![]() For the first time in a long time, I have had extended time off over the festive season. I was able to spend time with my Mum and dad who visited from Perth for Christmas. I can honestly say it has been very cathartic. The recent hot weather here in Melbourne meant that my hubby and I spent two days in the aircon, reading, watching a bit of TV and doing mundane things in the house. It was fabulous! Each year at the end of the year, I sit down and think about what I would like for the coming year. I then create a vision board for that year. This is also the time I tick off what was achieved on the current years vision board. Except for one bold audacious goal, everything had a tick next to it for 2024. This was very pleasing to see. Although, we can start a project, set goals, make plans and move ourselves forward any day of the year, the start of the year seems to be the one most people choose as a line in the sand. Some of the areas I want to focus on in 2025 to make positive changes are in in the area of my personal and creative life. Often, we can put areas on hold to focus on another area, which can lead to an imbalance. So, what does this have to do with art? Having a balanced life can help in so many ways with your creativity and can open up the portal to success in every area. I am aiming on spending time catching up with people I didn’t get to spend as much time with as I would have liked to. I also want to spend more time creating for myself. It is true I create art with each art class I run, that is my practice sessions so to speak, I mean creating pieces that sing to me. I want to Spend time experimenting and playing using my sketchbooks. Now all I must do is fit this in with my planned travel and classes for 2025. What a great problem to have, don’t you think? How do you start the new year? Leave your comments below Featured photo: A page from my grid sketchbook "Loose & abstract landscapes"
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![]() Now is the time of year, I sit back and evaluate the year that was. I look at what worked well, what needs improvement and plans for the following year. Reflection is a good thing. It allows us time to look back on the year that was and take stock of the intricacies of where we have been. As I sat and evaluated both my personal and professional journey, there were some moments of pure joy and moments of challenges. In 2024, hubby and I decided to bite the bullet and get some renovations completed at home. We had just lost our beautiful fur baby of almost 16 years. It seemed like the right time to get things done as now it was just the two of us to consider. We needed to completely empty the house for the workmen to come in and remove our old flooring and to lay new flooring. The garage and enclosed patio, also affectionately known as “Art in the Garden Room” were filled with the everything from the house. Along the way there were a few little hiccups, such as new toilets to be installed which we hadn’t planned. The dust was unbelievable as the tiles were jackhammered out. Thank goodness we had our caravan; this became our temporary home for five weeks. The flooring was finished, and the painters arrived to paint the inside of the house. They would return a few weeks later to complete the outside. It was all systems go. Hubby and I still had both of our businesses to keep going. As the enclosed patio was filled with our belongings, Creative Circle needed to be moved to another location for a term. The mid-year Open Studio was put on hold, with only the summer one being held. Looking back at my art business, I was pleased to see growth even with the renovations taking up a lot of bandwidth for a period of time. In 2024, I launched the free monthly pain outs. The first month was just three of us meeting up in a local park. Although, a very chilly morning, the sun was out, and we had a fabulous time. Since the first paint out more creatives are joining in as we venture to some of the beautiful locations in the City of Kingston. I have been fortunate enough to meet the most amazing creatives along the way and connect with wonderful people. I have entered several art shows and had my artwork accepted, sold a record number of artworks, and run over 100 classes each year and this is to increase in 2025. Taking stock of the year that was, now is the time to set up plans for the year that will be. Do you assess your year? Do you make plans for the following year? Leave your comments below. Featured Artwork: Unnamed - available in 2025 ![]() Loneliness is on the rise in Australia, I imagine we are not alone, and it is happening globally. It is not fussy about your age or gender According to the APS (Australian Psychological Society) one in four Australians feel lonely. During the 2020 and beyond lockdowns, this number may have been significantly higher. There is a plethora of information and statistics on the internet regarding loneliness and it’s mental, physical and health factors. The facts are frightening. I know when I moved to Melbourne coming up now 27 years ago, I didn’t know anyone. There wasn’t any family here, initially there weren’t any work colleagues, it was me on my Pat Malone. I found the loneliness extreme for the first three months. It was a fight to keep mentally positive. To meet new people, I attended courses such as photography and golf lessons. Each of them got me out of the house and meeting new people. It was an opportunity to break the isolation factor. Recently, I was running one of my art classes and, it caused me to think back to my own efforts to fight loneliness. I listened as the conversation hit a crescendo of multiple conversations, laughter and connection. Could art classes help the loneliness epidemic? Could those few hours each week, create deeper connections, could they foster a feeling of community and belonging? I believe it can. Those few hours of sitting in a room with likeminded individuals, deep in thought, or sharing titbits of daily life, recommendations of a movie or recipe, or a glimpse into family life, as you create, paint, and draw, transport you into another world. Does a world of connection and creativity, enjoying a new hobby or interest, come from those regular art classes? What re your thoughts? Do you think art and art classes could help with the loneliness epidemic? Please leave your comments below. Featured Artwork: Cityscape on the River ![]() Recently, I have exhibited in local