Under the rocks and stones
So, I’m going to treat this like it’s my first blog post. It’s not. I started to share my passion for art several years back. That journey was short lived, complicated by depression, personal issues, health issues and life in general. There was also a lack of support in my network around me. I was wasting time on crafts, there were laughs behind my back about what I was doing. Some of this negativity was from family and significant others and some came from other artists. Projects were started and abandoned. I’d jump into one project with high levels of enthusiasm and rapidly lose interest and become distracted by the next project. Most of my undertakings were overly ambitious for the resources I had on hand which didn’t exactly help with the perpetual motivation needed to thrive as an artist.
Well, how did I get here
My love of art began as a small child. I’d be held up in my room for hours at a time just drawing. Drawing anything, cartoon characters, Machines, fantasy worlds, spaceships, wildlife, comics. You name it, I was probably drawing it. It was my escape from reality. The love of science fiction and fantasy must have run in my family. Often my grandfather or my mother would be right there with me rushing to see the latest movie released. My grandmother would watch Dr. Who and The Flash with me regularly. My desire to work in the art field wasn’t so supported. I remember saying that I was going to be an artist when I grew up and being told I was going to do something with computers. Ok, in one ear and out the other I guess because my desire to work in the art field continued. Elementary school, Middle School, High School. Everything was about art. Time for college, and I was told I was only going to be given financial support if I was to get a degree in the computer field. Reluctantly I did get a degree in computer programing and before I had even graduated, I was working in data processing
For NEXCOM. Shortly after that they closed down my office in Rhode Island and transferred to San Diego. Barely 21 at this point I had soon decided to apply to a few art schools. Savannah College of Art and Design ended up being my choice. So back to the east coast. After college it was back north to help my mother take care of my grandfather who had developed Lewy body dementia and my grandmother had passed away a few years earlier. I found design work at a few local companies eventually I had to take a job that paid better than the design companies with a defense contractor. Through all this my love to make art never changed. As time went on my ability to create was limited by other responsibilities or space to work but it never went away.
How do I work this
Over time my subject matter has evolved, materials I use have changed, skills I’ve developed from jobs that I’ve done have brought me full circle. After getting divorced I decided I wanted a 3D printer. I developed a love for 3D sculpture and kinetic art in college. I think I took one 3D sculpting class, and the flame was lit. I couldn’t afford the 3D printers that were currently on the market, but I figured out that you could get the components to build one relatively inexpensively. So, my days working in 3D began. I struggled for months trying to get a successful print, eventually I put that aside too. But being stubborn after a couple of months I was back at it. I began successfully 3D printing. Of course, my projects were overly ambitious which made it a struggle. I eventually had six homemade 3D printers operating. I was starting to thrive and as I said in the beginning that was short lived due to complications of let's just say life.
Letting the days go by
Life moves forward and things get resolved. Over time I noticed my art getting attention. I've been productive for a long stretch of time and things have evolved to the point where I’m sharing my projects and acquired knowledge. I’ve seen conventions and attended them over the years. I’ve made costumes and props for friends and family. I never thought of what I was doing as Cosplay, I thought of it as art and not a craft. Cosplay isn’t just dressing up as a character from a movie, book or video game, it’s kinetic art to be experience from all sides, its therapy, its social, it makes you grow as a person. It takes a lot of talent to create costumes and props out of fabric and floor mats. Often it requires you to learn new skills, sometimes it can be therapeutic. Projects often led to sleepless nights and bloody fingers, and it all culminates when you make an appearance at a convention as someone you’re a fan of wearing your own creation. It’s an incredible accomplishment that leads to a huge boost of self-confidence.
Time isn’t holding up
So, what I’ve learned and what I’m going to share with you might not be the best way, the most popular way or the only way to do stuff. It's how I personally do things. Maybe you can adapt some of my techniques into your work or learn from my experiences. I’ll share the successes as well as the failures as we move forward from here.