summer jazz and cherries captured with my sx70 polaroid vintage camera, artistic TZ film

this morning…music notes, glints and glimmers,
the soft spoken light, (no rain) tiny violets yawning

and frozen summer peaches

yesterday afternoon one of my photography students said
“i look for needles in a haystack”

explain? i said

“well, unexpected beauty in a day that is easy to ignore”

yes, of course

‘clouds’ polaroid photo shot with my sx70 camera and artistic TZ film stock

unphotographable ~ the responses that moved me to my very innermost being when I asked my grade seven students in the photography class I am teaching (open to exposure) “where do you feel most like yourself?’ which is their assignment to photograph this week ~ I cannot WAIT to see the photo’s they shoot

~ ‘actually the place I feel most like myself is a time of day ~ at night when it is dark and quiet and I can be alone with my thoughts peacefully’

~ In the mornings my Mom and I sit on the front deck and we can see the ocean. We always have tea together and it is just her and me and we watch the sun come up and one day it was really this perfect line of pink and that is when I most felt like myself

This week ~ was perfect in every way and I am so grateful for the honor of teaching these tremendous and artistic little souls ~ and somehow I can just tell already that is really me who is the student, and once again I am reminded that love is indeed all around.

Where do you feel most like yourself?

Have a gorgeous Sunday ~ and a heavenly helping of clouds

mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

Why do you paint?
For exactly the same reason I breathe.
That’s not an answer.
There isn’t any answer.
How long hasn’t there been any answer?
As long as I can remember.
And how long have you written?
As long as I can remember.
I mean poetry.
So do I.

(e. e. Cummings)

Oh, today…I had so much to share with you ~ I was thinking those philosophically deep thoughts that can take hold of you even under a sky blue expanse of floating clouds and keep you in it’s pondering grip while you sort things out (although I don’t know why I just said that, for you never quite sort things out being as there really is no such thing as a permanent truth)

And anyway it doesn’t matter, although I seem to remember it had something to do with writing this book on the art of living cheerfully and how, really, it’s important to realize that this does not mean you FEEL cheerful every day but rather you CHOOSE to find the cheery things,loveliness and magic in the everyday because…there is an abundance of loveliness all around. Just thinking beautiful thoughts takes you by the hand and before you know you are feeling them as well.

It’s a perfectly gorgeous, hopeful week and I can feel spring blossoming early in my soul and it feels so wondersome…just like this actually.…I am reading this book filled with thickets of huckleberry bushes (because Debi said so ) and whenever she mentions a book, I realize that the book she is chatting about is the book I have been looking for all along) which will be followed by a round of tree climbing in the Redwood forest and some unabashed singing of tree songs just because.

I am so moved reading this beautiful conversation with Shona Cole and just bursting at the seams with my lineup of artists that I will be sharing with you in this series. Oh! and today I found such truly gorgeous new japanese papers for my poem boxes as I am starting a new round of them for spring so I am hoping to pop by this week and let you have a peek. This week I begin teaching my photography course to grade seven’s and am all ready to go ~ the course culminates in an art walk featuring a gallery of the children’s work which I am hoping to make a little film of to celebrate the evening.

Since I have great plans to be out and about this weekend I am wishing everyone a beautiful Sunday early, and if you love smoothies I made a delicious one this week with lots of fresh ginger, carrot juice and apples. Yum!

update: just blogging about my smoothie sent me down to the kitchen to mix one up ~ this combination is even more delicious…blackberries, plain yogurt, large chunk of fresh ginger, soy milk and a banana

oh andrew….and extremely close

~ photo ‘altar for spring’ art direction by madelyn mulvaney, photo by tess herzog ~

Who is Shona?

Mama to 5, seeker of balance between my identity as Shona and Mom, life long artsy gal who gets little sleep and desires even more hours in the day to get done all I have planned

As an artist, what are your favorite ways to express yourself?

A combination of photography and poetry and collage art.

What is your creative process ?