art shows and exhibitions. I was very fortunate that several of my pieces sold at the shows. On two occasions, I was able to meet the collector of my artworks. What came up in the conversations was how the artwork spoke to them. The pieces were quite different, watercolour and abstract mixed media landscapes. I know when I am creating a piece, I almost get this giddy feeling and butterflies. When I experience those feelings, I know I am happy with what I have produced. It may take time during the process for this to come up, sometimes it can be immediate within the first layer. It made me wonder if similar feelings came up for the observer of art. Does the art talk to them through feelings, emotions, memories. Does the art take them back to a time and place, does it send them into an unknown exciting future, through the art piece? I know, personally artwork feeds my soul, both purchasing and creating. It evokes emotions and mostly brings joy. Art is for everyone and is always a welcome addition into ones life. Do you have an art piece that has evoked an emotion for you? Do you create art and have physical or emotional responses to what you create? Leave your comments below. Featured Artwork: Entertaining Angels and Friends ![]() For most of my working career, I worked remotely. Mostly the companies were located in different states making remote work the most appropriate way to function. In 2020, many workers were forced into remote working along with school children. To me, this was my normal way to operate, whereas, for many, it was a new and untested way to operate. With the onset of remote working, remote learning also escalated, particularly in areas not exposed to online learning. Artists that predominately held in-person classes were forced to embrace the world of online to be able to make ends meet and continue their business. Suddenly, artists and art classes from overseas we once earned to attend in person, were now in our bedrooms, home office or kitchen table. All of a sudden online classes became the norm and in-person classes were a distant memory. Of course, now we have the opportunity to enjoy both. Whilst online classes offer time flexibility as many are pre-recorded on-demand classes and individually paced, does it deliver on community, collaboration, physical art materials, demonstration and guidance? In-person, classes tend to require more time and financial investment into your development than a short online course. However, some fabulous online courses allow you to learn new techniques and genres with little financial investment. It comes down to how disciplined you are to see it through. I feel there is a place for both growing and expanding as an artist. I don't mind an online course here and there, but I do love attending in-person events and courses more, due to the connections, collaborations and personalised attention. Which do you prefer online or in-person classes or do you mix it up and use both? Featured artwork: Morning Walk ![]() I know the saying well, "life gets in the way". Back in mid-March, we signed the papers to have some work done in our house. By most people’s reckoning it is small works which includes new flooring and painting throughout the house. I decided the following weekend to get a head start on culling what wasn’t needed anymore. I was going along quite well and then we headed to Perth for my dad’s special birthday celebrations. Unfortunately, both hubby and I got sick. Nevertheless, on our return we started the arduous task of packing up a house that we moved into seventeen years ago. Oh, boy! Enough of the scene setting………. Throughout this time, I mostly have only been able to create artwork at classes. Don’t get me wrong, I am so grateful I have this opportunity. Creating art in classes is very different to creating art on my own in my own space and mostly in silence. I enjoy the solitude and quiet time creating. Occasionally I may play a podcast or some quiet music but mostly I work in silence. I also can play and experiment, paint over explore colour options and develop ideas in my space. One final thing I have noticed is I miss that relaxation time. Life has certainly taken priority over the last few months and will continue to for at least another 5 weeks. I am missing my creating for me time, I do know it’s not too far away. Thank goodness for art classes, I get to enjoy creativity with a great bunch of people at the classes. As the work picks up in the house this week, I am hoping to pick up the paint brushes in my art shed and get the creativity flowing again. Have you had a time where life got in the way of your hobby, desire or plans? Share any strategies or your tips in the comments below.We would love to see them. Featured artwork: Waterside ![]() For as long as I can remember, I have always had a community around me. Growing up in a small outer suburb in WA, I belonged to the church youth group, at school I was part of the Rotary club for juniors. Being part of a community has always been important to me. I continued to build a community well into my adult life, including founding Connect Her Women's Business Network. A pesky little virus ended that prematurely. Community is where we come together to serve, through service, we then grow as individuals. It creates an opportunity to learn, teach, experiment, develop and well-being. There is a certain joy in sharing knowledge, learning from others, trying new things and opening up growth opportunities, whilst building new connections. Recently, I visited a new community of creatives. I was blown away by the diversity of artists, the acceptance of new people, the sharing of knowledge and the offering of genuine and authentic feedback. The artwork you see here came from a conversation at the beginning of the morning and led me to experiment on the day. It is completely different to what I normally produce, it was fun, it was exciting and most importantly, it was created in a safe environment. Communities can come in many forms from art classes, creative circles, and monthly paintouts to pizza and paint days. Belonging to a community and developing relationships with other creatives is a surefire way to grow and expand your skills. You never know what life brings! Do you belong to a community or would you like to be part of one? Comment below. |
AuthorLee Cummins is a mixed media artist, workshop and art class facilitator. Archives
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