Yes. I feel so strongly about this. That the "market" calls for our most tender parts, but there's often little scaffolding on the other side to catch us when we do so. So we have to make sure we've created it for ourselves xx
Long ago I read a story titled “ Bring to it the rainbow “
It spoke of giving creativity, beauty and something extra to all that you do.
I do that in my life now. No matter what I do, I do it as an artist. Whether I am building a house, training a horse, cooking, writing or my actual art work, I strive to always make it special and give extra. I bring the rainbow.
Thank YOU for making this crazy world a bit more bearable in these crazy times. You touch more lives than you realize.
I’ve made my living as a creative for 41 years so far. I make Cloisonné and enameled jewelry and sell to the public. I generally get very positive feedback and external validation which is a great feeling. The vulnerability comes in when I greet each person and try to make a connection. It doesn’t come naturally to me even after years of practice but sometimes I feel I get it ‘right’.
Your posts always give me food for thought Jane and point me in a positive direction.
Gosh, Cloisonné is gorgeous!! I didn't know that you did that 😍
And yes, it's such an interesting conversation-- to consider the "vulnerability point" of our work and how it is we can support ourselves to do what we need and want to do without being pulled into a deficit.
I wish Substack let us share photos here, I would love to see your work xx
I can’t tell you how much I needed to hear this. I felt the call to focus on creating scared works and fueling my fire recently. I found myself in an unsustainable system. I was using my creativity on various forms of social media for almost two decades, abandoning my inner self to create and had to completely change direction to create for me first and then the audience to keep my flame alive.
Oh, do I ever hear you. And I think that for those of us who have been in the social media space for a while, it was a frog in the pot situation. That in the beginning, it started as a more wholesome place (as I type this I wonder if I was just deluded!) and then as things changed behind the scenes, it took us a while to realise what was happening- and then to have to do the work of extracting ourselves from it. I’m so happy to hear that you are back to creating. I have been undergoing a similar transformation and am determined not to be swallowed whole this time. A thread that needs my constant attention. We can all create in solidarity together xx
I wonder that too! I honestly feel it’s part of my draw to exist outside the digital realm and to reclaim tangible space. Whether it be working on printed works of any kind, art, or visual media. There’s almost like there’s something inside of us that’s meant to have space and not be thrust into a volatile production cycle. From the other side of the world it’s interesting I can see our struggles as creatives in this digital realm, I’m both grateful for it but also to harness it takes practice.
I completely agree. The digital world is one we need to understand clearly to be able to exist alongside of, especially when the very fabric of its design is made to hook us in. A constant process like you say, of engagement and disengagement, for both sanity and to nurture the creative flame x
I so needed to hear this message. To embrace my creativity comes with fear, for me. And lately this fear has been loud and disabling. But to see my creativity as a small flame that requires fuel and protection has helped shift something inside my heart. Thank you 🙏
What great points you made! I love writing from a place of vulnerability, whether songs, poetry, or prose, because of the connection it creates with others. There’s nothing like hearing from someone who was really moved or helped by something I created. But that balance of sharing vs taking care of my creativity, of plastering something across social media vs individually sending it to someone I think could really benefit from it — that’s such an important tightrope to pay attention to. Thanks for your suggestions on exploring this idea.
I completely agree! The human element is the "everything", I just see more and more in my work how people are encouraged to create and send what can be quite challenging stories (for them) into the world and then there's nothing to catch them on the other side. This was me musing about how to create that system of support around us so we don't get consumed by an experience and creating and sharing remains enlivening and not destructive 💛
Beautiful Jane - I love this new form of storytelling you are embracing.
And I have a question -I am trying to create a painting and poem book from my Myanmar poems and very curious what software you are using to create your images -if you are ok to share?
Oh! That's so exciting! And of course 💛 I sketch these by hand in my sketch book (I'm told that digital drawing is faster but so far I haven't made friends with it completely- the only exception is the wave in this piece that I drew digitally from start to finish). So I draw them by hand and then import them into Procreate on my iPad. And then the text is freehand too, with my Apple pen. You can type, I just prefer writing. Happy to help in any way I can (although I'm still picking my way through!) xx
Such a beautiful, thoughtful piece — the vulnerability economy. I never thought of it like that, but you're so right. I'll sit with these reflections awhile, I think they hold so much wisdom even for the environmental advocacy work I do. Thank you so much, Jane.
Devayani, I so appreciate your words- thank you so much for taking the time to read and to comment. I’m also very excited to have found your work. Rocks! Science! Other deliciousness! The dream! 😍
OMG. So true. What's on the market is our hearts.
Yes. I feel so strongly about this. That the "market" calls for our most tender parts, but there's often little scaffolding on the other side to catch us when we do so. So we have to make sure we've created it for ourselves xx
Beautiful and full of wisdom. Love it!
Thank you so much, Kelly. You are so generous with your words and support. I appreciate you xx
Tom here…..
So beautifully said ( and drawn )
Thank you.
Long ago I read a story titled “ Bring to it the rainbow “
It spoke of giving creativity, beauty and something extra to all that you do.
