have to do is listen. I figure these said artists have learned to trust their sources of inspiration too, and build on it, just like I do.

The fabric above was inspired by the colors of the stream from my dream. I'm planning a table runner with this stash since I only have 1/8 yard of each batik. It's a mix of landscape fabric (the pebbles) and 5 different batiks. I love batiks but I feel like their free flowing designs need something "grounding" and earthy, and what's more grounding than a pile of pebbles!

1 comment:

Susana Neiger said...

Great fabrics! They look like they'll be fun to work with, and perfect for your inspiration!