Make Something 365 & Get Unstuck

Love One Another

noreply@blogger.com (Noah) — Tue, 28 Feb 2012 13:30:00 +0000

Cathryn in Pennsylvania is doing a project she calls Love One Another.

She explains, "Every day I will be making something new based on John 13: 34-35 in which Jesus instructed His disciples to love one another as He has loved them. This project is inspired by other 365 projects including Noah Scalin's famous Skull-A-Day project and his book 365: A Daily Creativity Journal. It is also a response to all the negative messages we are bombarded with daily and all the cruelty constantly reported in the news. Some of my goals include spreading the Good News, encouraging people to be kind to each other, possibly generating funds for a worthy cause, and practicing photography, drawing, painting, and other media."

Why did you decide to do this project? I decided to do this project because I became tired of watching the news and hearing about all the awful things people are doing to each other. The world would be a much better place if people would just take a moment to be nice to each other. By making a project with this message and post it every day, I hope to inspire people to “love one another.” It’s also an opportunity to experiment with different media and techniques, practice drawing, illustration, painting, photography, and mixed media.

How has doing a yearlong/daily project affected your life? Making something with this message written on it or illustrating it has caused me to have to think about it more. For the projects and for my blog posts, I have to keep thinking of kind things we can do every day. I hope it will also help me “find myself” artistically and improve my skills.

See all of Cathryn's creations HERE.

Fan-A-Day

noreply@blogger.com (Noah) — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 13:30:00 +0000

Gina AKA Whee! Gina! in Houston, Texas is making a Fan-a-Day!...

Why did you decide to do this project? I decided to do this project after I had started a blog. I didn't know how to, so I browsed randomly through blogs until I found some which were interesting to me. Somehow I stumbled upon the 365 project. I had been changing my Facebook profile picture every day with a picture of a nun....Nun-A-Day.....for no particular reason, and I thought, this is quite similar, but a lot more creative. As I had a shop (on Etsy) selling painted fans, fans seemed obvious.

How has doing a yearlong/daily project affected your life? I was bored with the Etsy shop and the fans were getting stale.I had wanted to expand the fan making into more creative techniques and materials but I didn't have a venue to show them. This is it! At once, I became enthusiastic again, I woke up with an idea every morning and could hardly wait to jump out of bed and get started. I think about it all the time. I have even dreamed some of them. The project has reawakened my enthusiasm and encouraged me in my blogging as well. It has made me want to learn more about using the computer, and introduced me to online friends. Sort of like penpals, but with the immediacy of new messages every day. I have bought some cool greetings cards from Marika Makes, who made a Bird A Day, and learned how to use translation tools so that I can follow several bloggers in Germany and the Netherlands. I never expected this to lead to learning Dutch!

I have done 6 months now, and am very pleased with the whole process, all the way from new ideas to stolen ideas to desperation last-minute fans. Sometimes I get the nicest comments from the most (to me) last-ditch efforts. I am already thinking ahead to what I will do when I have finished the year of fans.

See all of Gina's fans HERE.

Sun A Day Follow-Up

noreply@blogger.com (Noah) — Sun, 26 Feb 2012 13:30:00 +0000

I'm periodically checking back in with some folks who have completed their 365 projects...

Tara Raymo made a Sun A Day for every day of 2011...

What are the biggest lessons/skills you learned from doing your project? The biggest lesson I learned is that not everything has to be exactly perfect. I realized that when I didn’t care for something that I created, I would then look back on it and actually think it wasn’t that bad. I learned to just enjoy the moment of creating something. Through the project I found that I enjoy carving and need to learn more about the different techniques.

In what ways did the project change your life? I lost touch with my artistic side many years ago, so the biggest change was that I realized how much I had lost. I am starting to feel more myself now that I am getting back into my art. I am a graphic artist for a children’s nonfiction book publisher, and my project has helped me become more creative at work.

Now what? Right now I am taking January to organize my Sun A Day project. I want to start sketching, learning new techniques and I want to start showing off my Digital Designs. I plan to start posting some kind of art or project that I am working on at least once a week, hopefully starting in February.

