a creative dilemma

Friday night. After midnight.

Increasingly aware (on account of my poor typing these past few days- I miss the proper keys!) that my fingernails seem to grow like weeds again. Like it’s summer again.

Been stretched a bit thin lately, again– working on a number of projects for clients (four web sites, the museum, a postcard, a video edit… this week), and so this past week has held no time for my printmaking or drawing pursuits. One thing about being so busy is that your mind stays always on– it’s is a good thing, generally, I think– being on all the time feeds all projects constantly– so long as you can remember to STOP. and FOCUS. when necessary. Which can can be difficult at times.

The ability to slow down is a crucial element in thinking, and having chunks of time in which slow is allowed –without being incompatible with one’s schedule of incoming requests, or breaking deadlines– becomes more rare by the week. Thereby making good thinking time, time for thoughts to percolate unfettered,  more rare.

And thinking is a crucial part of creative work.

It does create a sort of dilemma.

I listen to music far less than I used to, while working. I do sometimes listen to audio books; but often I will come to the surface to realize I’ve been working away in (relative) silence for hours, Only the sounds of Fifth Avenue crashing past of a morning and afternoon. But then, music is so often laden with so much emotion– it can be a distraction.  Sometimes working with nothing on in the background is a good way to create the : space : that is needed. So that when you reach a question, or a moment in which you  need to pause- there’s nothing else there to get in the way. We see more and more articles about productivity discussing ways to keep the world from rushing into every moment; of turning off email and the browser– for even an hour, to get some time without constant pings from the outside world. It’s a curious thing, our modern world.

Well.

Autumn goes just as quickly as ever I accuse Summer of doing! (Always.) Time.
On it goes.