Kat Eye Studio

  • Home
  • Portfolio
  • Books
    • Art with an iPhone
    • Digital Photography for Beginners
  • Workshops
    • Mobile Photography Workshop Series
    • iPhone Art Workshop
    • Out of the Box Composition Workshop
    • Photography & Creativity Talks
  • Free Resources
    • Mobile Tutorials
    • Exploring with a Camera
    • Liberate Your Art Postcard Swap
  • Blog
  • About
    • Artist Statement
    • Background & Experience
    • Contact

October 14, 2014 by Kat

What’s in a Masterpiece?

IMG_3404.JPG

In a recent interview for the Philomath Open Studios blog, I was asked this question: What, in your opinion, is the hardest step in creating a masterpiece?

That got me to thinking… What is a “masterpiece?” Have I ever created one?

I’m thinking a masterpiece is something that exemplifies the best of an artist’s work. A piece which reaches the height of communicating an artist’s vision. A piece that finds the perfect combination of subject, emotion and technique. Something that says, “This is who the artist is, or was, as an artist and as a person.”

If that’s the case, then can I really know if I’ve ever created a masterpiece? Or is that something for people to decide after I’m gone?

I don’t ever set out to create a masterpiece, that’s all I know right now. Can you imagine that kind of pressure? “Today, I’m going to create the best work of my career!” Let’s talk about a recipe for creative block.

I just try to keep creating. Sometimes what I finish is good. Sometimes it’s not. Sometimes I know right away if it’s my best work, but more often it’s hindsight that helps me see which pieces are better than others. I can’t predict, in the throes of creating.

Which is good, I suppose, because otherwise I would get to the point of “knowing” that a piece was destined for the trash bin and just stop. What’s the point of creating something, if you know it’s not going anywhere? It’s better to not know at all.

That’s why we can’t tell if we’ve created a masterpiece. That’s why others decide that. We have to keep creating, without the voice in our head telling us, what’s good or not.

Have I ever created a masterpiece? Will I ever create one? I’m not worrying about that. I’m just taking life as an artist one day, one piece at a time.

PS – Twelve days to Philomath Open Studios! Mark your calendars for Oct 25/26 and Nov 1/2.

Filed Under: The Kat Eye View of the World Tagged With: artistic growth, artistic life, bamboo, create, creativity, shadow, stackables

October 9, 2014 by Kat

Exhale Gratitude

IMG_3372.JPG

“When Shadow Takes Flight” is my latest piece, created this morning. Yes, I have my comfy chair, my tea, my morning routine back. I have time and space to create again.

I am breathing deep and sinking in to a feeling of… What… Relief or peace or comfort, I’m not sure the exact word. But deep breaths are involved.

Our home is back. Our kitchen remodel is almost done. The last little bits are finishing up today. Last night we were able to cook dinner using both stove and oven, wash dishes in a kitchen sink and dishwasher. The first time for all of that in four, long months.

Such a wonderful, simple pleasure. One I’ve taken for granted in the past, considering it more chore than anything else.

And yet… I can’t help but think I’m a wimp, for finding the inconveniences we’ve borne the last few months as uncomfortable. The phrase “first world problem” comes to mind. I think of the people who deal with much, much less as a way of life. Hauling water and fuel just to subsist.

So my relief is also filled with thankfulness, understanding that what I am viewing as “normal” is really a blessing. That I have a house and a way of life which allows me time and space to create is something I don’t want to take for granted.

This morning, I am breathing contentment in deep, and exhaling gratitude.


P.S. There are still spaces available in Smartphone Art I at Sequoia Gallery in Hillsboro this Saturday! Get the details here.

Filed Under: The Kat Eye View of the World Tagged With: bamboo, shadow

January 14, 2014 by Kat

Redefining Creative Achievement

The Exercise in Alignment I shared last week has got me thinking about lots of things. While I’m not surprised that I’ve been challenged to think, because getting into my heart and head this way always generates some good thought, I am surprised at where the thoughts are focused: Achievement. Finally admitting to myself that this is an inherent need I have and accepting it, and not viewing it as a frustration or annoyance or something to be changed about myself, turns out to be kind of important.