Read her original 365 interview HERE.

See all of her suns HERE.

A Dalek Year

noreply@blogger.com (Noah) — Sat, 25 Feb 2012 13:30:00 +0000

Walt Keegan in Spotswood, New Jersey is spending a year building a Dalek! He explains, "For the past 7 years I have been building props for a Halloween Haunted House party that I do every year in my basement. Over that time I have taught myself a bunch of skills on how to build relatively low cost props. As part of a challenge to do something creative for 365 days, I decided to use it to build a full-sized Dalek from Doctor Who - (actually it looks like there may be 2 of them - one based on cardboard and one much more sturdy made of wood) something that I have called A Dalek Year."

Why did you decide to do this project? Last year I build the most involved and detailed props for a Halloween (We did an Alien movie theme) and as I start to run out of time, I fall back on processes and skills that I already know instead of learning new skills. I figured if I plan to give myself a year to build something big, I can ensure that I have the time to challenge my skill sets and learn new ones.

How has doing a yearlong/daily project affected your life? While I just started this two weeks ago I have already tried 3 new paper mache recipes and tested a few different techniques. Ensuring that I do "something" on this project each day and account for it has also made me more responsible to do something creative everyday - and give myself time to try and make mistakes. I work in a corporate job where I really can't flex my creative muscles and need an outlet - and this has helped. I'll have more updates on how things change as I get deeper into the project.

Watch Walt's Dalek making progress HERE.

365 words a day for 365 days

noreply@blogger.com (Noah) — Fri, 24 Feb 2012 13:30:00 +0000

Sarah Harris in Southern California is writing 365 words a day for 365 days . She explains that it's about "Sharing my experiences from any point of my life (and life around me), but with mid-life job (since I'm presently unemployed) and life transitions, being a single parent, trying to redefine myself to hopefully bring along folks who want to have a friend to go through their own stuff with, or just help have a positive impact on life in general and make people feel better in the moment."

Why did you decide to do this project? When I ask myself the question: What would you do if you knew you could not fail? the answer is always "Write" but I was too intimidated to work on a large novel, or submit things to magazines or e-zines, even just web content jobs without more of a portfolio. This gives me the discipline to write daily, in small daily amount so it's not too big a bite to take, plus share my experience with others. I envision it as a daily cup of joe with friends!

How has doing a yearlong/daily project affected your life? So far, 28 days, it's been an immediate shift. I look forward to it every day, I enjoy thinking about my topic - and photos - every day, writing it every night. I have also immensely enjoyed the steps to try to drive traffic to one's blog and am working on different things and learning a TON about social media so as a bonus, I'm receiving a new great skill set to make me more employable!

Read all of Sarah's words HERE.

A Year of Billy Joel

noreply@blogger.com (Noah) — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 13:30:00 +0000

Will Stegemann in Los Angeles, CA is spending a year listening to every song ever released by his least favorite musician Billy Joel! He calls it a Year of Billy Joel...

Why did you decide to do this project? For years I have written Billy Joel off as a middle of the road singer songwriter who did not deserve to be taken seriously. However I made this judgment without listening to all of his music. Over the years many people have told me I should look deeper into his music so I'm giving it a try.

How has doing a yearlong/daily project affected your life? It's important to note one thing about this: I'm doing this seriously. It would be easy to take cheap shots at someone I haven't taken seriously but that's lazy and accomplishes nothing. I've really been giving this music a chance and three positives have come from it already.

I am writing something every day, this is always a plus for me.
I'm discovering that there are some hidden gems of songs
I've realized that there are other artists and musicians I have overlooked and I have begun to give them the same consideration.

On top of all that I get emails from people who tell me about their favorite songs and share their experiences with Billy Joel songs. It's been a lot of fun.

Read about all of Will's Billy Joel experiences HERE.

Get Unstuck in 30 Seconds with Terry Border

noreply@blogger.com (Noah) — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 15:22:00 +0000

Terry Border the brilliantly twisted mind behind Bent Objects share how he gets unstuck in 30 seconds...

