An Artist-Gardener’s Ode to Compost

At the beginning of June, the green Fennel loomed large in the garden.  It towered over me proffering lacy yellow blooms to all those flighted-passerby’s.  But at the base of this skyscraper of an herb there was NOTHING.  No bulb.  And the fronds supported no caterpillars yearning to become butterflies.  The blooms didn’t even appear to garner much attention.  The rest of the garden offered little except arugula- and there is only so much arugula one girl can eat.  This has been a disappointing gardening season for me.

I pondered the water-hog I called “Fennel” and decided it had to go.  If it wasn’t going to give me a sweet bulb to chop and it wasn’t going to provide an explosion of colorful winged insects, then it had no place in my raised bed which I drip-irrigate daily through 100+ degree days.

As I thought about the fennel and planned its demise, I realized that my garden is an eerily accurate reflection of many of my studio hours-  busy and non-productive. Frequently I consider creating the same project multiple times simply because I have an idea- but I am not sure of the best expression of that idea.  Should I paint it?  Should I create it digitally?  If I paint it- should I use ink? Should I use lines?  If I choose to create it digitally- how?  Vector?  Raster?

The only solution is to jump in and commit to creating it in one method- with the promise to myself that I can create it as many times as I like in as many different ways as I see fit.  My gnat-sized attention span actually prohibits this, but usually the promise is enough to nudge me off the starting block.

The fennel in the garden is gone.  I reduced it to a sweet smelling pile of green waste.  It is drying out and I am adding it to the compost pile, a little bit at a time.  That non-productive greenery is going to feed future gardens.  I tell myself that likewise, whatever “non-productive painting/creating” I do in the studio is feeding future projects. The artist and the gardener work in much the same manner, planting seeds in hopes of yielding bounty and beauty. Cast-offs become compost.

I check on the green tomatoes and pendulous melons daily- silently begging them to flourish.  The unusual recent rains have cooled the days and I have new hope for the plants that DID make it to the garden this year.  In the studio this month I merged my painting skills with my Photoshop knowledge to create a collaborative illustration with a friend.  Behold- “Robotman.”  This is a lengthier project and will result in an illustrated children’s book with a December due date.  

“Robotman” is a children’s story written for a special boy with Downs syndrome.  I am thrilled with my first illustration – the cover!  I will continue working with my friend to create another 8 illustrations for the story.  Then I will typeset the story and format it with the illustrations and send it off to create a book.

I have also designed a new Birthday greeting card for my collection.  This one will feature interior art as well as exterior art.  Usually I design the cards so I can print them at home.  This one is off to the commercial printer in order to achieve my desired look.  Look for it soon!

I am preparing for Wildflower Art Market- July 29th in front of the Meadow Gold sign.  I will have new cards, original art, and more.  It’s a one day event featuring local art and crafts.  Check out my events tab for more information.

• Food for Life by Tim Spector  Yes, I am still reading this one.  It’s a sizable tome, but it is actually an easy read.  I spread it out amongst my other activities- like all reading.  The chapter on bread was AMAZING.
• TheTriumph of the Moon by Ronald Hutton  This one is going to be a true marathon!  It’s a look at the history of paganism/witchcraft (specifically in Britain).  It begins with etymology and promises to be a fascinating read.)
• The Bean Trees by Barbara Kingsolver