The Kat Eye View of the World - Kat Eye Studio

March 11, 2014 by Kat

Never the Same Place Twice

Some old friends visited me recently. These are mutual friends you and I have, I’m guessing. You probably know them too: Doubt and Fear. Do they ever visit you? I would bet they do.

For me, they show up anytime I’m doing something new. No matter how much I’ve already accomplished or become comfortable doing, they like to come and whisper in my ear, “What do you think you are doing? Who do you think you are?”

There is a difference in my response these days, though. Instead of stopping me in my tracks, or paralyzingly me in place, I wearily say, “Hello, guys. I should have known you’d be along anytime now. Why don’t you sit over there, in the corner? You can watch me work. I’m busy here and don’t have time for you.” I know I can’t get rid of them, at least until this new project is over. But I can acknowledge them, then ignore them and move ahead. There is no use paying attention to them. They sing the same tired song every time.

This part of growth is inevitable for me. The Doubt-and-Fear part. Just like spring comes around every year, doubt and fear will come along every time I stretch myself into something new.

There is that one big difference though… Now that I’ve been doing my art for a while, since I’ve stretched myself over and over by doing lots of uncomfortable, new things over the last few years, their impact is not as great. They don’t hold the power over me that they used to.

Inevitable, yes. Powerful, no.

That’s the amazing thing about growth. When the cycle comes around again, you aren’t in the same place. You can look back at where you’ve been, where you were the last time you heard those voices and say, “Huh, guess you weren’t so right after all. Why should I listen to you this time?” Your response and your capacity to manage the doubt and fear grows too.

Take a moment today and think about where you are now. Is there a direction you are going that is bringing up the doubts and the fears? Then look back a year, two years, five years. Look at how you’ve changed. The things you’ve done. How you’ve grown. So when our mutual friends of Doubt and Fear show up at your door, you can banish them into the corner too. Because you know you don’t have to allow them power over you.

You’ve done it before, you can do it again. With less doubt and fear, this time.

March 6, 2014 by Kat

Beyond the Boundaries

There are many reasons I love mobile photography, but this morning one of them is really coming to the fore: I don’t have to sit at a computer to edit photos. I can, and do, create my art sitting in my comfy chair. Knees up, tablet resting, stylus in hand… It feels more like drawing or journaling than it is traditional photo editing.

My creativity benefits.

As does my body.

I’m sitting here this morning with a heating pad on my shoulders because they are sore. It’s been an intense week at my corporate job, with 7-8 hours a day on the computer for some analysis work I’m doing. Lots of mousing. Last time this happened, it was triggered by a photography project, creating the video for last year’s Liberate your Art postcard swap. It doesn’t matter where it starts, the end result is the same. My body tells me it’s too much, by hurting. I need to listen.

I know the drill… Make sure I’m using good posture and ergonomics. Lay off the intense computer time for a while. Go to yoga and stretch. Take care of myself, and don’t push it any further.

The beauty is… With mobile photography, I can still create my art. Where “staying away from the computer” used to mean staying away from editing photos, now it doesn’t. Because using a finger or stylus on a tablet, as far as I can tell, doesn’t have the same effect on my body as using a mouse. I can create and share, anywhere, without hurting myself.

To be honest, I was primed and ready for this shift. It’s probably one of the reasons I’ve taken to mobile photography so strongly. I’ve never loved how much time digital photography required on the computer. I always felt I spent enough time sitting at a computer for my corporate job, so I didn’t love sitting there even more at home. It just doesn’t feel like a creative place. I accepted it as part of the process though, and adapted my expectations. I learned to enjoy the outcome, if not the process.

But it did temper my creativity. I didn’t learn Photoshop, with all of its creative possibilities, because of the time investment. Spending even more time on the computer was not what I wanted.

I am amazed though, at what was waiting for me, when I found the right tool to fit me. Look at the creativity in my art that has blossomed in the last year and a half. The tools of mobile photography have enabled me to get beyond the boundaries I had, both mental and physical, which limited my creativity in the medium of digital photography. What a beautiful thing.

March 4, 2014 by Kat

What’s in the Mail?

It’s less that two weeks until the big swap Sunday for the Liberate Your Art Postcard Swap! That means it’s time to mail for everyone involved, and boy, are the envelopes rolling in. As of Saturday I had received 120 envelopes! I’ve got my fingers crossed that I’ll meet my goal of 250 participants this year. It’s looking good!

And the envelopes are pretty amazing this year too. I’ll share a few of my recent favorites here with you today…

Lynn created some bright, happy doodles. I loved how the hand-cancelled stamp matched perfectly.

Judith encourage us to liberate our art, or our cat, whichever suits! I think I’ll stick to the art, Judith. My cat is an indoor cat. 🙂

A gorgeous, hand-drawn envelope from Melody encourages me to write. Isn’t this an adorable little mouse? I’d write back if I got to see more of him!

