10 Things I Learned From Baring My Soul

Just recently I  shined a big ol’ flood light on my soul by sharing an intimate glimpse into my art journals from the past 20+ years.  I called this 10 day series Take A Peek and it was quite a trip down memory lane!  A couple times I was actually moved to tears from the  surprises tucked away that I completely forgot about.

Even though I endured a bit of a vulnerability hang-over from baring my soul in front of thousands of strangers, I’m still glad I did it.

During those ten days I received so many emails and comments from creative hearts expressing how Take A Peek was inspiring them to get back to art journaling.  That alone was worth it to me.

Though, I decided to sit down and write in my studio journal about what I learned by revisiting these old friends — my dear art journals.

Here’s the ten whoppers I realized…

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1.  I have had a creative practice my entire life and it’s filled with gaps, long hiatuses, and abandoned pages — and that’s totally ok.  I’m an artist, not a machine.

2.  Great things happen when you just stick to it.  Gosh, there is such a huge difference in skill and style as my art journals progress through the years.  I’m so grateful that I’ve stuck with this practice for over 20 years!

3.  I’m a series girl!  In Take A Peek you’ll get a glimpse of my Painting The Feminine series, my Grey series, my Healing Journal series, my Oil Pastel series, and many more.  I love to take an idea or concept and explore the hell out of it!

4.  Experimenting is mandatory as an artist.  I’ll be honest, I was cringing my whole way through episode 2 because that journal is like a mad scientist got her hands on it! I’m all over the place in trying different things out.  But  in retrospect I can see how necessary experimenting was/is in my development as an artist.

5.  Part of being an artist is just having to make ugly ass shit.  (Sorry, there’s no sweeter way to put it.)

6.  Art journaling for me is all about moving energy and expressing myself in the moment.  I like to keep my supplies and even my techniques simple and direct so the essence of me can flow! flow! flow!

7.  As vulnerable as I felt sharing an intimate peek into my personal art journals, there was something very cathartic about doing so as well.  I was able to bring light and much needed closure to an era of my life I feel.  Thank you to those who bared witness.

8.  Without even trying, we tell the story of our lives when we art journal.  This moved me the most when I looked back at my journals.  There are so many pages I can remember exactly where I was — what I was feeling — and why I created that page.

9.  Our mark is sacred.  It doesn’t matter if it’s pretty or the worst thing you ever did — those marks you make on paper are sacred.  They are your younger selves whispering “I’m here.  I’m still by your side.”

10.  Art journals are living entities.  They have Souls all of their own.  I’m not being metaphoric when I call them my old friends.