Now, you might be thinking, why is having the need to achieve so bad? Why would I even think this way? I think it comes from the sense that I have this driver, Type A side to me that I want to minimize. Not because it’s inherently bad, but maybe because of my approach to it. Up until a few years ago, I seemed to blindly follow an established path to success. I didn’t stop and ask myself what and how I wanted to achieve, I just sort of picked up the achievements laying around. These were achievements left there by people I cared about and respected – colleagues and managers and teachers – but they weren’t defined by me.

So maybe that’s really been the work the last few years — redefining achievement. I thought maybe I was trying to change my need to achieve, but really it’s about changing what, how and for what purpose I’m achieving. That feels about right.

20140113-073141.jpg

So as I look at this need to achieve the last few days, I’m realizing I’ve picked up goals and requirements on my creative journey, too. I seem to have set up internal frequency limits for a number of things – creating new work, blogging, sharing through social media, hosting online classes, etc. Some of these started as my own internal goals, and some started as things I heard worked for others with similar interests. Regardless of where they came from, when I’m not meeting them, I feel this internal tension. I feel that I’m not achieving.

There is a really good thing that is coming out of this line of thought — I’m recognizing the tension I sometimes feel around achievement, or NOT achieving, is a good indicator that I need to examine my definitions. When I feel this internal stress from “missing” an achievement, I can stop, set things out in front of me, evaluate and start the process of redefining.

I’ve already done that in the last week. I was feeling a tension around creating new photographic work. I really haven’t photographed or edited much in the last month. Even though I’m out of the dark time of December I haven’t been spending my time creating new photographs. But in the process of examining this, I’ve recognized that this is a “false” goal or achievement. I’ve been doing a LOT of creating in January – I’ve been preparing presentations for several photography talks I’m doing at a regional photography conference in the spring – it just isn’t along the lines of new photographic work. So I took some time to consciously redefine, or reinforce, what encompasses “creativity” to me. It’s more than new photographic work, since I have multiple creative outlets. It’s ok to take a step away from one creative endeavor to support another for a while.

It feels good to redefine what leads to creative achievement. I keep the goals I have, creating on a regular basis, but I get to honor other types of creativity as much as my photography. I get to see the creativity of pulling new thoughts together, writing and sharing thoughts with others as just as important and fulfilling as my visual work. I’ll be honest, as much as I’ve done it over the last few years, up to now I haven’t viewed the sharing of ideas and writing on the same level of importance as creating new photographic work. It’s played second fiddle in my goals. It’s time to rearrange that. Make it equal, at least some of the time.

I think there was always this worry, somewhere deep inside my psyche, that if I took a break from one form of creativity I’d never go back. So if I wasn’t really photographing regularly, I’d lose my interest. Maybe this was rooted in my past, where I tried out a lot, and I mean A LOT, of creative activities to see if one would stick before I really fell in love with photography. I think I’m beyond that with photography now, don’t you? It’s going to stick, even if I take a few weeks off. And when I come back, there’s a good chance it will have changed a little bit, because I will have a different perspective from my other creative endeavors.

Even as I write this, I’m feeling the urge to get out and photograph again. Not only for creative achievement, but because creative space has again freed up. Last night, I wrapped up the first draft of the photography talk I’ve been working on, which means that I’ve finished something. Creative achievement? Check.

As I step away from the keyboard and look outside, I’m seeing a whole world of bare trees waiting for me. I think it’s time to go photograph a few.

Filed Under: The Kat Eye View of the World Tagged With: bamboo, creativity, exercise, my painting, personal growth, writing

January 5, 2014 by Kat

Photo-Heart Connection: December

 
Simplicity. Lines. Space.