You can find more advice from Terry in my new book Unstuck: 52 Ways to Get (and Keep) Your Creativity Flowing at Home, at Work & in Your Studio!

And be sure to also watch the Unstuck videos from Improv Everywhere's Charlie Todd, Young House Love's John & Sherry, storyteller Slash Coleman, artist Matt Lively, Boing Boing's Rob Beschizza, artist kHyal™, and Prophet's Andy Stefanovich as well!

365 Days of "Love"

noreply@blogger.com (Noah) — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 13:30:00 +0000

Rebecca Borowski in Rimrock, Arizona making 365 days of "Love"...

Why did you decide to do this project? My initial inspiration was the book, Skulls, by Noah Scalin. I loved the range of mediums, brilliant creativity and beautiful photographs! Secondly, I felt the need to consciously commit to embracing my creative energy, instead of wasting it every day. When I asked myself 'what do I want to do every day for a year?’ my first answer was 'love'. (If there's one thing I've learned in life, it’s that the first answer is usually the right answer.)

How has doing a yearlong/daily project affected your life? So far, this project has affected my life in several unexpected ways. Largely, because I made the decision to do it publicly (via blog), it forced me to get out of my comfort zone. I'm naturally terrified to "put myself out there", and in doing so, I feel more alive, more authentic. It makes me strive for excellence instead of falling back on mediocrity. Doing my best work certainly varies from day to day - some days my best is better than the prior day. Acknowledging this helps me grow as an artist, crafter and as a person.

A yearlong commitment forces me to focus character building. Not only am I honing my resourcefulness and creativity, but also building dedication, determination, persistence, reliability and courageousness.

Quite by accident I fell into dedicating my daily projects to particular people. Doing so makes me mindful of showing appreciation, gratitude and love. (Not to be mooshy, but I think this is very important!)

Lastly, this project affects my entire family. The kids get involved; my husband gets home and can't wait to see what I did that day. Everyone gets involved with throwing ideas out on the table, "Hey, this would be great for a project!" And my 5 year old daughter now knows how to spell love correctly. :)

See all of Rebecca's "love"s HERE.

Patsy's Family History

noreply@blogger.com (Noah) — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 13:30:00 +0000

Patsy Atwood Reese in Fort Worth, Texas is spending a year sharing about her family history starting in the 19th century...

Why did you decide to do this project? I have hundreds of family letters and some very old pictures, even tintypes.

I have been collecting photos and artifacts (mostly ephemera) from both sides of my family for decades. To me as a history major it is fascinating, on many different levels. I was raised by a large family in my father's home town in central Texas. Every aunt, uncle, and cousin has a great story (I think.) So do my grandparents and great-grandparents (Civil War veterans, for example, on my father's side.)

For many many years I have been promising myself I would put this all in a book, to give to my offspring, and other family members as well. I am 73 now, and I can't take it with me!!

Dragging stuff around, trying to take care of it, losing some of it in a flood around 1990, I read your piece and realized this was my answer. In 366 days I will be able to put it all out there, for family as well as interested friends, to enjoy and/or save for themselves. I have digitized almost everything except textiles, which are very few, and will be photographed.

How has doing a yearlong/daily project affected your life? I find I look forward to every post, sometimes even setting some up in advance. I just don't want to miss a single day. And there is so much more that I have to tell.

It has been great to realize that after a year I will likely be near my goal. If I print all the blog entries, my long-awaited book will be a reality!!! I have been thanked on Facebook by several people already.

I have heard from family and extended family about this, a few wanting to contribute, or comment, but not many. Perhaps as time goes by more folks will join in. My four grandchildren are certainly interested. and I already have two great-grandchildren. Some of my life will seem very strange to them, as will the lives of my parents and grandparents.

My two daughters have put me off every time I have tried to get us together for digitizing and scrapbooking. Now that this project is started, they have actually arranged for us to spend a weekend in March together, sharing and documenting what we can about ourselves, our forebears, and our loved ones.

Read Patsy's family history HERE.

Sun Today

noreply@blogger.com (Noah) — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 13:30:00 +0000

Frances Lewis in Adelaide, South Australia is spending a year making Sun Today...

