Toxic But Growing

One last photo from my Thailand trip.  

Tomorrow I'm off on another adventure to Alfred, NY for a week.  I will be chaperoning 13 teenagers (12/13/14-years-old) for their first trip to the USA.  I am putting the last touches on my powerpoint I will give to Alfred BFA seniors while I'm there.  

While putting it together I realized that I have officially ended a full body of work.  I would say the end was my summer of '07 in Vermont before moving to Japan and after living in Florida.  My old reasons for making work no longer seemed charged or important to me, like I had already figured it out (if it's all figured out, what's the point in making it, right?)  I guess my old reasons were wanting a spirituality in my work, not a purity, but an all encompassing, energetic, life of its own.  I spent so much time experimenting with materials, and filling my picture plane to the point of bursting.  Suddenly I wanted space.  After leaving Tampa, I felt like I had space in my life and I wanted that to enter into my painting.  

I floundered for a while here in Japan, seriously feeling lost and between (such a fertile time!) and slowly new things started showing up in my work: recognizable images and more specific color choices.  Suddenly I'm painting things outside myself, it seems.  
"Toxic But Growing"

Obviously I need to put these ideas into better words.  I only recently started thinking about it.  My talk this week in Alfred will help develop my ideas further, I'm sure.

Anyway, with the scheduling time crunch while I'm there I hope it all works out!  I will also get to see my buddies Ash and Jordan.  Yay!  It's been too long (as usual).  I am sort of dreading the jet lag (have I mentioned that already?  I feel like I've been telling everyone because it is such a dread in me.  Am I getting old already?  I'm only 25!  I can't believe how lousy I am at dealing with lack of sleep.)   Anyway, I am really excited to be back in Alfred briefly, if only to see a few friends, eat some non-Japanese food (except maybe Nana's...) and watch my students' reactions to our large, bold country.  

I'll post again when I'm back (in about a week).

Have a great week!