Good morning,
​Do you have your tea? I have some thing I hope you will take some time to read.

Are you freaked out by what is going on in the world? or numb? or angry? or sad? or just not sure what to do and if there is anything you can do?

I am. All of the above. 

​Good Morning!

I had the most luxurious and rare moment of laying in a hammock with my daughter last night as the light was changing and the peepers were warming up to sing their song. Just a little chirp here and there as the pink clouds made silhouettes of the  trees  and danced on the black water of the pond.

I do not usually write about politics, but I have spent the last few days talking with clients who are devastated and depressed. What do these results say about where we are living and what is going to happen going forward? There is so much fear and sadness. And there is a crushing let down and sense of purposelessness. ​

​I just got back from the woods. It is a misty soft morning and there were drips of left over rain on all the tiny new born leaves and branches. Stunning!

It is spring and I have been dealing with a ton of ideas popping inside me- images of things I want to create. It is very fun. So much potential and bubbly energy!

I love it..... until it starts to feel painful.

The pain comes in the form of overwhelm, indecision, pressure, should's, impatience, and then moves into frustration, impotence, lack of energy, being stuck, and finally into a feeling of being a fraud, not really being an artist, being worthless, etc.

YIKES!

Does this sound familiar?

I woke to a chill in the air- making me aware that we are on the out swing of summer. I can taste a bit of fall in the air. After getting so much news of this being the hottest summer on record, there is a bit of gratitude for the beginning of the shift. 

Yeah- I know- it is not over yet- there is more heat to come. And in some parts the heat persists.

It is a scary time of the reality of global warming making itself felt in the weather.

One of the great fallacies that artists live with is that as solo artists we not only have to do it all ourselves, but that being isolated and often lonely is part of the job.

Please do not buy this idea!
​

Stay in the not knowing as long as possible.

There is something there, calling you.

It is beyond the should’s and have-to’s. It is well past what you can see.

It takes some groping around in the darkness.

You will look awkward. You will feel unsteady. You will wonder if it is worth it.

You may even climb out of that rich loam, that deep unknown, that luscious unilluminated space of aching possibilities to fold the underwear and stack the clean bowls.

It’s ok- those are stabilizing tasks- they are the exhale, the safe space, the resting in the illuminated world.

Return and return and return to the darkness.

When you begin to find that thing, when you bump into it, and then tentatively let yourself caress it, your curiosity will kick in.

What is this soft bit and this other ragged? The feather of a morning dove and the song of your aunt Mae 43 years ago in the meadow. Can you smell the leaves crunching underfoot?

Oh, but then there is this particular shade of yellow ochre that pulls your heart as it lays down next to crimson.

Yes, there is a falling in love.
And there is a making love.

Discover through the delight of a line curling and squirming across the page, or the piccolo dancing with the long bow of the cello,
that which is both familiar and disquieting.

You have never seen it before, no one has, but you recognize it.

You will know you are getting there when you begin to giggle.

And you will draw it up into the illuminated space with your tender curiosity and delight.

Don’t rush this love making.

Don’t name it or shove it into the light before it is ready. Don’t try to understand.

Stay with it in the dark and dance.

Trust yourself.

It is only when you allow this full, slow unfolding that the deepest most needful truths are revealed.

​Stay in the not knowing as long as possible.
And allow yourself to fall in love.
 
 
Val Gilman
2022

What if it didn't have to be so difficult? Life I mean. And Art. What if The dishes didn't nag and the thing on the floor that I walk past a million times a day didn't call me a slob. What if it was just calling to me and it turned out it was easy to pick it up and put it away right now. Maybe it is a gift- hey the room would  look nicer if you closed the cabinet door. There would be more pleasure. Could there be more pleasure? Would it be ok- Like would I be a boring person if there was not so much friction around me? 

I was testing this idea this morning. Sitting on the pot- I saw three random things on the floor. Getting the things off the floor in the bathroom lead to tidying up around the sink and straightening the rug. It looked better. Pleasure. What would bring more pleasure? Humming a tune. I used to do that long ago- I would tidy and sing. Not that I can really sing- I can't remember a tune to save my lfe- but if it is just for the pleasure of the sound- that I can do- just for me. And it is nice- comforting- uplifiting. 

And later I noticed that my body felt stiff- like friction there too. Maybe there are candy wrappers and tissues that can be thrown away there too, and cabinet doors that could be closed, and a few dishes washed and a the counter wiped down...inside my body. Could it be a gift, a pleasure, a generosity to dance and stretch a little? To attend to the little things in my body that are caling to me. Instead of walking past them and having them make nasty comments about how much of a fat slob I am. What if I attended to the requests for attention that my body is asking? Pleasure. Wiggling around- saying hello- I love you with the pleasure of movement. 

Ok, so my desk area is cleaner- just having sat here to type and letting myself tidy while I gather the words. 

