Sketchbook Project 2012

The Sketchbook Project. Three little words that consumed my life for the past 4 months. It was an idea that was developed by the Brooklyn Art Library This project became my life for so long… that now that it’s not there… it’s like there’s something missing. It’s hard to put a finger on it, but it’s almost the pressure to become creative drove me to produce something that I am actually proud of. A lot of the times, when you rush and have the pressure to create, it never ends up being what you want it to be. But instead with the Sketchbook Project, it transformed. So while the finished product was not what I was expecting, it developed to be more than I had hoped for. So now, in April, I will register myself again for the Sketchbook Project 2013.

My theme for it was “Encyclopedia of…” At first I had the idea of using algorithms, ones that are used every day and can be artistically shown and described; like red and black trees, the knapsack algorithm or the traveling salesman. But as time went on, I knew there was something missing. While at T.A.N. for a coffee house, I started drawing. My mood was less then wonderful so my sketches became chaotic and messy. I knew then that my sketchbook’s theme had to let me include this way of drawing. So it officially became Chaotic Scribbles and Fine Lines. The results speak for itself. Soon, I’m hoping I’ll be able to go online and see my sketchbook digitalized. I have the call number. 141.7-3

This success, has helped me see that I would love to be creative artistically for a long time. To become better at it. It’s the part of me that keeps me sane. That keeps the crazy at arms length and let’s me continue on my day. Because at the end of the day, if I’m not happy or I’m not proud of the work I do… then why do it?

What did you do today?

It’s been six months since my whirl-wind trip across Europe. I sit here in my living room, in rural Nova Scotia and think back about all the things that I experienced. Everyone asked when I got back about the highlights of the trip. There were many. And to be fair… it’s Europe. Everywhere you go is new and different. If you have an outgoing personality and trust that not everyone in the world is a horrible person, you will meet people anywhere.

So while events stick out in my mind like wandering the galleries of the Louvre, trying gelato in every town or city I visited, playing with the Senior Orchestra of Strasbourg… it is these experiences as a whole, that made the trip worth the expense. However, it is not always the ‘big thing’ that you do or see or experience. It is the little things that make life so much brighter.

Being the first one on the monument at Vimy Ridge was unforgettable. But it was the whole trip and the whole day, that made me appreciate it the more. Navigating my way to the inner zones of Paris, finding a ticket, finding the train, arriving in Arras, enjoying coffee and the sun in the early morning, being quiet and content, finding a cab to Vimy, visiting the monument, meeting other Canadians, finding a bit of home away from home, learning our history, meeting other Nova Scotians, discovering a magnificent cathedral, waiting for the train back, taking the train back, finding the hotel again.

…. it is all the parts.

So I ask, what did you do today? What made your day? It doesn’t have to be travelling the world. But, have you taken the time for you? Did you take and make a moment?

When life gives you lemons…

The saying goes, when life gives you lemons, you make lemonade. But what happens when you want a grasshopper or tequila sunrise instead? What happens when the thing that you have is not the thing that you really want? How do you convince yourself that lemonade is really a great drink, and why would you want anything else?

When you find yourself in a situation that you no longer want to be in we change it. We pick a new direction, develop a strategy, pray, seek answers, question everything, not say no, not say yes. And finally, we decide that lemonade was yesterday’s desire… today’s is fruit punch.

So then what, I ask, do you do, with all of your lemons?

In a world of hate… there’s still Facebook

Having been disconnected to the internet now for quite a while, it makes me ponder how the internet has changed our personal connection to other human beings. Being “plugged in” makes one rely on digital media to create and build relationships for us. We no longer personally interact with people on a regular basis; or rather… we do, but distance and busy schedules, tend to delay or (in some instances), prevent us from ever physically meeting the people on the other side of the screen.

But being human, we crave and need some sort of physical contact. Where does this come from then if we consistently make electronic versions of ourselves? This virtual self is what we display on the Internet through Facebook, Twitter, MySpace and personal blogs like this one. But how much of what we show is a facade and how much is a real version? An interesting connection came to me one day while sitting in a cafe pondering this thought.

I took a seminar during my third year at university called “The Imaginary Museum.” It was the first time I had taken a fine art history seminar and the professor pushed every idea of what I had considered to be a museum to the extreme. While most dictionary definitions consider a museum to be a building which preserves, exhibits and studies artistic, historical, or scientific artifacts; she opened my eyes to see that museums, could be more than the ordinary. The classical idea yes, but as well, traveling and virtual museums and museums without walls.

