This...and That

"Bonnet Bouquet" - mixed media on reclaimed wood, 6 x 18 x 1.  Ready to hang.  Click here to purchase this piece on Artfinder.

This was a week of multiple projects.  Touching this one, and that one.  Adjusting my focus for each, being flexible and fluid.  This isn't normally an approach I'm very good at, but recently I've begun working on retraining my brain using the science of neuroplasticity. And let me tell you, I am beginning to feel like a champion!  What a revelation!  The universe, in its infinite wisdom, has given my post-accident physical body some limitations.  But it has not limited my brain's capacity to train, grow new connections and pathways and flex its thought muscles.  And my brain, in turn, controls all the chemical processes which can help heal my body.

One of the most delightful parts of brain training is changing routines.  From the easy stuff, like brushing my teeth with the opposite hand, dressing in reverse order and taking new routes to run errands, to the more challenging things like changing the associations I have with certain words, things in the environment and even memories.  I am taking great joy in being more spontaneous, and find myself laughing out loud and feeling more present.

While I wait for my new studio system to be installed, I've changed the order of everything I paint with - moving supplies to the opposite side, facing myself a different direction and bringing out different tools.  I feel like a kid at a new playground!  More fun, more good mojo and more freedom in my creative space.

"Punkin" - mixed media on reclaimed wood, 6 x 8.  Private Commission..

And what was the result of all this change and training, you might wonder?  Quite remarkably, an ability to joyfully attack multiple collaborative projects and feel independently creative as well, all with an abundance of energy.  Is there an olympics of brain training?  I want on that team!

"Bonnet Bouquet" is inspired by the delightful hats of Ladies' Day in Listowel, which make me smile every time I see them.  Do they make fancy hats with paint brushes in them?

"Punkin" is inspired by a private collector, whose love of Halloween is infectious and makes me feel like I'm seven years old again.