not a good studio day

I sucked big time in the studio today. I don't know what I was trying to achieve - but the painting was not only not good - it was really bad. No talent, no skills ... have I just been lucky the other times?

So I post a sketch made for a playful project instead.

Monsieur Jean-Jacques

I'm making some idea sketches for a fun project.

Art as Business: Time Management II

- Do you play chess?
I don’t. Or rather – I can start playing a game of chess and stay focused and concentrated for like 7 minutes. Then I just make a bold surprise attack without really thinking about the consequences. The other player looks at me surprised – thinks – and will of course win the game. Being a general in real life a surprise attack could work … but in chess? No.
I don’t like loosing.

Time management is like chess – and I am more of a poker player. I can be patient and strategic if I know I can be allowed to bluff and take risks. Poker involves that … but can I time manage like that? Deadline surfing could be like taking risks… but it’s just plain stupid when you have a child who might have to stay at home with a fever at any given moment – especially when something important has to be done. So I’ve decided I will have to play chess when it comes to time planning – and play poker in the studio instead. One important thing for me to remember is to not play too much chess - then I’ll just go crazy and do something totally surprising with my administration and time…


As I am a poker girl my chess players are a bit handicapped – they have really poor eyesight and need to use three aids: normal glasses, magnifying glass and binoculars



Normal glasses(6 -12 months into the future)

These last years I’ve had so many parallel projects going on – and I’ve had such a hard time remembering when to do what that I’ve sometimes missed important things (like applying for grants, making follow-up calls or even missing meetings).

But now I’ve solved it! Since last spring I use the calendar on my computer (iCal). I have more or less detailed planned what to do until the end of April – and I’ve backtracked things that need to be prepared.

For example: I will give a screen-printing workshop in March. When I planned it In December I wrote down in the calendar: when to promote the workshop, when to mail the participants (twice), when to order materials, when to send a nice e-mail after the workshops etc. So now I don’t have to think about it! I look at my calendar every night – and if I’m home doing administration in the morning as well.

I have this great overview of the whole year. I have managed to concentrate some workshops and projects to March, I’ve reserved April for making the enamels, May will be a mix (project, screen printing, enamels) and I’ve planned June for concentrated work in the studio. I’m going to try to get autumn organized in a similar way, but with more studio time (I have two exhibitions late autumn).

Magnifying glass (to do list for the day, the week etc)

• Less than 2 minutes-rule. I’ve started applying the rule that if something will take less than 2 minutes to do: Do it now, Don’t postpone it! For example: answer the e-mail straight away, put the date into the calendar, and pay the bill. Ok, I’m not perfect on this .. but I’m getting there slowly and I can see improvement (less paper on my desk)
• To do lists. I love to do lists. But I have this tendency to put too many things on them and then just feel a kind of despair when I just manage to do half of it. But thanks to using iCal and it’s very little space per day (I write down the things I have to do at night for a week or two) I can only put a few “to dos”. And I do them (ok ... I move some boring ones around a bit!). These tasks are complements to the long term planning (like with the workshops above). It can be: updating my website, do my bookkeeping (YES! I’ve finally started doing it on a regular basis instead of desperately a week before it’s time to do my tax declaration) or writing a follow-up mail.

binoculars (1-5 years)
but … where are they?
Shit – I must have misplaced them. I’ll try to find them until next week (i.e. I have to start using them)… a problem to try to fix. How can I work better on keeping my long term goals in front of me? What do you suggest?

learn how to screen print

Anyone on the Swedish West coast just dying to learn how to screen print? You are in luck: I'm giving two screen printing workshops at KKV in March! If you fulfill the requirements to take the workshop - and if you don't screw up totally - you will be able to apply for membership at KKV afterwards.

For further details see: weekday workshop or weekend workshop

För att kunna gå kursen bör man vara yrkesverksam konstnär, konsthantverkare, designer, illustratör el dyl (KKV:s regler) - om du är osäker på om du kan gå kursen så fråga mig! Det finns övernattningsrum på KKV för 50 kr/natten om man behöver sova över.

Temptation

Being home with sick son and playing gets a bit frustrating after some time ... and I start making little creative exercises while painting and drawing with him.

This one is for you Kitty Killain (who has a new website and blog)!

10 meters to start

to start my intense painting period I decided to use my role of 10 meter rice paper: just go crazy, no rules, no need to accomplish anything. And be really fast doing it.

What's good painting on rice paper is that it is harder to overwork (it will brake) and that the colour is bleeding like crazy (less control). And as I only use watercolour and Indian ink I can role the paintings (easier to store!) I've been home with sick kid today and yesterday, but have anyway only one meter left to paint! Ok - I said no rules - but I put a theme: superheroes and super-villains (for my exhibition in November).

solving storage problems

So - I have this storing problem in my studio with my big paintings on paper. Determined to solve the problem I went to talk to the carpenter who is my landlord (he has his workshop just next to my studio) and asked if he could help me buying this big mdf board - as he's got a truck. "how big do you want?" he asked "3 x 4 meters (118 x 157 inches)?" I was tempted, but settled for 1,22 x 2,44 m (48 x 96 inches).


Two days later I got the board - and mounted even bigger paper on it! I don't know why; I just got nuts and instead of solving the problem I increased it. Luckily I restrained myself and didn't ask for the biggest size of board...

but eventually I will have to solve this problem - or maybe I should just do as Aimee suggested: store my paintings on gallery walls!

cold and studio problems

We've had such a cold and snowy winter this year. The sea has frozen out to the islands and the last time that happened was in the mid 80's! I walked across the bridge to the studio yesterday as I thought it might be too slippery to bike. I took some photos - to me it looked like Northern Norway.


Walking is good for thinking. I've had this problem in my studio: my painting have gotten too big to keep in any drawers or folder (I built myself an extra big one two years ago). And as I also paint acrylics on the papers rolling them isn't an option (the paint can crack). How do you think I solved it? (no, you won't get it right!)

unhappy hipsters - thanks for the tip, Nathalie! Just my sense of humour.