At the end of the day when the kids and hubby are in bed and I am alone I take time winding down into creativity mode. I start by looking at inspiring art blogs, eat something sweet, put on some music or even a indie movie. Then I make lists ~ I list my desires, my to do’s, my responsibilities, the types of projects I could work on. When something ‘catches’ hold I get a rush of energy and I make an action plan for that project. I find what ever I need, I write, I paint a background, I pull up iPhoto to view my photos. I work intensely for a few hours, losing all track of time and staying up way too late. Then I get tired so I do a load of laundry. On my way to bed I hover over my notebook again and tick off what was done on my list, I make a new list, I doodle some more, I envision another project I could work on. I go to bed.

Next day I try to remember my plans and let the energy of that carry me through the day with the kids, knowing I have something to look forward to in the evening.

What are you moved to express in your writing, art, photography the most?

I want to capture the beauty of being a mom. I was not really into kids before I had them myself. I was not around babies, I hated babysitting. I didn’t really envision having kids. But when I became a mom to Matthew all that changed. Without even thinking about it I was completely committed to my baby, it was a God given love and devotion. Since then I have been driven to capture the loveliness and joy, the hardship and trials, the details and moments I have found in this unplanned wonderland called ‘motherhood’.

and so we women share this memory

this pouring out of self
this loosing shape
this rising and falling
this love new again and again
this telling of ordinary days
of lunches and books
calling in for dinner, bubble baths
driving carefully on familiar streets
all buckled in
diaper bags, wallets and soothers
wooden toys, clean outfits
just in case

we slip by in this collective longing to shine,
to greet each day with a smile
failing and succeeding,
at times belonging
to each other, our children, husbands

but don’t say we have lost ourselves
(although it feels like that sometimes)

this love has made us strong
this part we play runs long and deep,
the act to come is merely
another version of what was

so we keep close these thoughts:
it has been,
it will be Okay Momma

How do handle an interruption in the flow of imagination or writer’s block?

I have to be engaged in something creative or I will actually get depressed. I have to do it. So knowing this I plow on through blocks by writing my lists and doing some form of mental gymnastics where I convince myself it is better to get up and do something than do nothing. Once I get going I usually find the block dissipates.

I usually look at art blogs. I like the Wishstudio, I will go there and check on the links to the contributors or look at the commenters and click on their blogs, that way I find folks who are more likely to have blogs with affirming life and art posts, posts with words and images that can inspire me back to my own creative ideas.

Also watching a good indie movie or reading the poetry of Claudia Emersen or BH Fairchild or listening to Damien Rice, the Cowboy Junkies or some other music on my ipod can always make me feel connected to arty things again and then the desire in me to create usually creeps back in with a new idea in tow.

What brings you joy, contentment, happiness?

Being at home with everyone happy and busy and hours ahead of me to work on my to do list. Having friends over for dinner. Going to bookshops with my husband. Watching movies on the big screen. Cuddling on the couch with my youngest kids, talking with my older kids about life, playing board games on a bright sunny, but cool day. Going to Ireland every year to see my Mum and climbing hills and going to coffee shops while we are there.

What does the words ‘yes’ and ‘possibility’ mean to you personally?

Yes is a word that I have had to practice using. I like to control things in my world a little too much. Being in control of children, a house etc I find that I want to keep things quiet and calm and so I have found that I have said ‘no’ too much. Saying yes is inviting mess and laughter, spills and chatter. But that is living. Yes is living. ‘No’ is me hiding behind a desire for order and quietness. So I am becoming the flexible ‘yes’ momma.

How has saying ‘yes’ in your life changed the trajectory of your life?

oh my! I said yes to marrying an American and moving continents to be with him; I said yes to having lots of children; I said yes to schooling them at home; I said yes to pursuing the idea of doing art everyday and writing a book – So ‘yes’ has brought me a full, exciting, loud, thrilling life. At any juncture I could have said no, I am glad I didn’t.

What holds you back?

3 things – tiredness, self-criticism, desire for the ‘new’
Getting tired – I wish I could stay up all night and still function in the day, but alas I can’t.
Self criticism sometimes when I view other artists art work I start to think it has all been done, and done better so why bother? To avoid this rut I have to remember that it is better for my mental health to use my gifts and talents than to let them go to waste, even if they are not a great as others. Also I remind myself that if I work at my art over time I will improve. If I don’t practice my art then I will definitely not improve!