These are all around us. One only has to open the mind to the idea. And once we had done this, it was amazing to see in our every day lives, how many imaginary museums surrounded us. One of my favourite articles and museums that she had us look at was a book by Julian Montague called, The Stray Shopping Carts of Eastern North America, A Guide to Field Identification. The topic, though seemingly ridiculous, provides expansive concepts and terminology which makes it plausible to connect this area of urban life to the concept of imaginary museum.

Now, some may not see the connection that I’m proposing. It’s not that we are all some kind of stray shopping cart, but perhaps that our virtual selves are more an imaginary museum that we think the world should pay attention to. These connections electronically have become a way of life. While it seems convenient, what is it doing to our connections we hold with the real people. The animalistic characteristic that makes us social creatures is being dismissed. But, it’s not just Facebook; it is every single social networking site that we create a profile on. So while we are more than happy to show the virtual self, do we ever present our real selves?

Traversing Tried

Having arrived safely back in Canada, one can only experience the exhausting and liberating feelings of having accomplished more in the last 6 weeks, then (what seems anyway) in the last 6 years. Musically, Vienna is the pinnacle of any performance driven musician. Thus, between performing in the Golden Hall of the Musikverein, successfully navigating the subway in Paris, getting blown over on the Cliffs of Mohor, swimming in the waters of the Mediterranean, feeling the National pride atop Vimy Ridge, climbing thousands of stairs and becoming one amongst millions, the trip itself was a huge success.

Personally, the trip provided healing which could only be accomplished with time and reflection. While running from life, does not work

I know that it is impossible, and every problem shouldn’t be run from. But there are times when running is necessary. The trip also provided a time, where I wasn’t constantly thinking and worrying about the future. Where I could just spend time and just be. I learned many things about myself during this 6 week period which I had never realized. Over the next little while, I’ll dive into them a little bit. Now I realize, none of them are ground breaking for anyone other than perhaps myself, and maybe they’re not that ground breaking. . . but for a 22 year old, recent graduate, with the world in front of her . . .

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. these are lessons momentous .

Saunter: the word of the day…

Landing in Frankfurt after a 7 hour flight, boarding buses to travel another 10 hours.. we finally arrive… Aus Salzburg!!! Haben Sie besser tage mit meinen Freunden aus Salzburg!! guided tours around the city, meant a lot of sauntering occured, in reality… the most sauntering. As one is with a group of 80, it is nearly impossible to do anything without sauntering. It seemed like the morning was a lifetime at parts.However, on the up side.. we did see fantastic places including the Cathedral, the fountain in the Sound of Music, Schloss Leopoldskron (which tourists usually don’t get to go see but with special connections AKA Ken McLeod, we were able to get in) and many more. But I think my favorite was seeing the fortress on top of the mountain overlooking old Salzburg. Being too cheap we decided to climb the stairs instead of taking a cable car up. There have never been as many laughs or jokes made among us. It was worth it to see the amazing views and enjoy good times with good friends and colleagues. The weather so far has been amazing with it being over 30 degrees for the last two days. I’m working on a sweet tan with so many tan lines I can’t even tell you.

This evening, we had our first rehearsal. We’ve set new “European tempos” and everything seems to be faster. three hours of rehearsal later… we have our first concert tomorrow evening. the program order will be Symphonic Dances by Dvorjk #3 and #8, Symphony No. 5 by Beethoven, Conga by Marquez and Marche Slave by Tchaikovsky. This is a shared concert with a choir. Beginning days early allows for the most time spent enjoying the culture, an 7am wake-up call means a 9am start at a Sound of Music Tour. Salzburg, ladies and Gents either means Sound of Music or Mozart… it’s one or the other or not at all. But there will be much sauntering tomorrow… one seems to never cease sauntering here..

Off to the Races!

With just hours before I am off to the airport, I find myself checking my list at least 50 times to make sure everything I need to have finished is actually there.  The thought of forgetting something isn’t what bothers me. I know that if I do forget something then I can find it wherever I’m going. But there is no one looking over my shoulder as I pack constantly asking what about this? Did you find… Em, you’re not going to need these. Perhaps my jitters don’t necessarily come from the fact that in 16 hours I will be boarding a plane to Frankfurt but rather that no one is here checking to make sure I have enough pairs of socks, that my music is actually in my bag and that one pesky straight mute I have to take, is there.

While I realize that this seems foolish to most, sometimes… a little bit of worry shows how much that person will be missed.

While I do believe that I have everything I need, isn’t life always been about the love in our lives and who we share it with? So while I’ll be flying over 3200 miles and exploring new places, I know I’ll be missing, each and everyone. I know I’ll be okay, but maybe if they know I’ll miss them, they might miss me.