Why did you decide to do this project? I picked up Noah’s 365: A Daily Creativity Journal while passing through a bookshop on a hot sunny summer’s day at the end of 2011. So I chose sun-inspired projects because Adelaide was having a minor heat-wave at the time, the sun was very much in everyone's thoughts, the bookshop was a cool place to escape from the heat. Also the sun would be an easy way to go – basically a circle therefore easily represented, dressed-up or kept simple depending on how I feel on the day or the time available I liked that Noah and others in his book recommended keeping the initial idea simple because I’m doing this project for fun and to try different ways of working around a basic idea. As a bonus it’s been a really great introduction to other people’s work through their 365 projects, getting inspired, having moments of empathy and having a laugh. In particular I’ve been enjoying Graeme McNee’s Minimal Comics, Anja Brunt’s 365 Faces, Gertie Jaquet’s A Stamp a Day and of course Tara Raymo’s 2011 Sun a Day.

How has doing a yearlong/daily project affected your life? This project’s giving me an opportunity to explore digital graphic media which is like making new friends – so far Illustrator and ArtRage, they’ve been very interesting and entertaining but sometimes not going how I’d expect. Illustrator seems to want to quantify everything whereas ArtRage seems to be more for merrily splashing colours about. I’ve dug out some old techniques and materials which is like visiting old friends – origami, hand-cut rubber stamps, i-cord knits. I’m enjoying that a simple design can be conceived as an idea, the materials being something already around the house or office, chopped up and/or assembled, photographed, dismantled and/or eaten and the design posted on the blog, sometimes all in under half an hour with no clutter remaining. Other projects have taken a week or two to complete and being part of the sun-inspired 365 project has helped them to get finished instead of being set aside while I cast-on something fabulously new. My friends have liked the sun-inspired items they've received. As someone who usually prefers reds and blues the sun-inspired project has brought more yellow and orange into my projects, though some of the suns are red, blue and/or green. I felt a bit shy about blogging which I’ve not done before - but hopefully some of my creations will entertain or inspire someone else along the way.

See all of Frances's suns HERE.

daily heART Follow-Up

noreply@blogger.com (Noah) — Sun, 19 Feb 2012 13:30:00 +0000

I'm periodically checking back in with some folks who have completed their 365 projects...

Ellen Petti finished her yearlong daily heART project on January 8th, 2012...

What are the biggest lessons/skills you learned from doing your project? I learned that my imagination could be stretched far beyond what I knew; how much power and possibility is in the imagination. I also discovered that what I can visualize I can usually make happen. I spent a lot of time thinking of new mediums or techniques to use and was mostly able to pull off a new heart along those lines. I already knew I like detail work but doing this project really reinforced that awareness, as well as reminded me that I can be overly perfectionistic. I had to learn to let go of that tendency and allow myself to have days when the heart just got done, good or bad. I found I loved looking at some random thing and asking the question, "how can I make a heart out of that?" and facing the challenge of taking everyday, normal or quirky objects and mediums and manipulating them into hearts.

In what ways did the project change your life? I now have more confidence in my ability to create, and to be original. This project encouraged me to trust my instincts and believe in myself.

Now what? Publish a book of hearts!

Read Ellen's original 365 interview HERE.

See all of Ellen's hearts HERE (she started the blog after her project began, so they're still being posted daily).

That Which Excites Me

noreply@blogger.com (Noah) — Sat, 18 Feb 2012 13:30:00 +0000

Sarah Eddenden in Whitby, Ontario, Canada is spending a year creating That Which Excites Me...

Why did I decide to do this project? I write and enjoy writing yet I have always had a secret desire to draw. But I always stopped myself before I started because I thought I would be really horrible at it.
I started to draw despite that about 2 years ago. I know that I need to draw more. I also should write more. When I found your book and your creative project that needed a new idea every day, I thought: Crazy. I took some time to decide exactly what I could be inspired by every day for 365 days. I like writing about normal life stuff and so I decided: what would get me excited (mad, happy, laughing, crying, some kind of emotional involvement necessary)?