IMG_0977

Since travelling to Singapore in the spring and now China and Taiwan in December I have felt a growing affinity to asian art and themes in my work. I love the lines of bamboo, the circles of lily pads, and the spare brushstrokes and space found in sumi-e paintings. I’ve been searching out sumi-e art online and studying which styles and techniques resonate with me.

It’s amazing what can be expressed in a few lines in space: Beauty, peace, grace.

While I strive to achieve the same effect in a photograph, I often can’t. I can’t always get the right angle. The background may be distracting. There is no space to be found.

And so this month, I tried something new. I created the lines in space myself. This image is a digital painting created start to finish on my iPad. It’s inspired by a photograph I took of bamboo, but it’s not a photograph. Much as I love photography, there are moments of frustration that I can’t capture what I want. There is a freedom in creating from scratch, and leaving things out. It allows me to express myself when the photograph just isn’t quite right.

Simplicity. Lines. Space. They call to me.

A new direction? Maybe. Or just an expanding of the circle. There is space in my art for all manners of expression to coexist.


Happy New Year! I’m back home from my holiday travels. I was gone for the last two weeks visiting family in Colorado. It was a much needed rest and now that I’m back home I find that I’m ready to take on the world again. Whew. I was worried there, for a while. December was rough, from a creative perspective, as you can probably tell from my sparse postings. But having the time to relax and start creating again at the end of the month was just what I needed. It allowed this new direction, the interest in sumi-e painting and exploration of digital painting techniques on my iPad, to emerge.

On my trip I created photographs and played with digital paintings alike, finding it a spectrum of expression that bleeds together from one end to the other. After creating a base painted image I used many of my usual photo apps to add color and texture to achieve the desired effect. It all connects, I couldn’t have created this without the knowledge and techniques I’ve developed in my mobile photography. So that’s why this non-photograph is in the Photo-Heart Connection. I’m not going to draw imaginary lines on what art is allowed or not allowed in this practice. It’s all my art, and if it has a heart connection, something to teach me, that’s all that matters. I’m done with placing things in imaginary boxes and drawing lines around them saying what “is” and “isn’t” allowed. I threw out those rules last year.

So if you’re not a photographer, join in with us too. What matters is the heart connection in your art, not the medium it was made with.

How was December for you, creatively? What connected to your heart, in this dark time of the year? Share it with us. The link up will be open through January 12.

Filed Under: Photo-Heart Connection, The Kat Eye View of the World Tagged With: bamboo, my painting, photo-heart-connection

December 15, 2013 by Kat

Resurfacing

Returning from an international trip always feels a bit like diving into a bodyof water, resurfacing in a different place. There is a planned location for arrival back to shore, and plans about what will happen upon arrival, but plans can go awry.

20131215-075635.jpg

Resurfacing from my China/Taiwan trip did not go as planned. My to do lists and scheduled commitments upon arrival to the home shore had to be forgotten. My body decided, after several months of non-stop go-go-go, not to mention exposure to foreign bugs and a 16 hour time change, that it was time for a break. So I spent much of the last week in bed, and the rest of the time paring down to the minimum required. I didn’t have energy for more.

Now I’ve washed up on shore, a bit battered by the waves, in a different time and place than anticipated. I’m catching my breath, laying here on the beach, trying to decide if I want to pick back up with the plans I had or if I will plot a new course. To be honest, a new course, with an easier route, appeals to me right now. I might just take a little break here for the moment.

So I’m not sure how much I’ll be around the blog for the next few weeks. I’m playing it by ear, letting my body and my energy rejuvenate, spending time with my family over the holidays, and opening myself up to what might come next.

If I’m not back here in the next week or so, I want to wish you a wonderful holiday season with your family and friends. I hope you take the time to create some meaningful memories and heartfelt art as well. That’s where my focus will be.