My strong desire for newness. If I don’t have a new idea then often I feel discouraged and want to not bother. But again I remind myself of the importance of just doing it, that it is better to make something that is not new in essence, but new in substance, than doing nothing at all. And while I am making something there is more of a chance of me creating something new than if I sit quietly and unengaged.

Who are your creative role models? What books, art, music inspire and ignite you?

I am not a book person, I have little time to read. But I do like Mark Helprin and Gabriel Garcia Marquez. I have to admit to being enamored with Stephanie Meyer’s Twilight sage (Team Edward

I am a big music lover, so many to choose from – The Swell Season, Tori Amos, Fiona Apple, Evanescence, Jack L, Elvis Costello, Cowboy Junkies, The Clogs, Jacques Brel, Lisa Hannigan.

Art – I love the work of mixed media artists Misty Mawn, Sabrina Ward Harrison, Shelley Kommers and Susan Tuttle; my best friend Shannon Mucha’s photography & graphic art is brilliant, she and I collaborate on many projects and work well together, I am inspired by her work ethic and attention to detail. I like also the photography of Jennifer Altman, Susannah Conway and Elle Moss. I like artwork that is personal and accessible and a reflection of the beauty of real life with a touch of fantasy thrown in.

What do you give yourself unconditionally in life to?

being a mom, I feel absolutely secure in the way we are raising our kids, we keep them with us, do everything together, know everything about them, are creating a beautiful world for them to explore fully who they are. Nothing could tear me away from that vision. My art is a vehicle to express what I feel about them and our life, that is why photography is so important to me cause I am recording what I see in my family. I want to write poetic words that describes who we are and what we do. I want to create collages of paint, images and words that reflect this time in my world, not so much for others but for my own pleasure. I love looking back at the photos of and words about my children. When I read a poem that captured a moment I can almost feel like I am back in that time. I want to devour every day with my family and create a body of art work that mirrors and uplifts our life (though I am not afraid to portray the difficulties of life too, but if I write about the trials I like to search for a silver lining, a lesson learned or something unique in the moment).

Where has love taken you?

from Ireland to the US. Growing up in Ireland in a small semi detached home in suburbia I never dreamed of moving to the US, never even considered it. Then I met this intense, passionate, independent man who had interests and ambitions that woke me up and compelled me to recreate my world. Even though part of me was frightened to leave my home and my Irish life he drew me like a magnet and I gave up resisting. 15 years later we now live an hour north of Houston on 5 acres of wooded land in a rambling ranch house with a huge front porch and a pond to sit by. Just so I don’t loose a sense of my roots we go to Ireland for the summers, so in a way love takes me home too.

If there were absolutely no obstacles whatsoever what would you do tomorrow?

Stay in bed late, browse art blogs, build fairy houses with my girls, take photos, have friends over, eat out with my husband, go to a movie, stay up until 4am and process photos, write a poem and work on a collage! Bliss

What is on your wish list?

nothing, I truly have everything I want…. well I would like more time, but no point in wishing for the impossible

What is on your inspiration board?

I don’t have one, but sounds like a good idea.

Where is your creative space/corner of the world?

My creative space/corner of the world is at home where I work in a rambling ranch house filled with dark rustic (indestructible) furniture, which sits in the middle of a forest on 5 acres. I create here, outside sitting on the porch watching my kids play, in the den the one end of my husbands office over looking the pond or in my craft room which is in the center of my home (formerly breakfast room). I love that I can be working on a project one minute, then be doing a load of laundry the next. I am not cut off from my family and my duties as home manager. I am queen of this big old ranch and love it.

famous last words?

I was nothing, I was lost and alone and afraid. But I made a plan and stuck to it and carved out a life I believe in. You can to. Make notes, commit, find some like minded friends and create something, even something super small, everyday.

Shona Cole is the author of the book ‘The Artistic Mother – A Practical Guide to Fitting Creativity into Your Busy Day’ to be published by North Light Books, March 8, 2010. Shona is an ‘Artist On Call’ for Stampington & Co, her Mixed Media Collage work has appeared in many of their publications since 2005. She lives in Texas and has five children under the age of 10. You can learn more about her art, poetry, book and life here.