How has my yearlong daily project affected my life? Life is small moments, simple pleasures, seconds of WHAT, moments, snowflakes, smiles gone like that. I remember better. I aim to appreciate more.

See all of the things that Sarah's found exciting HERE.

Slugline

noreply@blogger.com (Noah) — Fri, 17 Feb 2012 13:30:00 +0000

Donna Mae Foronda in Santa Clara, California is writing a one paged script every day for 366 days, she calls the project Slugline...

Why did you decide to do this project? After inspired by Ira Glass' quote on creatives, I knew I had to "do a huge volume of work" to ever be a strong writer. I also had so many story ideas in my head, but no time or energy to fully complete them. They existed only as moments, but I felt like those moments, at the very least, needed to be shared.

How has doing the project affected your life? Surprisingly, the biggest way this project has affected my life is through the feedback from friends, family, and even strangers. I've always lacked so much confidence with my writing and kept it under wraps so I'm grateful for this project to help expose my voice.

Read all of Donna's scripts HERE.

366 Daily Photoscapes

noreply@blogger.com (Noah) — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 13:30:00 +0000

Karl Lindsay an Australian in Nairobi, Kenya is sharing 366 Daily Photoscapes. He explains, "I am posting a photo from my travels online every day from my archives for 366 days."...

Why did you decide to do this project? I was falling behind in editing my photos so wanted to share some from my archives. Also, at the time I was planning on leaving the country in August (now in Kenya) I would have lots of photos to share with those back home. This was a good way to do it.

How has doing a yearlong/daily project affected your life? It has given me a daily task that, at first, I wasn't so great at. Finding a photo every day and editing it can be a challenge to fit into my schedule - I'm not used to fitting that in to my life and sometimes it can take a while. When I go away for a weekend I have to schedule a few posts and that takes a little while. I don't mind doing that though, because I know I'm likely to come back on Sunday / Monday with a bunch of new photos to upload. So far it's been a good experience keeping me disciplined...

See all of Karl's photoscapes HERE.

365 Days of Color

noreply@blogger.com (Noah) — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 13:30:00 +0000

David Hoffmann in Minneapolis, Minnesota is making 365 Days of Color. he explains, "Starting with the color red, I will create an art piece around that color, changing colors every other month, working my way through the rainbow."...

Why did you decide to do this project? Every new year I like to take on a challenge. I decided one of the areas I wanted to take on was my artistic side of my life. I love to create but seem to do it in spurts; a month or 2 here, a few weeks there, ... So I figure this would be a great way to keep me being creative at least once a day. Plus I want to use this to inspire my elementary students, to take something on and grow. That art can just be plain fun!

How has doing a yearlong/daily project affected your life? This is day 20. So far, this project has helped to have more focus. Instead of just randomly doing a project (and hoping it'll get done), I need to schedule a time to be creative into my day, whether it's 15 minutes or a whole afternoon.
I'm also having to challenge my perfectionist side when it comes to my art. Sometimes, the project just has to be done because the day is almost over.

Along that note, I also am just putting it out there. I post a link to my blog/project on Facebook everyday whether I love the project or not. For a long time, I wouldn't show that many people my art because it wasn't perfect or quite done yet. In fact one of the pieces for this project, I sent an advanced apology because I wasn't a big fan of it. It ended up being one that a lot of people really like. With all this after 20 days, I can't wait to see how this journey ends after 366 days!

See all of David's colors HERE.

Cranium Condominiums

noreply@blogger.com (Noah) — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 13:30:00 +0000

Michelle Roebuck in Georgia is doing a yearlong project she calls Cranium Condominiums. She explains it as "A Year of Our Family's Daily Artistic Adventures – A family of four endeavors to share their daily artistic creations."...

Yes, this is a literal banana hammock.

