Last week I was spending some time taking photos, editing them, and getting some things ready for Instagram posts.
While I was in the middle of cleaning to stage a few things, I got thinking about the fact that we are in the middle of a difficult time. I was thinking about the effect social media has and how I contribute. And really, my house doesn’t look like the photos. I don’t make it through all the laundry. Our living room has one side completely dedicated to toys. I am staring at a Jolly Jumper as I write this! Again, just being honest, sometimes I avoid the housework, and just go paint. One of the ways I’ve been taking care of myself.
So I got to thinking about how curated feeds impact our mental health. We all know social media can make us feel inferior sometimes.
So I wanted to say, in the middle of a global pandemic, if your response is to withdraw, that’s totally valid. If your response is to eat comfort food, that makes sense. If the pandemic permanently threw off your workout plan, you’re not alone. If you’re just barely staying on top of your house, with your kids home, and the laundry doesn’t end. I’m there too.
My response to the pandemic has been to paint. We’re busy parents, making time for ourselves in the evenings. Bob and I were joking the other day saying the hours of Adelaide Studio are 8 pm – 1 am. I have kept myself busy, so busy that I work on not feeling badly about all the people and places I miss. One benefit has been nice paintings to look at, but if I’m being honest, this place has been a huge relief to me. Abstracts have given me the ability to be a little less together, and put some emotion and expression into a canvas. Keeping busy has kept me sane. Doing something for myself, and in turn, sharing some beauty with you.
One specific way I did something for myself was to paint something just for us. This piece is called River Mint, a little painting to bring back the memory and feeling of the place my husband proposed. We walked down to a still lake in Ireland, and there was no one to see us except a few sheep. We were walking to admire the view, and realized we were stepping on fragrant river mint. Its one of those things that can bring you back to a moment in time, and I hoped to bring that into our home. A memory of a very happy day.
I hope you find ways to care for yourself too.
Shan
Lovely, well said. Curated feeds definitely tend to overwhelm me at times… and then I remember.. it’s not the whole picture! Following your page and coming across your lovely work is calming. When did you start painting and how did you do it? Classes or self taught?
So glad you think so too! I am definitely hoping to bring a feeling of calm, especially right now. I’ve been painting for about a year and a half and am self taught! I have done a lot of self study, from Skillshare, to chatting with other artists, and lots of reading and planning. Definitely has been most helpful to just continue painting consistently! Thanks for being here