Hmmm, which task comes next?!
The problem isn’t coming up with ideas, it is how to contain the invasion. My ideas are like uninvited guests. They don’t knock on the door; they climb in through the windows like burglars who show up in the middle of the night and make a racket in the kitchen as they raid the fridge. I don’t sit and ponder which one I should deal with first. The one to be wrestled to the floor before all others is the one coming at me with the most vehemence. Werner Herzog: A Guide for the Perplexed — from Brain Pickings
Sundays at Casa Loca are deliciously serene. The workers on the shrimp farms go to town or to the beach or family gatherings on their day of rest, and the pumping stations (supplying fresh water to the shrimp ponds) stay mute. Aside from a random car or motorcycle passing on the road, the riverside’s background music comes from the whisperings of birds.
“Yikes! I’m growing feathers!”
The internet signal often works well enough to open emails in the early-morning hours, and most web pages show the text but drop the images. Comments and emails that I write are often missing in action when I check later to see if they reached their destinations. Brain Pickings, a once-a-week tonic written by Maria Popova, arrives on the Day of Rest and delivers an insightful and comforting assortment of reading material that rivals the Sunday edition of one’s favorite newspaper. Not seeing a Sunday newspaper for a fortnight of years, I look forward to the visual and intellectual tonic that Brain Pickings delivers to my remote location.
(Do I get a prize for breaking two hammers?) Some of the hardwoods are like concrete!
The above quote struck a strong chord as I peered into Herzog’s psyche. He summarized and eloquently nailed how many artists approach their work. It’s often difficult to explain the creative process to others. There are times when one of my paintings is going really well, and after a break, I detour in a totally different direction with a new project! I often create several small paintings while working on a more-challenging one.
Those small exercises in spontaneity are like little appetizers that sustain me and provide a little kick of energy to resume the larger work. “The one to be wrestled to the floor before all others is the one coming at me with the most vehemence.”
While the gate gets a much-larger-than-life eye of protection, a more-serious design evolves on the drawing table.
The internet this past week has been slower and less dependable than usual, and I am happy to finish this post from a hotel with much-faster internet. Here are a few of the pending projects that await my attention at home.
These little jewels of mirrors have several destinations. Some have been added as accents to the driftwood art in the garden…
The little sliver of bamboo will hold a little flag – or something interesting… stay tuned! Can you identify the skull?
Here’s a closer look…
Guests at Hostal Ciragan will be able to see the room numbers at night!
The watercolor demonstration this past Wednesday showed different ways to build color…
Which one of those projects do you think is coming at me with the most vehemence?!
Scan Brain Pickings archives and you will surely find a topic of interest. Maria’s Twitter page provides endless food for thought, be sure to scan her most-recent tweets: Maria Popova BRAINPICKER
Nelly owns a petite restaurant where I teach each Wednesday… Would You like to know what she fed me this past week?
Not bad for a dollar’s worth of bartering!
The skull, by the way, belongs to this species of bird:
Turkey Vulture
After a brief respite with fast internet, I will return to burro-speed by sunset. There are mirrors and feathers waiting to be glued, borders to be painted, serious paintings to finish, birds and iguanas to watch – I have zero reasons to ever be bored!
As always, thanks for your amazing support!
Z
Inspirational, as always, Lisa! I, too follow Brain Pickings, and look forward to it each Sunday. Have a wonderful week-end!
i was just about to go to sleep and noted your ‘like’ === i thought, ‘i should write her and ask if it’s a bit late there.. but i guess it’s – what just past midnight?’
it’s after 2 here, and i’ve enjoyed the efficient internet!
z
I’m trying to remember…it seems like I was up very late that night…maybe after 2am, too. I go to sleep much earlier than that, but then am often up and wide awake from 2 – 4 in the morning.
Zero reasons for us to be bored; you always have so many interesting things to tell us.
as do you, lovely kindred on the other side of the pacific! i miss spending time savoring your lovely posts that cover so many beautiful themes… you are so gifted…
z
Awww…… 🙂
So many brilliant projects evolving here, Lisa. I also totally identify with the Herzog quote. Such a good summary of that rush of notions to the head.
‘rush of notions’ made me think of coldplay’s ‘rush of blood to the head..’
yes, herzog’s feedback is true and resonates with many of us. thanks! z
Gorgeous inspirations!
AnnMarie 🙂
thank you! i hope to finish the eye this weekend and the boobie by midweek… in between will be little snippets of exercise w/the smaller challenges..
Of course you have zero reasons to ever be bored and with you, us too!!! Love everything you’re up to! Have a brilliant creative day, Z!!! 🙂
and you – the renaissance lady – are never bored either, are you?! i love keeping in touch and peering over your shoulder! z
It’s a very special world we live in, isn’t t?!!! 😉
that it is, and we were gifted with happy spirits and the ability to share those gifts with others… z
big smile!!!!! 🙂 xx
I can honestly say I identified the skull before you revealed the bird in full feathers!! Fun post, Z!
congratulations! i’m impressed that you guessed it. that hooked beak reminds me of a frigate, though the frigate has a much longer/larger beak…. an injured frigate once clamped down on my arm and left a ‘puncture’ for a very long time.. it served as a good reminder to leave nature to its own – at least w/creatures with can-opener beaks!
i loved your post today and agree totally. you are right with your final summary, “…we might indeed soon be back in a state of nature.”
