Eye of the Storm - Feb. 2023

Dry-Erase Markers, Lunch Ladies, Big Magic, etc…

John Storm

Feb 28, 2023

Hello there - I hope you have had a great February 2023! We (here in Texas) started the month with some chilly winter weather resulting in school cancellations. We are ending the month with some nice 80° weather.

Here are a few things that caught my eye throughout the month…

Creative Wonders on a Whiteboard

While taking my boys to one of their basketball games, I noticed in the office area near the gym someone drawing on a whiteboard. The scene was loaded with all sorts of creatures in a woodland setting. To my surprise, the dry-erase doodler was actually a former student from several years ago and has long since graduated. I can’t take any credit for his ability as he was a natural from day one and always had a great drawing style. It was good to catch up and see him still doodling.

(He did eventually finish it and it was amazing - I just didn’t get a pic)

Art with Hearts

My son (age 8) made my wife and I the coolest Valentines this year - a parrot and a dog all made from heart shapes! He is without a doubt my favorite artist. I even get in trouble for “borrowing” some of his work for my own art. It is nice having such creative inspiration living under the same roof.

As Picasso said:

“Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once we grow up”

LUNCHLADY

As I previously mentioned in January, one of my goals in 2023 is to be consistently creating. I have been able to finish a few pieces so far and one of those recently was “LUNCHLADY.” Measuring 3 feet by 3 feet, this mixed media piece had been slowly building up over several months and it was nice to get some focused time to push it along. More information can be found here: LUNCHLADY

I am not sure why “LUNCHLADY” appeared across the bottom - it just popped into my mind at some point and I chose to follow it. Sometimes random words or ideas surface in my thoughts and I know they will work somehow in my art.

Speaking of lunch ladies - I can recall pretty vividly a few of the lunch ladies of my youth. One of them, named Dorothy, was super nice and you just knew she would give you an ample portion of the best item on the day’s lunch menu. I wonder if Dorothy knew how happy she made the hundreds of kids she fed each day. What were the lunch ladies of your childhood like?

Big Magic

I spent some of February reading (again) Elizabeth Gilbert’s “Big Magic.” The book explores the unexplainable “magic” of creativity, inspiration and just doing the creative work you were made to do - whatever form it may take.

Here are a few points I picked out…

A few of my notes while reading “Big Magic” by Elizabeth Gilbert

Day Tripper - Austin, TX.

I’m sure I have said this before but one of our favorite places for a quick day trip is Austin, TX. Great food, cool places to visit, and incredible grocery options for our family’s dietary needs.

There is always a lot to see and take in while in Austin - here are just a few of the sights seen. Where do you like to go for quick trip to get away?

A few things that caught my eye down in ATX.

Lastly, here is a great quote I discovered by artist and author Robert Henri (I had accidently written Henry… but it is Henri)

Thanks for following along and I hope you have a great March 2023. Keep growing!