Wednesday, April 22, 2009

Sketches at the Gates of Slumber

Not long ago I was talking with my dear friend Laurey about the frustration I feel from not being able to fit in making art with all the other things going on in my life. She told me about how she sketches every night just before bed. She's been doing it since finishing art school years ago, and says that she loves having the habit. It's sometimes the only art she's able to fit into her life as a busy mother, but it's something every day, which is so important.

I started the practice myself, and I find it to be really satisfying. Each night I take just enough time to make something before drifting off into dreamland. It's productive, too -- in fact, all the drawings for my next book, Commonplace Mouse, started as bedtime sketches. Thank you, Laurey!

4 comments:

The Joy of Nesting said...

I have noticed that if I even just a half an hour a day making a bit of art, I'm ever so much nicer a person to be around. Why I even like being around me :)

Pattie ;)
Mazatlan Mx.

Laurey said...

You are so welcome Karima!!!!
I find that sketching just before I go to bed often leads to more interesting dreams during the night. This kind of drawing is often my only connection to my inner life in any given week. I start to develop a language for the subconscious through the images that come up when I draw. And when dreams at night become more vivid, the language starts to make more sense when I draw. I don't exaclty draw from my dreams. But the dreaming and the drawing creates a circular flow, helping me reconnect to a deeper part of myself that needs to be understood and express itself.

Shelley Noble said...

I love this idea. What a lovely ritual. I think art and volunteer service are both best when arising in the flow of daily living like that.

Castle in the Air said...

What a beautiful way of explaining it Laurey. Thank you so much for the comment. It puts words to the magic of the process.

With all my best,
Karima