Why did you decide to do this project? In our home, someone’s always making something: Lego creations, crocheted sundries, paintings large and small, and “performance art”. When I received your book, 365: A Daily Creativity Journal, for Christmas 2011, it only seemed natural to give it a go! We started on an arbitrary day [gasp] and we don’t stress ourselves out over doing things “perfectly” (a tendency every member of our family shares in common). I am posting an art piece daily that will consist of my spontaneous interpretation the book’s prompts while my son Noah (7 years old) has chosen to post weekly. My husband and younger son may be convinced to do cameos during the course of the year. I allow myself to investigate the next day’s prompt only when I’ve finished and posted the current day’s project so I don’t have too much time to fret over it.

How has doing a yearlong/daily project affected your life? Rather than stressing over every detail of every single project, wondering and worrying whether I’d done it the best I possibly could, followed all the “rules” to the letter, tweaked, honed and perfected each minute consideration, I decided that this could allow me freedom from the strictures in my head. The name for the project, Cranium Condominiums, is a concept I’ve carried around for more than a decade to describe all the myriad ideas that reside in my dome, for they each have their own space uniquely suited to them yet they’re all part of the larger body of “my art”… Whether written, sculpted, shaped, formed, hooked, drawn or spoken, they all had their genesis within me. This is my opportunity to prove to myself that I do have plenty of “finished” works even as I learn to appreciate the creation process more. It was particularly stunning to me when, for the Day 5 piece, I pulled out my collection of creative writing journals, which I began keeping in 1993, and began laying them out to photograph… There were SO MANY! What’s pictured doesn’t even cover them all… And I worry myself over whether or not I’m a “writer”. HA!

See all of Michelle's family's adventures HERE.

365 Prints and Pattterns

noreply@blogger.com (Noah) — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 13:30:00 +0000

José Kranen in Panningen, The Netherlands is making 365 Prints and Patterns...

Why did you decide to do this project? I'm a graphic designer with a passion for fashion. My dream is to combine these two and be a print and pattern designer one day.

How has doing a yearlong/daily project affected your life? In a short time i expanded my portfolio big time from zero patterns to 137, when my project ends on september 1th that will be a total of 365 patterns. Because i have the 'duty' to blog about my experiences every thursday i take the time to really draw a pattern every day. Normally i wouldn't take that time and make lame excuses. And the greatest thing about this project is that i'm getting more inspiration every day and i'm learning so much along the way. It's like i'm giving myself a 'design prints and patterns' course. I'm hooked and working hard to let my dream become reality!

See all of José's prints & patterns HERE.

Be Creative Follow-Up

noreply@blogger.com (Noah) — Sun, 12 Feb 2012 13:30:00 +0000

I'm periodically checking back in with some folks who have completed their 365 projects...

Ines Häufler in Vienna, Austria completed her yearlong Be Creative project on December 31, 2011...

What are the biggest lessons/skills you learned from doing your project? I learned a lot about myself during this project, here are just two of the most important points:

I was very worried at the beginning that I would not have enough time for this project between my work and my social life. Turns out: it was no problem at all. If I am really passionate about something I find time to do it. Simple as that, but as a workaholic person this came as a huge surprise for me.
I have never been to art school. And I am a perfectionist. That seem to be quite an awful match for a project that is all about drawing, painting and a lot of other creative skills. But it turned out that this project was not about being perfect at drawing or painting. It was simply about the creative process and the fun of trying something new. And guess what? No one complained about a line that was painted the "wrong" way. It was all in my head, and in the end the process was much more important than a perfect outcome.

In what ways did the project change your life? For the first time in almost eight years (this is how long I work as a freelance script consultant now) I had no sign of burnout due to being overworked. In fact I had the feeling that that I worked less, which is not true if I look on the number of film projects I did this year. I think the reason is that I finally had something equally important to me - my life did not only consist of work anymore. I felt a shift in priorities, but without losing passion for my work nor for my creativity projects.

Now what? I have already started a new project called "Be Creative 52", which is a weekly creativity project. I hope that I can do some projects that were too big for my daily project, and to have time for learning new skills and develop some concepts more thoroughly. Also I hope I can do more collaborations with my creative friends, which often need more than 24hours to prepare. It is still hard for me to change the rhythm from daily to weekly projects, but I am very happy that I did not stop being creative on the 31st of December.

