Sculpting a Life:
Susan Gallacher-Turner’s turn in the Pacific Northwest.

(Thunderbird -copper mask)

Why do I get in my own way?

I want to say that I’ve had a peaceful, productive week in the studio. But I’d be lying.

My three screening sculptures are still sitting where they were last week. My two copper pieces are still waiting for patina solutions. My two clay pieces are covered with plastic, untouched.

Truth be told, it’s been a week of copy editing, emailing, classes to schedule and reschedule, a meeting and a funeral. Midweek, I got a sore throat, headache and that fuzzy feeling that comes with a cold.

I managed to squeeze in some nap time. Ok, I’ll admit it, I tried to nap, unsuccessfully. I drank many, many cups of tea. Sitting in bed with my laptop, I kept up my emailing. I read blogs. I watched one movie while glancing through a magazine and chatting with my husband. Looking at this list, it doesn’t feel like I was really resting, does it? Nope.

If I were looking at someone else’s life, I’d say, this person has a hard time relaxing. And that’s probably why they’ve got a cold. I’d suggest that the solution is to allow themselves to rest more and work less. Easy to say. Hard to do.

Which brings me to the question above: Why do I get in my own way? Why am I running from the very thing I crave? Peaceful, productive days in the studio with the music playing, my fingers moving happily from clay to paint to metal. Or sitting on the couch with my feet on a pillow writing away as I am now? Then after days of creative solitude, I come out of my cocoon to teach workshops and show my work. Sigh. The perfect life.

Maybe that’s the problem. No life is perfect. I’m not perfect. But maybe that’s the answer, too. I get in my own way so I won’t feel the pressure to be perfect. So I won’t have to face my own limitations. Or the guilt that I’m not good enough for such a good life.

If someone else said that, I’d say, “Of course, you’re good enough. Nobody’s perfect. You just have to be who you are and do what you love, everyday in your own way.”

Maybe the best way to get out of my own way, is to listen to what I’ve got to say.

To see some of my sculptures that I have gotten done, visit my website at http://www.susangt.com/ or read my other blog, Susan's Art & Words at http://sculpturepdx.blogspot.com/

Read more!

Sculpting a Life
Susan Gallacher’s turn in the Pacific Northwest.

A few weeks ago, an artist and mom-to-be asked me how I managed my studio time. It’s a good question. And one that I wished someone had answered for me when I started out, so I gave it some thought. I wanted to give her something that no one had really given me back then, the truth rather than the myth.

Here’s the myth. That all artists work in their lofty studio spaces alone at least 8-10 hours a day struggling to make their work meet their highest standards of excellence.

Here’s the truth. My work has been done in a variety of settings over the years. I started out with a drafting table in the corner of my bedroom because it was above the reach of my pre-school son. Later, when we moved to a larger house, I put the drafting table in the corner of the den. And gradually the den moved out and my studio moved in. As far as hours a day, I don’t count them. Oh, I spent some time whipping myself into a frenzy trying to uphold the myth of long studio hours, but I kept getting interrupted by life. My life.

Here’s another truth. I work best in 45 minute segments, about the length of one of my favorite CD’s. If I work on one piece any longer than that, I start undoing my own good work. I call it ‘fuzting’. It’s very frustrating. So, what I’ve found works for me is to have about 3 pieces going at once which I work on for 45 minutes each about five days a week. Some days I work longer. Some days I work less. Some days I write. Some days I go out and have fun. Well, ok, I’ll admit, I have a hard time getting myself out for fun, but I’m working on that.

The point is, small segments of time add up to finished work. Think of it this way, Michelangelo carved his masterpieces one chip at a time. So can you. Studio time can work with you, around your life, your kids and walking your dog. It may not happen in one month or one year, but in time, you will have a portfolio of work to show for it and, if you’re lucky, a couple of healthy kids and loving relationships, too.

Just one more thing…don’t forget to play. Go out and have some fun on a regular basis. It feeds the soul. Speaking of which, I’ll talk to you later, I’m going to a movie.

Read Susan’s posts every other Friday in the Joy of Living Creatively. Visit her website at susangt.com or blog at http://sculpturepdx.blogspot.com
Read more!