I read that piece in Brain Pickings, too, and it resonated strongly. Herzog’s interesting, generally, and his musings on creativity were so on target. I really identify with the quotation at the top of the page. I have around 170 drafts in my files, books stacked up everywhere and a notebook with a list of other topics to write about. Some are nearly complete, some are only a title or link, but still compel my attention. What to do? Get after it, I suppose!
When I looked at the skull, my first thought was raccoon. Context is everything. Then, I realized it certainly wasn’t that – I even made a trip out to the cactus pot that has a couple of raccoon skulls tucked into it just to check things out. But I never would have expected that bird!
ha! i won’t feel guilty about the drafts in my files. you win the prize, and i am sure all of those ideas are worthy of your unique gift. i would much rather be suspended in the midst of a swirl of ideas than be bored and wondering what to do with my day.. i am blessed, as are you, to have a rich and creative life.
As I told Steve Schwartzman, I sow a lot of seeds, but not all of them germinate. 😉
i treasure your feedback and of course treasure each post that you write… i also appreciate all of steve’s postings, though i often can only see the text.. his spanish/english trivia is also interesting…
time to roll for the day and away from the faster connection (which is slow this morning)… have a good weekend! z
I’d love to just follow you around one day, dabbling with you, chatting. Learning about making art. I truly want to learn to draw, maybe create art of found objects. But I feel I need a bit of guidance.
Thanks, as ever, for your lively post.
when writing posts isn’t such a struggle, i hope to tailor some posts – perhaps a different/new site – for weekly tutorials… ha, there’s another idea to add to that invasion!
thanks emilie.. until then, keep slaying those dragons around you and keeping goodwill and honor in your area of the planet… z
You see art an no other – the list of projects and ideas I hope never grows short but gains strength. It’s refreshing and exhilarating to witness your creativity Z. Love the seahorse project, Nelly’s painting is great, but her payment is an incredible feast! Have a lovely weekend.
thanks! nelly tried to send more items home with me.. green plantains (called ‘verdes’) and other items – i assured her that i had more food at home than i could cook and eat!
Were the long yellow-organish pieces papyia (sp?)? Looked very good, and the shrimp – yum!
no, those were half green/half sweet/ripe plantains, sliced and cooked in a skillet for probably five or so minutes… the ‘salad’ was made from beets and was very delicious as well.
the shrimp were straight from the ponds.. many people harvested during the new moon, and anyone who helps w/the harvest is usually given shrimp as a bonus.
The eye would sell well at the ACVO meeting too.
thanks, amiga.. i saved several photos of eyes to the usb stick – a post about eyes is incubating and i hoped to work on it while traveling.. but no, they are still in limbo and wondering if they’ll ever have the spotlight trained on their unique beauty.
with your help/prompts, perhaps they will!
You go girl! I can honestly say that you are filled to the brim with creative energy…..Would you ship a little of that to me my friend, I am sorly lacking in creativity at the moment. Love the post!
well that drawing of the possum certainly reflected a trained and talented eye!
i’ll bet if you pick up the pencil and draw your thumb, you will keep drawing long after you’ve finished the study!
z
At least I knew the skull was that of a bird! Nice meal for the $1! Hugs and hope that you are well! ^..^
thanks.. i saw the dead vulture on the ground then watched as it ‘devolveld’.. friends stopped by and prompted me to retrieve the skull…. bones are so pretty…
yes, that was an amazing meal, and she tried to send more items home with me, including shrimp! z
Lucky you to have shrimp, fresh and local!
Reblogged this on MrMilitantNegro™.
You are so gifted Lisa! And the bartering system you have going is keeping you well fed I see. 🙂
“Small exercises in spontaneity are like appetizers.” I love that! Thanks for the link to Brain Pickings. I can’t wait to get my Sunday edition…more food for thought.
Reblogged this on The Artistic Spider's Web and commented:
Timeout for Art: An Invasion of Ideas
You always amaze me, z. You are blessed!
love the eye painting!
I love looking at your current and emerging projects. I all to well understand those invasive thoughts that generally take over until I at least start them a bit. Senior Escorpion is impatiently waiting for the last few hours of attention. Hugs amiga
I would love the eye painting on my wall…I love your work and you are so inspirational
The links, especially Brian Pickings Archives.
Lisa, how am I going to find time for blogging?
I now have a mountain of reading I would like to do.
Buddhist Economics is one tempting bit of reading.
The more I learn the more I realise how little I know.
Greed for knowledge can be the cause of unrest.
When contentment is all one needs to know.
I knew it was a bird skull but thought it was a seed eater.
So to be a know all I will have to keep reading.
Especially your blog it is so full good inspiration.