The thing is that my eyes do notice all the things- I'm drawn to them. And mostly they have nagged and been little itchy annoying spots. And honestly there are days when they have won- they really get me down. But if I start- as I did today- with just doing a few easy things that might make the energy of the room flow a little nicer- there is a sense of ease and competence that begins. I wonder if that will carry through my day. Can I do it with the naggy details that need attending? The life todo list grows like a weed patch. Can I do it with the business todo's- And the studio and art making? So many of them are so much harder- take more time- require a deeper attention.... in what ways could I make them more pleasurable, remove the friction? 

Ok- that is a musing for a different day. Right now I am going to stretch a bit more and hum my self back to the house to wake my kid. With pleasure. My guess is that softening those craggy bits in my space and body will make the bigger things flow better too... but it is a test. A trial. A wondering. 

#taprootartsinsight, #valgilmancoachforartists, #coachforartists, #honestart, #creativedirection, #creativeflow, #creativeprocess, #artwithintegrity, #artwithheart, #artwithinsight, #findingease, #pleasure principle, 

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Can I interview you? It would be so helpful for me to hear what is going on for you so I can understand how to be of better service to artists and creatives and I would be happy to offer a coaching session in exchange. For more information check this link. https://app.acuityscheduling.com/schedule.php?owner=12649280&appointmentType=2437684
​

Sometimes you can feel like you are flailing in your creative process and direction. It is frustrating and painful and it does not have to be.

Recognizing the three types of creative flow and how they all are essential to creating work with integrity, honesty and heart, will help you lean into the pleasure of your creative work.


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​

I could not be happier with the way this project looks! My client, Susan, keeps sending me photos of it at different times of day and telling me about gatherings she has had in the space. I loved hearing that someone who came to a gathering said that the space was magical. 

Susan says, " It is a truely magical space. It is so so so beautiful! We are just so mesmerized. How can we ever thank you enough."

Wow. As an artist- it is deeply gratifying to create something that gets to live in someone's home and touch their lives. It is even more gratifying because I have had the opportunity to get to know these wonderful people and I know how much possitive impact they make in the world- so I get to be part of nourishing them and the good work they do in the world!

Thank you Susan and Peter for this collaborative and joyful opportunity!

I have never been this organized for Paradise City before and I know the trick: accountability. Yup, I know that my good friend Jeff, who is going to be helping with the big things, has somewhere to be in the afternoon- so he is going to show up here tomorrow morning at 7:30 and I need to be ready to roll. So my car is just about packed and all the details are in good shape.... almost.

Nothing like a deadline that involves being responsible to another person!

The other thing that has been a little different is giving myself a bit longer to focus on organization and taking better care of myself along the way.  Like giving myself permission to take breaks- real breaks- like an afternoon at the local lake beach when it was just too hot to think.

I definitely recommend some down time to keep the stress at bay when preparing for a big deadline.

I thought you might like to see a few things:

This is the newly painted and redesigned booth. So Swank!

In a month I will be setting up my booth (# 422) in the Paradise City Arts Festival, and I am really getting excited to see people again! I feel like I am crawling out a covid induced isolation chamber, and though I do love my solo time, I also long for connections with people.

I have been working on three very different commissions  which has resulted in a bunch of new glazes and sculptural ideas that I am looking forward to seeing in a clean space and sharing with you!

So I am revamping my booth, whole new look and color! It feels like making a new gown for the ball...Not that I really know what that feels like. But I can imagine the fun! I hope you will drop by and tell me what you think!

It can get very overwhelming to have too many ideas that you are working on at once. I know, I have spent most of my life doing it. But what I have found is that I like having a lot of ideas going- they feed off of each other.

Yes- it can be helpful to simplify.

If you are stopped up because they are all clamoring for attention and you can't get a good grip on any of them, it is a good idea to clarify which one or two you are working on right now.

But do not ditch the others. 

Just put them aside and let them rest. They will gestate- they will develop in the background without you having to do anything about it.

As a potter and a sculptor, I have had long stretches when I am not making pots. And then I come back to it, and fall in love with pots all over, I find that the shapes and ideas that I was working on before have developed without any direct attention from me. Same is true with the sculpture, or I should say with the various types of sculpture that I do. 

The cycles can happen within a week, within a year, within a month. The rhythms will change and are very particular to you.

So how do you figure out what to let rest and what to put your focus on right now?

When you feel that irritation or frustration that you are not getting anywhere and they are all clamoring, there is part of you that is asking you to pay attention.

And if you listen carefully, you will be able to hear the one that has lost its energy and motivation, that needs to take a nap, and the other one that is itching for attention.

It is really ok to listen to your desires here.

I find often that when I get that irritation it is because one of the things that I have been letting rest needs to wake up- and when I sit with it for a minute- it will become clear very quickly what needs to be done- what the next right step is.
​

Its winter in New England. It is so easy to feel trapped inside because the weather is crummy. I was just out in it, and I want to encourage you to get out there too. I bet it will energize you.