I do that in my life now. No matter what I do, I do it as an artist. Whether I am building a house, training a horse, cooking, writing or my actual art work, I strive to always make it special and give extra. I bring the rainbow.
Thank YOU for making this crazy world a bit more bearable in these crazy times. You touch more lives than you realize.
🙏❤️🙏
Oh! That is such a beautiful saying Tom- thank you so much for sharing with me. That's really glorious xx
Yes, and yes, and yes.
Thank you lovely friend xx
I’ve made my living as a creative for 41 years so far. I make Cloisonné and enameled jewelry and sell to the public. I generally get very positive feedback and external validation which is a great feeling. The vulnerability comes in when I greet each person and try to make a connection. It doesn’t come naturally to me even after years of practice but sometimes I feel I get it ‘right’.
Your posts always give me food for thought Jane and point me in a positive direction.
Gosh, Cloisonné is gorgeous!! I didn't know that you did that 😍
And yes, it's such an interesting conversation-- to consider the "vulnerability point" of our work and how it is we can support ourselves to do what we need and want to do without being pulled into a deficit.
I wish Substack let us share photos here, I would love to see your work xx
I post a little on Instagram but pretty shy about social media @cloisonneart
I can’t tell you how much I needed to hear this. I felt the call to focus on creating scared works and fueling my fire recently. I found myself in an unsustainable system. I was using my creativity on various forms of social media for almost two decades, abandoning my inner self to create and had to completely change direction to create for me first and then the audience to keep my flame alive.
Oh, do I ever hear you. And I think that for those of us who have been in the social media space for a while, it was a frog in the pot situation. That in the beginning, it started as a more wholesome place (as I type this I wonder if I was just deluded!) and then as things changed behind the scenes, it took us a while to realise what was happening- and then to have to do the work of extracting ourselves from it. I’m so happy to hear that you are back to creating. I have been undergoing a similar transformation and am determined not to be swallowed whole this time. A thread that needs my constant attention. We can all create in solidarity together xx
I wonder that too! I honestly feel it’s part of my draw to exist outside the digital realm and to reclaim tangible space. Whether it be working on printed works of any kind, art, or visual media. There’s almost like there’s something inside of us that’s meant to have space and not be thrust into a volatile production cycle. From the other side of the world it’s interesting I can see our struggles as creatives in this digital realm, I’m both grateful for it but also to harness it takes practice.
I completely agree. The digital world is one we need to understand clearly to be able to exist alongside of, especially when the very fabric of its design is made to hook us in. A constant process like you say, of engagement and disengagement, for both sanity and to nurture the creative flame x
I so needed to hear this message. To embrace my creativity comes with fear, for me. And lately this fear has been loud and disabling. But to see my creativity as a small flame that requires fuel and protection has helped shift something inside my heart. Thank you 🙏
You are so welcome. I love creating together with you! xx
I will be reading this post over and over again Jane. The message and the images are so inspiring and so true. 🙏🏻
Thank you so much, Pam! We have to stick together, us wordy, painty people xx
What great points you made! I love writing from a place of vulnerability, whether songs, poetry, or prose, because of the connection it creates with others. There’s nothing like hearing from someone who was really moved or helped by something I created. But that balance of sharing vs taking care of my creativity, of plastering something across social media vs individually sending it to someone I think could really benefit from it — that’s such an important tightrope to pay attention to. Thanks for your suggestions on exploring this idea.
I completely agree! The human element is the "everything", I just see more and more in my work how people are encouraged to create and send what can be quite challenging stories (for them) into the world and then there's nothing to catch them on the other side. This was me musing about how to create that system of support around us so we don't get consumed by an experience and creating and sharing remains enlivening and not destructive 💛
Beautiful Jane - I love this new form of storytelling you are embracing.
And I have a question -I am trying to create a painting and poem book from my Myanmar poems and very curious what software you are using to create your images -if you are ok to share?
Oh! That's so exciting! And of course 💛 I sketch these by hand in my sketch book (I'm told that digital drawing is faster but so far I haven't made friends with it completely- the only exception is the wave in this piece that I drew digitally from start to finish). So I draw them by hand and then import them into Procreate on my iPad. And then the text is freehand too, with my Apple pen. You can type, I just prefer writing. Happy to help in any way I can (although I'm still picking my way through!) xx
Needed to read this at this point of my writing growth!
I'm so glad- thank you so much for reading xx
So wonderfully beautiful. Thank you for letting us in on your art ❤️
Swati, thank you for being here! I'm grateful you took the time to stop by xx
This is so delicious, thanks for crafting and sharing xx
Thank you so much Suze 😍 💛
Such a beautiful, thoughtful piece — the vulnerability economy. I never thought of it like that, but you're so right. I'll sit with these reflections awhile, I think they hold so much wisdom even for the environmental advocacy work I do. Thank you so much, Jane.
Devayani, I so appreciate your words- thank you so much for taking the time to read and to comment. I’m also very excited to have found your work. Rocks! Science! Other deliciousness! The dream! 😍
Looking forward to inspiration from your posts, so I can illustrate some more stories about the Earth :D
Looking forward to it! 😍