These early artwork pieces from 2020/2021 became the first steps in my developing art practice. These pieces became the foundation for the themes I’m exploring today: spirit through art, creativity, identity, and transformation.
Looking back, I can see how curiosity, play, and questions about who we are and how we change began to take shape in this work. Those themes continue to guide me, both in the studio and in how I think about art’s role in my life.
“Serious play is the essence of creativity.”
— Paula Scher · TED-2008
I appreciate how play and spirit come together in these early pieces. You can see other works from that period in the gallery section.
Every artist writes his own autobiography.
~ Havelock Ellis
Putting it out there… That is what an artist does. I am realizing that more and more, I am writing my autobiography. An artist does put it all out there.
Quakers (the Religious Society of Friends) has been taking more of my time lately. I just finished the Northern Yearly Meeting eNews for July. For the past few years, I edited and produced the eNews for the yearly meeting.
For most of my writing now, I am using Grammarly. Yes, it is AI, and since I am dyslexic, it is very helpful. However, there are still mistakes, mostly because of reading errors. I get impatient and skim. I found that it is not good for proofreading. I am considering writing more about my life, but I don’t know how open I want to be.
Derwent Inktense pencils and blocks have captured my attention as a new medium, and I am playing with them in combination with other materials that I am comfortable using. Applying the Inktense color with a brush was a concern because it has been quite a while since I last used watercolor or a brush. After playing with them, have a handle on the ink, but not a tight grip. : ) My pen work over the last couple of years has been beneficial.
I think of my friends Joe Sinness and Andrea Carlson, artists who are adept with wet media and can create sharp lines and crisp edges.
I am drawing more and finding it rewarding—it allows me to center, and it is a meditative practice for me. Over the last few months, I have created three or four new pieces.
Below is a fun and quirky piece I created by playing and experimenting with Derwent Inktense pencils and my pens.
A friend, who is a Friend at the Minneapolis Friends Meeting, called me today and shared Carroll’s quote with me. What struck me about this quote is that it addresses an experience and the concept of time. I have read in several places that, according to quantum physics, time is not a linear analog; instead, it is one moment stacked on top of another, and we experience time all at once. Therefore, our planning and setting of goals is a form of remembering a time in the future. I know, deep, huh? I am not a physicist, but these concepts inspire my work as an artist.
Door05192024, Mixed Media, Pen and Digital, Hendricks 2024
I am currently listening to “Where the Heart Beats” by John Cage. I knew Cage was a musician but never understood his music. Where the Heart Beats is a great read and an excellent audiobook. The man had a unique way of looking at the universe, both its natural and spiritual sides.
With the idea Playin’ Around and wanted to post something. I wanted a quote. This is what I found…
I was just playing around with my imagination …
and then everything got intense. (New Adventure-?). Pinterest Link -> Link
I’ve been Playing around with media to complement the pens.
Here are two doodles. It’s been fun to escape from Blender for a while. I think I posted an image before saying it, “Started with a Walk.” I guess these did, too. Started with a Walk and a Photograph