Read her original 365 interview HERE.

See all of her past & current Be Creative projects HERE.

365 Arty Days

noreply@blogger.com (Noah) — Sat, 11 Feb 2012 13:30:00 +0000

Branka Vidovic Butler in the UK is making 365 Arty Days...

Why did you decide to do this project? I was always complaining that I don’t do enough, don’t produce enough. I felt I was wasting a lot of time while I should have been working especially since I have the luxury to work on my projects. So I found a blog that run a project like this and decided to hurl myself into it.

How has doing a yearlong/daily project affected your life? I have only been going for 12 days but just the fact that I have to go into studio every day to work is improving my work ethic. I also actively have to keep my eyes open to what others are doing so I don’t run out of ideas which in turn sparks my own imagination. January is not a great start date as there are a lot of colds around and it does give me some grief but I have a goal. While I am in my studio working on the project I tend to then carry on with other work so my hours are used up in a constructive manner. Not everything I make and will make is very grand but I’m trying to keep it playful and see, out of my many interests, which one will dominate. I am excited to see how my work will develop over the year and what results I will have. Watch this space…

See all of Branka's days HERE.

365 Collages and Assemblages

noreply@blogger.com (Noah) — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 13:30:00 +0000

Anita Aspfors Westin in Solna, Sweden (but moving soon to Rättvik) is making 365 Collages and Assemblages. She explains, "I start to work only with black and white. After 7 days I am free to chose the grey-scale. After one month I am free to chose one more colour."...

Why did you decide to do this project? I want to wake up the artist in me. I´ve been working so hard last six month. As a teacher for kids and having classes for adults. I have been so concentrated to train their creativity so I feel I´ve almost lost my own. I really felt sick after last Christmas and I went to the doctor and he said I was on my way going to be outburned. He said I should stay home from work a couple of weeks and I didn´t even know I was depressed! But I stayed at home as he said and felt awful. Then I found 365 A daily creativity journal in “Designtorget” in Stockholm. And I said to myself: this is it! I know I had to make a change and this will be my change in life!

How has doing a yearlong/daily project affected your life? I guess it has gone too short time since I started to be able to tell if it really has made a change. But I think it has, because I feel much stronger after I´ve made my decision and I also feel very happy and satisfied when I´ve done my task for the day. And I am very decided to fullfill this project because it means a lot to me. Maybe it will be my next exhibition. I hope so.

See all of Anita's collages & assemblages HERE.

Card-A-Day

noreply@blogger.com (Noah) — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 13:30:00 +0000

Flo Kane in Buffalo, New York is making a Card-A-Day...

Why did I decide to do this project? I wanted to be more conscientious of reaching out to friends and loved ones on special days this year. I also happen to love working with paper, collage, etc. The two seemed made for each other. Oh, and also because my Free Will Astrology horoscope said I would have both the creative stamina and willpower to be prolific this year.

How has the project affected my life? It's been 13 days. But, I've felt progressively more creative and curious about learning new things. I've also been more creative in general. I also feel more connected to the people I'm mailing cards to.

She even made this card for me!

See all of Flo's cards HERE.

52 Weeks of Urban Exploring

noreply@blogger.com (Noah) — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 13:30:00 +0000

Samantha Hartman in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania is doing 52 Weeks of Urban Exploring...

Why did you decide to do this project? I am doing this project because it has always been something I've wanted to try, and after constantly looking at other people's daily or weekly projects, I finally gave in and decided to take on the challenge. Recently getting a new camera was the perfect motivation I
needed; I am attached to the thing. I would like to improve my photography and by spanning it out over the course of a year, this is a great opportunity to do so. Exploring abandoned buildings and desolate spots has always been an odd interest of mine, and being able to bring them to life through my camera is such an awesome feeling.

How has doing a yearlong/daily project affected your life? Although I am only on the third week, I already feel so accomplished looking at the photos I have taken so far. Some of them turned out really well and it has brought a great feeling of self satisfaction, and also gets me excited to scout out a location and work on the next set of photos! I feel so inspired and am excited to show my photos off to others. This is definitely a project I would like to stick with throughout the year.

