Welcome to MissouriBendStudio!

This is an online journal of my artistic investigations and a way to communicate about my work, ideas, quandries and queries! I welcome comments and conversation and do hope you enjoy these musings. My artwork is available in my shop MissouriBendStudio on Etsy.com or on my website.

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Monday, November 15, 2010

The Fleeting Moment, The Backward Glance: Week Three

It's hard not to look back as you hit mid-November, the realization slowly dawning that soon, head shaking in disbelief, you will be trying to get used to the idea of living in 2011. What could have happened, where did the time go?  I know I spend my days mostly a bit dizzy from trying to get a grip on the multiplicity of lines that connect across the globe as I meet new artists and kindred spirits, then meet up with them again a few moments later on another site in another context. It's like we are all at some sort of progressive dinner, being introduced and reintroduced under each new roof, finally realizing, not only that we have indeed met, but with so many shared interests and ideas, surely we must have known each for decades already.  This little dance happened several days ago for me with Bridgette Guerzon Mills, a mixed media/encaustic artist that I bumped into online repeatedly over such a short period of time, it was like a persistent knock at the door. Once I started making the connections, I knew I must ask Bridgette to be part of the Fleeting Moment, Backward Glance feature for The Walk In the Universe. And here she is!

What Lies Within, mixed media

Fleeting Moment: Backward Glance

The theme that Patti has chosen for this month aptly captures what motivates me to create.  Life is composed of fleeting moments.  You blink, and then its gone.  Time and memory intertwine, weaving their dance, leaving me in their wake. 

When I was a little girl, I used to find myself in moments that I never wanted to forget.  Not that these moments were even that eventful, yet I didn’t want to lose them.  I wanted to hold onto that moment of being 12 years old and running through a field of uncut grass.  Hearing the breath within my chest expand, the laughter of my sisters around me.  The smell of the sun and the dirt filling my nostrils.  The burn in my muscles as I ran through the tall grass and leaped over fallen branches.  I would close my eyes and let my senses free and memorize it all so that I could always return.

The Sky Was Full of Song, mixed media
Memory is unreliable.  Details blur, nuances get lost, and imagination and motive fill in the blanks. And so I write.  I quiet down, let myself be still, and open up my senses.  Let each one tell me their story. So that when I return and read the words, I remember.

P.S., encaustic and mixed media
My journal writing and my art allow me now to hold onto the fleeting moments.  I have kept a journal since I was a young girl and it really has become a habit that I cannot break.  If I don’t write it down I fear that I will lose the moment.  My journal entries also include collage and paint at times, allowing me to tap into feelings that sometimes cannot be expressed through words. 

February 4, 2008, visual journal entry
My mixed media paintings incorporate moments captured by my original photographs with the richness of paint, creating a bridge between two worlds - the real and the reconstructed.  I lay down layers of paint and pieces of photo transfers, papers or fibers to create depth in both form and meaning.

Lesson Plans, encaustic and mixed media
Everything I create is an aspect of myself, a composite of the fleeting moments that make up my existence thus far on this earth.  Once recorded in words or with paint, the moment stays with me, allowing both the inward and the backward glance.

“The true art of memory is the art of attention.” ~Samuel Johnson
The Good Path, Mixed Media


Bridgette has a few links I think you'll want to check out below, including the amanno site where you can buy her handmade journals!


Enjoy your explorations!  Thanks so much to Bridgette for agreeing to be part of this feature!



18 comments:

  1. Patti, I'm feeling that same dizziness and disbelief too - the bloglines are definitely crossing and re-crossing lately, and the thought of 2011 is indeed mind-boggling. But I'm still thinking the 80s were 10 years ago! That said, many thanks for directing me, like a good progressive dinner companion, to this new kindred spirit! As soon as I finish my conversations with my immediate tablemates I will seek her out! Great post, as ever.

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  2. It is a dizzy experience indeed, following links, getting lost, discovering ...re-discovering. Bridgette's work and words have been a balm to me since first discovery..... little pockets of nature to bring one back to earth.

    Thoroughly enjoyed this post, thanks Patti and Bridgette.

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  3. Gabriella....I'm with you...the 80s was just a decade ago...I'm quite sure!
    Just wish there could be a real dinner gathering with all the fine folks we've met! Enjoy all your various tablemates!

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  4. Yes, Robyn...every day is a whirlwind. It was on your post last week that I rediscovered Bridgett who I had just met, so I thought, moments before on flickr...but she reminded me that actually we'd met a week or so ago on Cathy Cullis's mosaic....who can keep track!? So good to hear from you across time and space!

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  5. Bridgette is another favorite, I followed her on twitter yesterday and love her artwork. When I started reading I thought... that is why I write in my diary, and then that was her conclusion/statement. :-)

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  6. Yes, her feature did make me want to go back to a more consistent journal practice. Good for you, that are already doing so! Isn't it curious how circular it all is....how the interconnecting discoveries of other artists are made. Thanks for your comment!

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  7. patti,
    i love bridgette's work. i felt a deep connection to her words and images when i first ran across her blog years ago...it feels so funny to write the words "years ago" but i suppose it really has been though the time seems to have passed in a blink.
    i am happy also to have found your blog and can't wait to explore here and discover you and your art.
    blessings,

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  8. Tricia, so happy to see you here! The time does fly and I suppose before long, I too will be talking about how I met up with Bridgette "years ago". I love all the intereconnections that keep happening! Welcome and thanks so much for your comment!

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  9. This is such a wonderful post - Bridgette's work is poetry, nuance, misty memory, and the inner light made visible. Thank you for sharing her work and words with us.

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  10. Diane...so glad you enjoyed this post! You've described her work beautifully in your comment...thank you!

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  11. Glad to see you Poetic Artist and happy to hear you enjoyed this post!
    Stay tuned!

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  12. Thanks Patti - Bridgette has so many wonderful thoughts, views and pieces. I 'stumbled upon' her blog form some other direction only last week...the blogiverse is a weirdly wonderful thing. Go well -happy weekend

    F

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  13. Glad you enjoyed Bridgette's post Fiona and that you had already stumbled upon her...criss-crossing paths all over the place!!!

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  14. I can see by this post that Bridgette's writing is as poetic, creative, nuanced, and feeling-filled as her beautiful artwork. Thank you both!

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  15. So glad you enjoyed it Seth and yes, Bridgette is a wonderful writer as well as artist! I've so enjoyed getting to know her over this last week!

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  16. wowowow, these pieces really speak to me, they´re wonderful!

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  17. So glad you enjoy them...they are really beautiful and rich! So glad to have discovered Bridgette's beautiful work! Thanks so much for your comment!

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I'm happy to hear from you...comments and questions are welcome!