Inspiration is everywhere!!!
Here’s a few things which have caught my eye, spoken to my muse or piqued my curiosity…
Photographer, Robby Garbett
© 2007 Robby Garbett
Robby Garbett is a self-taught photographer, living in Dublin, Ireland who began his passion for photography with what he calls, “strange holiday snaps that no-one understood.” About a year and a half ago, he packed in his academic career so he could spend most of his time deciding what kind of photographer/artist he is and the rest of the time earning enough money for food and heat as a registered nurse.
© 2007 Robby Garbett
A taste for texture
Robby’s desire to make sense of things found him fascinated with decay and texture. “Decay, colour and texture seem to call me. I don’t suppose it’s any psychological mystery; life is impermanent. The proud posturings of today will be as nothing in an eyeblink. Love and compassion endure, material things do not.”
© 2007 Robby Garbett
Inspirational Insights
When asked about inspiration, Robby says, “I think it’s more what than who…
For a long while I simply shot what drew my eye. I wasn’t troubled by the fact that I had no idea why I was drawn to decay, after all it was hardly an original topic. But as my technique and style developed, I started to think about where my look has come from. I think it relates to my own preoccupation with the absurd nature of existence; believing that that the material world is finite and deeply mortal, I see the textural work as a meditation on that concept. The beauty I try and capture is similarly a meditation on love – perhaps the closest concept that I have come across is the buddhist notion of mehta – a kind of all embracing positive regard toward the world…”
As far as “who” Robby finds inspiring, he reflects on the colour field artists like Rothko for example, but paradoxically is also drawn to those who focus on tonal range and an almost dessicated kind of light which typifies the work of Andrew Wyeth.
Personally, I find Robby’s photography is a great inspirational resource for my mixed media art…his affinity for capturing unique layers of color and texture never fail to jump start my creative battery. You can take a look at his entire body of work here.
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Handmade Modern Designer/Blogger, Nicole Lecht
Nicole Lecht is a handmade modern designer who specializes in bookbinding and her uber-fabulous design blog, freshlyblended (www.freshlyblended.blogspot.com). Once I read freshlyblended’s blog description, I knew it was destined to be one of my favorites…
Nicole loves setting creative goals for herself; she is currently working on expanding her site and opening an etsy shop, claiming it as a “fast growing brainchild of mine created to give my work to those fabulous people who support the indie design and craft community.” The new freshlyblended site will focus on handmade books, journals and sketchbooks as well as her trademark blessing books for weddings with goals to branch out into papergoods.
Best of luck to you Nicole…we’ll be looking forward to watching you and your ideas grow!
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Online Courses through MIT
I’m always up for exploring new ideas, finding new avenues of learning…so when I recently read about MIT’s Open Courseware, I knew I had to see what MIT was offering. MIT’s Open Courseware is a free and open educational resource (OER) for educators, students, and self-learners around the world…with over
1,550 courses with topics ranging from architecture to writing to foreign language and literature. The site is easy to navigate, even with it’s immense library of information; you’ll find a ton of helpful information about how the site works here.
Here’s a few courses which piqued my interest…
The Art of Color
The Creative Spark
Composting Your Life: Exploration of Self through Visual Arts and Writing
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Thought for the week…
“I Succeed” by Michael Jordan/Nike
I’ve missed more than 9,000 shots in my career.
I’ve lost almost 300 games.
Twenty-six times I’ve been trusted to take the game-winning shot and missed.
I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life.
And that is why I succeeded.
-Michael Jordan
Design by Graph Paper Press. All content © 2012 by kellyangard.com
i miss you.
thanks for sharing some inspiration
Great stuff here! Love that Michael Jordan poster and quote and I’m very excited about the MIT links – thanks!
Amen to Michael’s words! My greatest hurdle in my artistic life is to let go and fail faster… to NOT stand at the precipice, lost in hesitation because a of some mis-conceived notion that success brings more reward than failure. Thanks so much for sharing this found article with those of us outside the world of sport… would never have stumbled on it in my day-to-day.
BTW, been silently observing for a while now. Never stop what you do, the many ways you do it. You help feed my soul, and i can’t be the only one!
:X
Hélène, Toronto, Canada