See all of Samantha's explorations HERE.

Pancakes and Pendants

noreply@blogger.com (Noah) — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 13:30:00 +0000

My friend Maria Carra Rose here in Richmond. VA is spending a year making Pancakes and Pendants. She explains, "This is my inspirational project for 2012. I will be trying to get my groove back by experimenting with cooking and crafting, either making a new recipe or piece of jewelry each day and writing about the experience."...

Why did you decide to do this project? I decided to take on this project because I have been in a creative rut for almost 3 years and it's time that I take my life back and get back into doing the things I love and sharing them with the people I love.

How has doing a yearlong/daily project affected your life? So far, I have become increasingly aware how freaking crazy I am to pile something else onto my life's workload. I do think that it is necessary for me to do this, mostly because, selfishly, it's 100% for me. The food and jewelry that happen to come into existence because of the project, well, that can be the payoff to my friends and love ones who have to deal with the crazy. I guess we will see where it takes me.

See all of Carra's jewelry & meals HERE.

Oy With The Plushies Already

noreply@blogger.com (Noah) — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 13:30:00 +0000

Shelina Fitzpatrick in Springfield, Missouri is doing a yearlong project she calls Oy With The Plushies Already.

She explains, "I was in Barnes Noble in Nov and came across your book. Usually I find a book that I like and go home and buy it on Amazon so I can get it cheaper lol But this one I had to have right away. I bought it and carried it around with me plotting and planning my 2012 new years resolution. It was hard to wait until the 1st after it was full of post its with ideas jotted on them. :) In 2012 this book and I will be attached. I am going to try to follow the book exact but if I need to I will change up a few things so they will work better for me."

Why did you decide to do this project? I am a stay at home mom and have 3 kids. I spend all of my time with them and never sit down and do things for myself. This challenge is definitely for me! When I get a few minutes to myself I can challenge my creativity. I am always excited to see what my new project is for the day. I am 11 days in and I am pretty confident that I can finish all 365 days!

How has doing a yearlong/daily project affected your life? I am only 11 days in but so far it has made me stop and take a breath. Some days everything is just a whirl wind of craziness and I forget to just breath. lol Now I escape for a few minutes everyday. There are a ton of projects that I have wanted to do or creative things that I would like to learn that have just set on the back burner. Now I look forward to pulling out those projects when the day calls for it. Maybe I will finally find a reason to needle felt :)

See all of Shelina's projects HERE.

Simulacrum Follow-up

noreply@blogger.com (Noah) — Sun, 05 Feb 2012 13:30:00 +0000

I'm periodically checking back in with some folks who have completed their 365 projects...

Angie Niemand finished her year long Simulacrum project on December 31, 2011...

What are the biggest lessons/skills you learned from doing your project? One of the big lessons was learning to focus more on overall composition and not just on the subject of a photo. I spent more time on framing within the viewfinder and less time just pointing and shooting. In addition when I would develop and frame a finished photo, I would spend more time working on presentation. I gave more thought into which mat and frame would complement the photo and highlight its best qualities. In an age of Photoshop I liked being able to post work that had not been electronically manipulated or edited.

I also took various art classes and workshops throughout the year. Through this I discovered a new interest in printmaking and especially in the hand carving of wood blocks. I am really excited about this and cannot wait to invest in my own set of fancy Japanese carving tools.

In what ways did the project change your life? This project changed my life through finding new artistic interests, and developing my other skill sets. By examining a year’s worth of work, I discovered that investing in a macro lens for my SLR might be a good idea as I seem to really like shooting tiny things.

Now what? For now I have started another blog, Parts of a Bird, to post finished work less regularly than a daily 365. I am planning to work on a larger series of the light box photos I did earlier in 2011 with the intention of a future show. In addition I plan on developing skills in woodcuts and printmaking. I may return to doing a 365 in 2013 when I am done with grad school using 365: A Daily Creativity Journal as an inspirational guide.

Read her original 365 interview HERE.

See all of her simulacra HERE.