a blog by john-michael korpal
A~Azure
B~Bronze
C~Celadon
D~Dandelion
E~Emerald
F~Fuchsia
G~Grey
H~Harlequin
I~Ivory
J~Jade
K~Khaki
L~Lilac
M~Magnolia
N~Navy Blue
O~Olive
P~Purple
Q~Quartz grey
R~Red
S~Salmon
T~Turquoise
U~Ultramarine
V~Viridian
W~Wisteria
X~Xanthic
Y~Yellow
Z~Zucchini
Moving forward into the year I have decided to create plans/goals to help me stay focused on what I want to achieve this year. Please understand this is not the complete list, but just a portion of it (at least the parts I am willing to share with the world).
I have learned in the past it is easier for me to achieve my goals if I put them out there for all to see. Often individuals have ideas or resources that can help me fulfill them. If I didn’t ask… no one would never know. I find that most people feel that mind reading is too difficult and confusing. So…. I am putting this out there…Whatever happens…happens!
There are no numbers because all are equal; none have more value or more importance than another. This is random list of very structured individual goals.
Increase Studio income ~ Cover total cost of running the Studio, Art supplies, Exhibit submission fees and Assistants.
Continue to explore and analyze my creative process allowing for the opportunity for it to expand and evolve as I continue to create the art.
Create a realistic timeline to help maintain a balance between my perceived available time and energy and what is really before me.
Participate in 6-8 group exhibits / shows and at least one solo show.
Submit applications for two Artist Grants… while learning more about the process as I fill out the applications.
Apply /Sign-up for the “Klein Artist Works “ workshop in the fall.
Increase the number of students enrolled in my Calligraphy classes both at Flying Dolphin Studio and Discovery Center.
Put in place a system to put away a set amount into my savings account. (Pre-determined)
Take more assertive steps to continue learning French (sign up for a class and search out individuals to practice and study).
Create 6-8 new paintings this year.
Spend at least two hours each day in the Studio creating the art.
Attend at least two shows / exhibits per month (Ask me to go to an exhibit with you! )
anxiety |aNGˈzī-itē|noun (pl. anxieties)
A feeling of worry, nervousness, or unease, typically about an imminent event or something with an uncertain outcome: he felt a surge of anxiety |anxieties about the moral decline of today’s youth.• [ with infinitive ] desire to do something, typically accompanied by unease: the housekeeper’s eager anxiety to please.• Psychiatry a nervous disorder characterized by a state of excessive uneasiness and apprehension, typically with compulsive behavior or panic attacks.ORIGIN early 16th cent.: from French anxiété or Latin anxieties, fromanxius.
Monday, is always “Studio” day… and today was overflowing with thinking, cleaning and plotting/planning as I explored the manner that I approach my art and the business side of it.
Today’s main focus was a review of happenings of the studio over the past year…and drinking coffee. Lots of coffee…
Sometimes I find it difficult to glaze into the “metaphoric mirror” and ask, ” What do I really, really want to be?” There are so many choices out there it boggles my mind as how one can limit their scope to just a few. I am slowly learning and accepting that this is a process of tearing down and rebuilding with the pieces that remain. As I continue to move forward in this process I find it very exciting while it still freaks me out to no end. I know the difference between bad and good, but the difference between good and great is more difficult for me to disseminate.
Most questions today started with:
Why”
How?
When?
What?
with my responses limited to basically…Yes, No, Maybe and I don’t know.
I feel trapped in an empty chamber collecting momentum but I can’t seem to find the door (or window) to release this energy into the world and allow it to manifest into something tangible.
One of my personal projects for the month of January is to create a projected action plan for the next 1, 3, 5, and 10 years. Included in each year are my goals, projects, and dreams as I gently place the pieces together so I can see how they fit to create the big picture. I have to admit the first and tenth year plan were the easiest to create. The third and fifth year I ran into some turbulence defining these on paper. I am being forced to accept that some of my plans that were floating around in my head were not very realistic. This became quickly clear to me when I wanted to do 50 shows this year, one in each state of the U.S. That factors out to being a show each week…this would be crazy making for me… and everyone else in my world. So that was moved down into the five-year plan category. But in the beginning my thought pattern was SURE, sign me up; let’s get this thing going! I now realize the need to write these things down more often, just to see them in a different light.
Many other writing projects slated for January, but I can only do so many at a time because I need the time to step back and look at it from the outside…But the new year is here and I am ready to throw myself into a New Year filled with new ideas and challenges to explore!
It is time to create some ART!
Notes from Monday (12-23-13) I went back and explored what I wrote on the train to Indiana and organized the thoughts into a more linear fashion.
Monday is a normally a studio day, but today the art is taking on a different form. It is that time of year to travel down to Indiana for the holidays. Traveling back to where I grew up has always been interesting, because it allows me the opportunity to reevaluate where I have come from and to contemplate new pathways leading into the future. It reminds me that we are the collectives of all that we have done, all that we have spoken and all that has been done and told to us. All this information helps to determine who we become in our world.
As the train passes though the towns between Chicago and South Bend I am reminded of all the stories that each town shared with me in my youth. The visits now past, elicit memories that bring up different thoughts and feelings. I am a mix-mashed version of all these memories and although some of the people who played vital parts in my history may not even remember me anymore. They are still an active part of my past as I hold a tiny bit of them in my memory and some are even are stored in my heart.
When looking back over the years I sometimes question what parts of these are real and what parts my mind has filled in the voids as the years have rolled by. Exploring them helps me to determine which of these deserve a space in my life or if they should be banished from my memory. I ask myself if these still serve me well, do they remind me of where I have come from and support my current thought process or do they place limits on my future as they reinforce a boundary constricting my potential for growth. There is often a very large grey area between the check boxes of Yes and No. There are no easy answers.
The train barrels down the tracks swooshing past the landscape. I notice the trees without their leaves. It is a gentle reminder that not everything in life is visible on the horizon that the more vital parts are often hidden from sight, the roots under the ground, the water source and all that lives in the shadows of the light of day. This is a different element of the world that is always present but we are not always privy to it.
The structures of groups of barren trees, young and growing upright as a forest of new growth surrounded by vast emptiness… blue skies with the darkened clouds of winter. I ponder why certain tree refuse to drop their leaves …maybe it is the same as why some people refuse to reach out beyond their own personal beliefs.
I wonder if the leaves fall from these stubborn trees or if they are just replace by new growth of the same, year after year.
A ~ Acceptance
B~ Books
C~ Colour
D~ Depression
E~ Emotions
F~ Frustration
G~ Grants
H~ Humility
I~ Incentive
J~ Junk
K~ Kinetic
L~ Love
M~ Material
N~ Nature
O~ Observation
P~ Progress
Q~ Quality
R~ Realism
S~ Serendipity
T~ Technique
U~ Useful
V~ Variety
W~ Wonder
X~ Xenophobia
Y~ YES
Z~ Zebra
This time I am going to try something different… I am inviting you to play a “ART” game with me to give you an opportunity to be more actively involved in this blog post.
This is a simple game. In the comment section below I would like for you to list one of your favorite pieces of artwork, it can be a painting, sculpture even a building. I want you to post the name of the object, the artist and the year that it was created.
In Thursday’s blog I will explain what the next step of the process is…and I will share what mine is.
Get ready…
Get set..
Go!
Comment!