I now know through experience and practise that if I keep on drawing then something will come, as long as I am prepared to follow hunches and jump into opportunities that come up whether they are just choosing different materials to use or visiting a particular show or reading a book I hear about on the radio - all this contributes to a slow emergence of what is really a continuation of an idea that was first realised years ago (even this idea came out of something so its not the start of something but also a continuation ...and it goes on!).
I actually need these works/ideas as anchors in my practise because they give it foundation, reference and authenticity because they grow with me over time, they re-appear in different guises but remain traceable and detectable if you are interested in uncovering them.
In 2014 I now find myself drawing and specifically exploring line and curve. my current statement says 'I am primarily concerned with drawing. A strong sense of movement, physicality and contrast are key elements as are line and curve' I have arrived here without deliberately making this connection to an early significant piece of work and I love that. Creativity happens regardless of me trying or not trying, so long as I regularly work to allow it to happen.
That's the simple bit: living it is the complicated bit because I must keep working in a state of uncertainty and vulnerability. I don't know how a piece of work is going to turn out and even if or when I do I have no idea of what will come next unless I keep working, trusting and acting on ideas and instincts. This can make working towards an exhibition a risky and really quite stressful business - the tension of what it will look like and how it will curate as a body of work when that body is not yet complete. I have to 'lean' into the unknown and believe in myself.
This is where my anchors help give me firm roots deep into solid ground from there I can stretch and reach beyond myself with my self imposed limits. Reaching into wide open spaces. I would go as far as to say this is my faith.
