interlude
Mid-November already?! Where is 2023 going?? We’re due for another quarterly index of things that are “saving my life,” as the Lazy Genius would put it. More simply, these are small things that have improved my well-being and sense of calm.
resources
This video by the artist Lexin:
Not only does she clearly articulate the modern quandary of young artists (of any medium, not just drawing!), but she also provides practical solutions. Furthermore, she walks us through some lesser-known app settings that can help us filter out unwanted or distracting content.
I was also struck by Lexin’s idea of going through one’s prior art catalogue and identifying the work that feels most authentic. This is the work that resonates the most with the artist – as well as other people – and is more fun and motivating to make. I shall try this exercise and share in a future newsletter!Nostalgic video game music. When “Houston” came on my YouTube recommended videos, I was transported right back to high school, when I first played the chaotic and wickedly funny game that is Katamari Damacy. I think there’s a difference between being stuck in the past, and (more productively) reviving the emotions that were the most wholesome and pure. The Katamari soundtracks still slap as hard as they did in the mid-aughts!
A makeup refresh. One Sephora visit and too many dollars later, I learned how to set my eye makeup with sensitive skin-friendly primer and powder. Yes, it took me a while to learn these basics, but better late than never?! I can’t tell you how much of a confidence booster it’s been to know I can trust my mascara will stay put. I don’t have to dab a tissue under my eyes after 3-4 hours, because I won’t look like a panda. An added bonus is that eyeshadow colours show more cleanly over the primer, so I can have fun experimenting.
Secondarily, I cannot deny the little dopamine rush that comes with opening and using a nicely-packaged cosmetic. I hope to retain that enjoyment by staying mindful of this each time I use these products.
I’ll leave you with a quote from British poet Jenny Joseph. This cleanly describes the energy transfer I hope to enable with Spirit posts:
My own experience through a life-long addiction to books, confirmed by people I've talked to about this, is that there is a charge of energy some of us feel sometimes from reading, that feeds our nervous system just as functionally as a good hot dinner; that we are indeed being nourished when we take in a poem, a picture, or a piece of music. Referred to as “feeding the mind” it is thought of as “intellectual” or “spiritual” growth, nothing to do with our physical functioning.
There are other matters to take into account when one considers what is happening when reading or hearing a poem cheers people up, restores flagging energy; it doesn't so much make them see the world differently as enable them to act in it when perhaps they had felt too low, or ill, or uninterested to do so. Different books (pictures, music) affect people in different ways, as do personalities and physical presences, and affect the same person differently on different occasions.
If you’re an artist, can you think of a piece that felt the most authentic for you to create? Or (like my makeup epiphany) is there an everyday method you learned rather late but now really appreciate? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments!
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