Middle of September Check-In
Last week I was vacationing in Glacier National Park so I’m a little late on my bi-weekly update. I spent a week in/around Glacier National Park and it was a very active but restful and relaxing trip. I went on so many hikes and I took so many pictures. I haven’t gone through them all, but hopefully I feel like I took enough photos this time. I’ve been back home for a few days now and I’m getting back into my painting routine.
What I’ve been working on:
I’m taking a little break from my California Highway One series to work on some half finished paintings in a very different color palette. I started a bunch of ocean/coastal paintings one to two years ago that have been hanging over my head (literally) that I wanted to finish. I’ve started to think about what paintings I want to share during SF open studios in the beginning of November while juggling which paintings I want to submit to gallery calls for art. I thought it would be a good idea to finish these ocean/coastal paintings to both relieve some of the burden of years old unfinished paintings and have the opportunity to showcase them during the open studios. My goal is to finish these paintings by the end of this week (9/16), so I’ll let you know how this goes in my next update!
This week I start a 10 week program called The Business of Art run by San Jose’s Center for Cultural Innovation. I was accepted into this program and provided a scholarship and I’m excited to meet more artists in my area while also learning more about running a creative business.
Inputs
I’m paused in reading Entangled LIfe by Merlin Sheldrake because my library loan expired, but I’m hoping to borrow the book again soon. It’s been an interesting read so far!
I started reading This Changes Everything: Capitalism vs the Climate by Naomi Klein because this book was quoted a bit in Jenny Odell’s Saving Time.
Outputs
Two weekends from now (9/24) will be the opening reception for the Wildling Museum’s California National Parks: Stories of Water exhibition. I’m very excited for it and I also have a friend coming to visit me for the opening reception. I also received a postcard from the museum advertising the exhibition and they used my painting as one of the promotional images, which has been adding to the excitement!
As I mentioned, I did a bunch of hikes and outdoor activities while in northern Montana in Glacier National Park. It felt great to spend a lot of time outdoors and being active again, since I haven’t really been able to do that since my surgery back in July. I’m almost fully recovered, and I felt like this trip was a good reset for me.
Another thing I’ve noticed since coming back from Montana is that it’s cooled down quite a bit in the Bay Area. I felt like I left for vacation during the peak of summer with the dry heat and the unrelenting beating sun. Northern Montana was distinctly cooler, cloudier, and it rained quite a few times. Upon my return home, it feels like it has cooled down quite a bit and the angle of the sun is much less intense. It also stays foggy/cloudy for longer in the morning, which I’ve learned is one of the things I love most about living here. I think the middle of September may be my favorite part of the year here. It may also be helped by the fact that last Friday marked a full year of leaving my job to pursue painting and building a creative business full time. I feel like the year has passed very quickly, but also recognize that I’ve done a lot and many things have changed. I’m very much still in the beginning stages of figuring out what exactly I want to do with my art and creative business, but I have a much better sense of direction than I had a year ago. I may do a deeper dive reflection, but I’ll probably do it closer to year end when things feel a bit less busy.
This week’s update was a bit long. Things are picking up and I know the next few months will be busy with the business program, calls for art deadlines that I hope to submit to, SF open studios, friends visiting, and probably a bunch of other things that I haven’t yet accounted for. I’ll plan to keep everyone updated!
