Sunday, March 3, 2013

26 Mugs, 100 Monkeys

A drawing from my "Private-Play" Journal. 26 coffee mugs from imagination, drawn in one session.

Noah Scalin in "365: A Daily Creativity Journal: Make Something Every Day & Change Your Life!" has inspired a number of bloggers. Quantity is generated by this practice, but more importantly, I think, perseverance & continuity. It's a daily workout of creative muscles. 
I'll never forget the art show at the Smithsonian in the 80's, "Yani, The Brush of Innocence" by a Chinese child prodigy. Her prolific calligraphic paintings included a scroll in which she challenged herself to paint 100 monkeys in 100 different positions in one session. I'm not a child, nor a prodigy, but I enjoyed my 26 mugs. And that's the beauty of the accessibility of art & education & books in our culture: the enrichment of individual lives, no matter what the degree of inherent talent.
Shaun Tan has a new book, "The Bird King: an artist's notebook". Tan is an accomplished artist of very refined graphic novels such as "The Arrival". This is a powerful story of the experience of the displaced immigrant. In "The Bird King" he features selections from his private journal of "doodles" & drawing experiments. There is only one thing to do to confront "artist's block", he writes. "Just start drawing", where the meaning of the drawing is secondary to the "simple act of making". Klee called it "Going for a walk with a line."
Will I try  to draw more than 26 mugs in a sitting at another time, in the style of Yani? Probably not. But a little series involving something else? Yes!

16 comments:

  1. oh, that is very cool! i like your mugs very much!

    wanted to say thank you for the support on my post today. really appreciate it. some of the points were hard for me to write and hit publish as i don't want to offend anyone, but felt they needed saying, too. :)

    btw, wish you had an email address! ;)

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  2. Oh your mugs are so fantastic! Truly amazing!

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  3. I love this idea of making something every day and changing life! I find it so true! I draw "like a pig"(as we say in french), but I like to do it anyway, just love the fact to make it.No matter if noone sees or likes what I do.I better do other things, I'd surely like to be more gifted , but the important thing is "TO MAKE"!
    BTW, your mugs are lovely, find someone to make them in real life and sell them!! :o)

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    1. Faire des dessins comme un cochon! C'est drôle, ça, mais, non, ce n'est pas possible! I agree with you, the important thing is to Make, to enrich our lives through the creative process & I love your attitude. (creative process includes photos, such as yours, of course). It Would be fun to see those mugs in "real" life, although some of them are roughly based on some mugs I have known! ~Rita

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  4. Like Malyss above I like the idea of making something every day -- I do believe that it changes ones life. Art is being creative -- anyone can do it -- take off the corset and let everything fall out. -- barbara

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    1. I say "Yes!" to that, though there are reasons that sometimes make us put that corset right back on! Thanks for your comment, Barbara! ~Rita

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  5. Oh what a fun thing to do.. Love your 26 mugs..I need to see something to draw it. my imagination isnt that great. lol Look forward to what you come up with next.

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    1. I'm so much that way, Cris, so I've been giving attention to my "play-doodle" journal. I do enjoy your observational drawings & the stories that go with them! Rita

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  6. I think I might try the mugs, Rita! Most definitely I will look up these two books. As always, I am fascinated by what you do each day.

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    1. Ms. Jewel, Shaun Tan's book are classified as Young Adult graphic novels, but they are amazing for adults. I like that you do your Word each day, it's the 365 idea!

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  7. Whenever I see sketchbook in a blog title, I just HAVE to pop in for a look see. LOVE your sketches. In love with the mugs. Adore watercolor too. Happy to make your acquaintance!

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    1. So nice to make your acquaintance as well, Margie. Thank you so much for stopping by & I'll stop over to visit you too! Since I'm a fan of cafés & coffee, the mugs were fun to draw! Rita

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  8. Btw, saw your comment over at Tex's place.

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  9. So many books are strewn on my path of discovery. Too many to list. To take a quote from "Original Wisdom" by Robert Wolff that I recently enjoyed -- "Choosing has become the quintessential aspect of Western society. Most other people of this world do not choose often, if at all. Life is what is in front of you." -- barbara

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  10. Love the mugs sketch..so colorful and whimsical in typical Rita fashion!!

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Thank you for your comments! They mean a lot to me!