Filed Under: The Kat Eye View of the World Tagged With: bamboo, taiwan, travel

September 19, 2013 by Kat

Upcoming Workshops and Events

With the start of school, it seems that activities pick up. Gone are the lazy weekends and free evenings. Things are in gear for fall! I have a number of upcoming workshops and events I want to share with you.

And a bit of new work to share with you… Just before going on the Eastern Oregon trip I made a visit to a water garden to photograph water lilies and, joy of all joys, bamboo! Here’s the first image from that excursion. More to come!

IMG_9633


Workshops

IntroToIphoneography-Banner

I’ve created a short class to introduce the basics of getting great photographs with your iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch. Offered through Corvallis Parks & Rec on November 9 and January 11, this class will be good way to get started with your mobile device. You always have your mobile device with you, right? Why not make it your primary camera. I have! In this half-day course, you’ll learn how to get the most out of your device’s camera along with the basics of editing, using the ProCamera and Snapseed apps. Whether you are a beginner or an established photographer, you’ll be creating photographs you are proud to share in no time. The cost of the 3-hour workshop is $32+apps, and you can register through Corvallis Parks & Rec.

SmartphoneArt-Banner-Hillsboro

It was so much fun, I’m doing it again! I am teaching the 1-day Smartphone Art workshop on November 16 in Hillsboro, Oregon at the wonderful Sequoia Gallery + Studios. If you want to learn how to create art with your mobile device, you can join me for a fun, hands-on day of instruction. We’ll begin by learning how to get great photographs using your mobile device, the first step to creating any type of smartphone art. From there, we’ll move into basic and creative edits using apps. By the end of the day, you’ll be combining apps and creating truly unique works of art using your device. You can find the full workshop description here. The cost for the 1-day workshop is $75+apps, and you can register through Sequoia Gallery + Studios.


Events

IMG_9816A group of us are creating an informal Mobile Photography Group here in Corvallis. Our first meeting will be September 24 at 7pm. We’ll share app reviews, demos and whatever the participants are interested in. At this first meeting we’ll discuss how we want to format and organize. I’m excited to develop a stronger community of mobile photographers in the local area. Contact me for details if you are interested in attending.

 

20130521-061130.jpgIt’s Corvallis Fall Festival time! This is an amazing juried festival of artists which runs September 28 and 29. I’ll be there in the PhotoArts Guild booth, with my art for sale. I’ll be presenting a portfolio of my iPhone tree images from last winter, as framed and unframed prints and greeting cards. I don’t place my work for sale very often, so this is a unique opportunity to see my work in person (in my favorite format – printed!) and to purchase. I’ll be working in the booth on Saturday and Sunday afternoons, after 2pm. I would love to meet you if you are able to stop by!
 

POST_2013poster2The Philomath Open Studios Tour is an annual event that allows you into the studios of some amazing artists. Held the weekends of October 26/27 and November 2/3, you can visit the studios of the participating artists anytime between 12-5pm. I am excited to be a guest artist in the event this year, hosted by photographer David Paul Bayles in his gorgeous Kindred Wind Studio. I can’t wait to share and discuss my art with more people in this wonderful venue. I attended last year and it was fascinating to meet the artists, see their studios and discuss their work. I highly recommend you attend an even like this, even if you are not in my area. It’s great learning experience! Philomath Open Studios also has a booth at Fall Festival, and you’ll find me there in the morning of September 28.

So that’s it! It’s a busy fall, but it’s all doing things I love. I hope I get a chance to meet you at these different workshops and events.

Filed Under: The Kat Eye View of the World Tagged With: bamboo, corvallis fall festival, event, intro to iphoneography, philomath open studios tour, smartphone art, workshop

Next Page »
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • RSS
  • Twitter

Upcoming Events

Books Available

  Digital Photography for Beginners eBook Kat Sloma

Annual Postcard Swap

Online Photography Resources

search

Archives

Filter

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • RSS
  • Twitter

Upcoming Events

© Copyright 2017 Kat Eye Studio LLC