A blank bristol board

Today I thought about how life is like a blank bristol board. I took a collage class a few months ago and I remember starting with a blank board and having three hours to figure out what I was going to place on my board. It was harder than I thought. Its like we are given this life, our freedom to do what we want and yet its do difficult to decide what we are going to do with it. Some people stay looking at that blank bristol board so much that their life passes them by.

It was my first collage class and even though I have done collaging for a while now as a hobby is was harder than I thought to make a piece that I knew my classmates would be critiquing. It crossed my mind to make a piece based on what I thought they would like. I had to keep myself focused on making a piece that reflected me and forget about what anyone else thought. That's how life is, some of us live our lives to please others and forget that we are given this life to live as we choose.

We all have our unique abilities. We all bring something different to the table. If we followed our hearts, if we listened to that tugging of our souls our blank bristol boards would be a unique masterpiece.

Open to new things...

From this time forward I make you hear new things, hidden things that you have not known.--Isaiah 48:6

I read this scripture today and felt renewed. There are times when we feel synchronized and things just start opening up for us that we never even knew existed. We often wonder why does this happen. It seems to come at us when we least expect it. For me it has often happened when I find myself frustrated and confused about what I should do next in my life. I begin to think and think until I wear myself out. Then I finally realize that I need to let go and let God take over. I begin to pray about it (which is what I should had done in the first place) and give myself positive affirmations. Before I know it things begin to happen and I begin to see the path laid out for me more clearly. It never fails.

This is why it’s so important to read scripture as part of building your Faith. When we read scripture, such as the one above, it puts new thoughts in our minds and fuels the possibilities that we find in those words. I am ready to hear new things, wide open to the hidden creativity that I never knew was there.

Blooming Flower and Pumpkin...how lovely.

This morning I walked out of my apartment and saw this lovely contrast along with feeling the crisp wind of the coming fall season. Its really been bittersweet for me the last couple of months. It's good to be back here after a few setbacks. I am right in time for the fall season of 2010, the only one that will ever be.

I've been busy with a few things lately. One is my lay ministry program. I was nominated by my pastor to be part of this 3 year lay ministry program where we learn about theology, the church, and the bible. The program prepares us to take up a ministry at our church, almost like picking a major in your third year of college. Once we are done we can go on to getting a Master's in Thelogy or just begining our ministry in the Church. I have already completed my first course called Theology of Lay Ministry and it was very enriching. Finally, the church is now focusing on evangelizing the common people and providing them with the tools to serve their communities. I am glad to be a part of it.

I am still in the process of finding my blogging voice and creating my very own artwork. The last collage I made was for a dear friend of mine who went to graduate school in Philly. I've done a few creative pieces with packages I have sent to family and friends and I find it so therapeutic and exciting. I also have developed some photos I took in my trip to Greece where I was able to use my brand new toy-a Nikon D3000. I hope to share that here on my blog soon. I continue to find ways to fuel my creative spirit and pray that I will be able to build something solid and stable for myself in the near future. Looking forward to all the goodness...

Change is good...

This blog has been undergoing some changes. I have been learning so much during Kelly Rae's e-course that I am taking along with all the other activities I am pursuing. I am going through a process of finding my own voice and also to redecorating my blog to reflect me. I don't have a lot of the resources to do something fancy but I am in the process of trying to create my own banner. I will be really happy when I do so.

I thank God for taking me on this creative journey. I have had so many ideas of things I want to do but meanwhile I am concentrating on my collage art class and my e-course. Last week I created a Self-Portrait piece which I still have to add some things to do. Its very very simple but I think that many aspects of it really reflect my personality. It was really interesting how I started with one thought process and then ended up with something completely different. Art is truly amazing and very therapeudic. I will be posting my self-portrait piece shortly...stay tuned.

Oh Van Gogh….

Last week for class we had to recreate a famous work of art. See if you can guess which one I did, it's one of my favorites. This project was actually the most challenging so far. I originally had started out with one idea but in class I changed my mind and this is what came of it. At one point I wasn't even liking what was being created but I just kept pushing myself and it didn't turn out so bad after all. A few people familiar with the painting were able to identify my recreation. I guess I accomplished my goal. This week, however, is a whole different project. I will be working on a SELF-PORTRAIT. My instructor told us it does not have to look like us it just has to feel like us so I can do a lot with it. Let's see what gives?

A little creativity

This is what actually came out of the collage I had to create for class. I was given the assignment two days in advance and had been thinking of it since but come Thursday I still wasn't sure. I prayed about it and kept going about my day when during lunch I picked up my Julia Cameron book and fell upon this quote: "The enchantment of New York lies in its big dreams, the reality of New York lies in its small living space." How true and significant was this for me. I immediately imagined a collage that reflected the quote. It would be a piece with a twist of sarcasm. I love living in New York City but sometimes I want to pull the hairs out of my head with my small apartment. It's probably not even as small as most places in New York but compared to my previous apartment in Chicago, its tiny. One cannot spend too much time indoors. Which eventually balances out because New York City is about going out there to hustle and juggle all sorts of jobs, internships, volunteering, gigs, etc etc. With the rush of New York, there is hardly time to be indoors.

Creative Journey to SPIRIT

I have recently embarked on an amazing creative journey. Since the last time I posted on my blog things have been unraveling so organically. I began to ask the Holy Spirit to place its divine ideas in my head and place my feet in the right direction and this is where it has lead me...toward art. Just last week Sunday I began an online e-course offered by Kelly Rae Roberts who has been a great inspiration for me on this creative journey. I think she is an amazing communicator and I am so grateful that she has shared the unraveling of her creative journey that has inspired me so greatly. I can relate to many things in her life, like her love of helping others in the field of social work and her fears of success. I truly admire her honesty and I am learning so much from this e-course.

I also started my collage art class at the Cooper Union last Thursday. I find collage art so therapeudic and hope to give workshops using the medium someday as therapy for others. I like my instructor and my peers and just being in the new Cooper building surrounded by creative folks really inspires me to keep moving forward. I've already received our second collage art project for Thursday which is to build a social satire photomontage. Its a bit challenging because I don't remember the last time I used satire in my work. I usually will write angry poems or happy poems. I like photos with smiles in them and although satire doesn't have to be dark, it usually involves ridiculing others. I want to choose something I feel really strongly about and run with it. Let's see what transpires!

I am so grateful to God for this creative journey. The other day I went to the Renegade Craft Fair in Brooklyn and had such a great time looking at all the handmade creations. There are truly some very creative and talented people out there. Maybe one day I can participate in such a fair and showcase some of my own work. Thats the idea...like a butterfly I am ready to soar to new heights...