For instance, that piece. The blue triangles came from some lumber that had been cut like that, and
had been just lying around for a while. And I decided to use them as two triangles like that, and I use
several other pieces like that in other works of art. As you can see from the pink piece over there,
there is also repetition of the idea of triangles. And then the piece underneath it, is one log, one
piece from a tree that’s been sliced in half. So that you like that, these two parts, the lower parts
came to me like that. Somebody just gave me some wood, and this one had all these projectile
branches coming out of it and that one had just one little branch and so I just sat with it for a while
and thought, cut off some parts of it, and I just thought it would be interesting to see if it had marks
on it. So then I painted it and marked it with the white. And this other piece with the white and the
blue, the blue is underneath and white over it is like a layer. The idea of skin is really getting a lot of
attention in my work right now. As I talked about with the birch bark. And that piece also feels like its
got a skin but now I decided in the process of looking at it, as I mentioned before, I had been feeling
it was done. Which I also mentioned, even when I think its done, it doesn’t mean it is done. But now
I’ve seen that I want to make those spirals rather beautiful. And I’ve been doing a series of drawings
of roses, so I’m gonna carve the spirals more like roses. And so I’ll be working on that the next few
weeks, as I open that up. And I might make those white spirals now, into rose-like forms which are
more pink. So I will see how that works with it but that’s how I do the process.
It’s all connected together. Teaching is a wonderful way to get inspired. And its always interesting to
see how people, given the same project, will make it very different. Its people, you know. Are given
the same circumstances, each one will come up with something very different. Sometimes they are
similar but there is enough unique quality to them to be different. And so it’s interesting to me and I
teach a lot by using questions. I find it that’s the best method. That ancient method and so I try not
to be judgemental, especially when you are dealing with art making, because when you are dealing
with art making, it has that mystery to it, it’s so intangible. And by putting it into a formula, like I think
that this is, you know this X makes the student kinda frozen. Makes the person, who is working with
you when you are the teacher frozen. And with confidence and what they are exploring. And
something very special can happen, when people are exploring this kind of space that’s within. So
that it could be really not so interesting to start with and then it could blossom and flower into
something very exciting, or have the presence of that. You know, it could have almost a forecast of
something very exciting. So I try to teach like that, and I find it always interchanges and interacts with
what I’m making with my art, and I get inspired with my teaching. Sometimes I get so exhausted that
I forget that I’m tired because it’s so engaging.
