Elaine Weiner-Reed - Artist Blog: September 2016

Friday, September 30, 2016

Elaine Weiner-Reed - Art as an Extension of Life

It is easy to get lost. I don't necessarily mean lost on some road..., I mean lost in life…

We have so many things that we juggle at once, that we can get lost in any one thread of life. Work is one of the easiest threads to get lost inside of... I know that from experience. Depending on our job or our work, depending on how important it is to us and our livelihood, we can lose sight of many other facets of our life as we focus on our job.

I get lost in my work - what I refer to as my "day job" - time and time again. Even when very focused on my art, I can still somehow lose myself in work. Recently, yet again, I began to lose sight of my art… At least to some small extent and for a few weeks. My job was taking up all my thoughts outside of work hours. I had thrown myself completely into a new job, losing sight of my outside goals and purpose. That is how I operate: I am all in. All my weekend or vacation hours -- and all my waking or semi-conscious thoughts -- were focused on work puzzles or challenges….

Can you relate to any of this?...

Finally, though, I have taken back the reins of my own life and my art life... And it feels wonderful! It took awhile, but I am back on track. I painted and I sculpted this week and over the weekend. I am wholly and artistically me again - with my vision clear as I move forward.

There are periods in our lives when we really must focus on our jobs than 100% of the time… To get ahead, to pay bills (like school loans), and to begin to move forward in our lives. Times like this, I refer to as times when we have to put our art up on a shelf just to survive. At such times, we promise ourselves that we will never leave our Art behind, or ignore it for very long, and we promise ourselves that we will get back to it up again soon.... I remember that I had to do this when I was in my final year of college, student teaching. I barely had the hours in a day to do all the lesson plans, create and grade tests, and prepare and teach myself in preparation for the next day's set of lessons. Then, there were the final exams, etc. Finally, about a year after graduation, I got a job. With that real job, came a major and permanent move to another state and all the changes that entails... So much adjustment and growing up in a condensed period of time! I was unprepared for it all... and it took several years until I could once again focus on my art and buy supplies. Keeping focus, however, I had made it "home" again--to my art! In my art, I found not only challenges, but joy and satisfaction. I was wholly ME again. Stay wholly YOU, as well!

Life has a way of throwing challenges our way, and as we live life fully in the company of those we love, it is our task as artists to never ignore our art!

Yours in Art,

Elaine

Elaine Weiner-Reed

Artist

410-980-5435

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Monday, September 5, 2016

Elaine Weiner-Reed (EWR) - On the Importance of Dreams and Becoming an Artist

Art Defying Boundaries

"Each person is a book or medley of
memories

and each story choreographed in time

is as unique as the actors and their lives."

    Have you ever wondered: How does one end up as (or become) an Artist? What characteristics or traits and what events in their lives have led them to their creative journey? What makes an artist tick? How are they wired? How do they think? What motivates them and keeps them going...?

     After being asked those questions hundreds of time, I thought it was the moment to share a few insights into how and why I turned to art, became an artist, and have made art all my life. For me, it was a series of choices...or perhaps I really had no choice at all. Regardless, I would not change a thing or any step in my art journey. I have an innate need to create, to think, to question and ponder, and to explore and experiment. I love traveling and reading and writing. Most recently, a trip to Ireland unlocked new interests...and could even result in a new landscape series in time. Everything in life is food for thought and material to incorporate into my work. Even my insomnia contributes to it and is testament to my active and analytic mind.

      I am a 'people person' and I love learning about people, their lives, and their backgrounds. Their stories fascinate, move, and inspire me. Connecting with people - even passing strangers in a grocery store line - teaches me about them and about life itself...and leads me to contemplate life and motivations, relationships and emotions, and most of all: the ties that bind one to another.

      What defines or helps shape our style of relationship-building begins when we are children. Everything revolves around those formative years, our social network and support (or not) systems. While growing up, we shape our mind, hearts, and souls; our needs are defined...and so is our will. My life inspired me to push myself beyond my roots and fears and limitations. I bet your life has done the same for you.

French Classes led me to the International Club in High School, which led me to make my Can-Can costume and dance onstage at the Club's big event. Who knew??... I don't think my Mother ever recovered...

Following is a short version of my story of how I became an Artist:

Her Dreams Become Her

A creative, independent streak was hard-wired into me from birth, as I emerged first from the womb shared with my twin brother. Struggling for an identity separate from the twin mystique and “twins should not be separated” philosophy of the day, I sought freedom from potential limitations of a co-dependent reality (I was always referred to as half of a unit), and rejected predetermined sets of boundaries or rules. The search for originality and a distinctive identity sharpened my mind, honed my innate inquisitiveness, and forged an intuitive soul that fiercely guards and nourishes my art and my creative identity.

I believe that each painting or creation has its own story to tell and reflects the personal vision, emotions, history, and culture of its creator. I work on several paintings in a series simultaneously – both for practical and philosophical reasons: it allows me to explore multiple creative threads, and it also allows my paintings to mature, cure, or dry. I use line, color, and shape placement or composition to create iconic or allegorical reflections of relationship complexities, dimensions, and inter-dependencies to resurrect feelings of transcendence, mystery, and hope.

When we are young, we often dream. Therein lies hope and possibility... In dreaming (daydreams and more), I formed my goals and set my course. Dreams are and always have been very important to me: they inspire and they guide me, they alert me, they help me solve problems, and they make me think. In that dream state, we are connected to energy that is beyond our conscious thought. In dreams, I find my muse...