Breaking and Making
During my sabbatical I’m sharing articles and videos from the archives, sticking to the schedule of
WORDS on the 3rd of the month, PICTURES on the 13th, and SOUND on the 23rd.
Here’s a break-and-make project I’m working on. I’ll post updates on Instagram in case you want to follow my progress.
Destruction and Creation
I got mythological with my video choices for today (definitely influenced by Michael Meade’s podcast).
In Mythology as in Art and Nature, destruction and creation go hand in hand, with chaos as the backdrop. This pretty much describes the times we’re living in, right? And the typical state of my studio. 🤪It’s what I see in my compost bin: a writhing mass of critters transforming dead leaves and food scraps into nourishment for future life.
It requires a lot of trust to not lose your sh*t when things get nutty. Rather than clinging to a (false) sense of control, the ability to embrace Not Knowing Exactly How Things Will Turn Out is fundamental to living a creative life and growing in consciousness.
Today’s videos explore therapeutic destruction and glimpses of chaotic creation. We call this “mosaic art.” Enjoy the two shows, which are 3 minutes 19 seconds, and 53 seconds, respectively. 🎥💫
Today’s Double Feature
Video 1: “How to Break, Sort & Store Tiles” demonstrates a little-known form of art therapy that you might want to try.
Video 2: “Mosaic mural-in-progress in Batey Isabela” gives you a fly-on-the-wall look at the project my daughter Natalie and I led in the Dominican Republic in 2016, the subject of this month’s WORDS re-post. It doubles as a tribute to Diana, the Peace Corps Volunteer shown wearing a hat in the video, whose Washington DC wedding Natalie and I got to “attend” yesterday online. You know, pandemic-style. ❤️ (Congrats, Diana and Pablo!)
May you bravely face whatever chaos is thrown your way this week, trusting your instincts and the creative forces of the Universe to guide you through it. And may you grow in wisdom rather than in fear because of the Not Knowing.
Also: Keep making stuff out of what’s broken.
With love,
Pam
P.S. You can find more “how-to” and “see-what-we-made” videos on my All Hands Art YouTube channel, and view occasional photos of things I’m making, seeing, or learning on Instagram (also All Hands Art).