Suzette created a wonderful message in her envelope art. I didn’t want to open this one, for fear of messing it up, but there was a little message inside the envelope, too! Payoff! Not to mention her gorgeous postcards…

I love it when people re-use things! Meredith was one of many who re-used the Moo packaging her postcards came in. She decorate the envelope and the sleeve too. Unfortunately, I didn’t get a photo of the inner sleeve… mostly because I didn’t know it was decorated until just now. It was like a secret surprise! Gorgeous!

Some shimmery flowers in rich colors decorated Evelyn’s envelope…

Sheila tempts me to warmer climes with her palm tree. Which echoed the art on one of her postcards. Very cool! Sheila also sent some extra postcards for my helpers. NICE!! They will appreciate them on swap day!

I saw Barbara‘s envelope on Instagram before she mailed it. I couldn’t wait to get this gorgeous envelope. I just love the soft colors! Don’t forget to use #liberateyourart on social media, and find each other!

Finally, Valerie from Germany always sends me a big, decorated envelope. Her envelope usually has an extra little surprise in it. This year it was a little covered notebook and bookmarks. Fun!

You know what’s really cool, the folks at my UPS store even recognized her as one of the past participants. When you decorate an envelope, many people get to enjoy your art along the way. I imagine these envelopes bring lots of smiles, as they go from you to me.

And we’ll bring more smiles as we Liberate our Art as postcards! Not long now!

March 1, 2014 by Kat

Photo-Heart Connection: February 2014

Who knows what the future holds?

I don’t. It’s but a faint line on the horizon. I can see the here and now, what is. I can see possibilities for the future, what might be.

To reach the future, I have to move into uncharted territory. Into the blank, unwritten part of my history.

I have plans and goals, but where the path I start on will end is still unformed. And that’s ok.

It used to be, I needed to be able to see the end before I started. I needed to know how it would all come out. But that road of expectations led to disappointment, more often than not. Because the end didn’t look like I had envisioned. The path didn’t always turn out to be the one I really wanted or needed to walk on.

Where I used to want predictable outcomes, I am ok now with a faintly formed outline of what might be. I am ok with changing my direction partway through. I am ok with not knowing.

Maybe this is a by-product of age; of maturity. Maybe it is a by-product of experience.

Because now I know, the end is often more interesting than what I could envision. And the journey is where all of the fun happens anyway.

I don’t need to know what the future holds. I just look out at that faint line on the horizon, and go.

My Photo-Heart Connection this month puts into words a change that has been slowly creeping over me for the last five to ten years. Turning from a driven, goal-oriented go-getter, always striving for the next achievement to someone who enjoys the journey and doesn’t mind winding my way along. Someone who doesn’t mind changing or abandoning a goal if it no longer suits. I’m now more in tune with myself, and what my heart wants. I don’t live my life for others, or for dreams of the past. I see all of that in this photograph, with it’s clear foreground tree and faintly visible horizon. I love that I can pull this out of my art, my heart.

What is your Photo-Heart Connection this month? What is your heart connection, in any art form? Here’s my approach to finding the Photo-Heart Connection:

Identify all of the image I worked with this month. I don’t look through every single image I captured with my camera, but the ones I decided had potential and I edited. The sorting through of the raw images to edit throughout the month is really the first step of my Photo-Heart Connection, I don’t need to do it twice.
I place them all in one location, in this case it’s a special folder on my hard drive where I export copies.
Then, in the quiet of the early morning, I look through them on a black background and see what kind of emotional response I have. If there is no emotional response at all, I delete. Generally, the first time through more than half are eliminated. There are always a few that start to bubble to the top.
As I get to these few that “bubble up” as having a stronger connection than the rest, I usually take a break. Go refresh my tea, and see what sticks in my mind. What words come out to describe the feelings that are coming with the remaining images.
When I sit down again, it’s usually with a top two or three. I look through them, feeling each one and the words that come. From there, I can usually tell which one is coming out on top, from the feeling of both image and words.
I start my blog post, add the picture and usually start with the few words that were with me as I made my decision, and then I write. I let the story emerge, as if I’m telling it to myself. What you see in the posts is the result.

Your approach to the Photo-Heart Connection is likely different. That’s ok, there is no right or wrong. Maybe this month, as you go through and do it, you can share your approach with us along with your February Photo-Heart Connection. Then we can all learn a bit more… about you, and about this wonderful process.

February 27, 2014 by Kat

Ethereal

I gained a new word to describe my work yesterday… Ethereal.

I was hanging some prints in the hallway of a local medical office yesterday. It was near the end of the work day, so people were still bustling about. They seemed excited to have new art on the wall, and I received many very nice comments on it. But my favorite was the one that my work was ethereal.

e·the·re·al iˈTHi(ə)rēəl/ adjective
Extremely delicate and light in a way that seems too perfect for this world.
“her ethereal beauty”
synonyms: delicate, exquisite, dainty, elegant, graceful;

I decided I like that description, and will add it to my list. Previous words I’ve taken from other people’s comments include contemplative and delicate.

Getting your art in front of other people, especially non-photographers, is a great way to get descriptions of your work. Not just critical feedback, which we often seek from our fellow artists as a means to improve, but reactions from the general public. How does it connect with them? How does someone unfamiliar with your art, your process, your motivations react? That’s powerful feedback in itself.

There are lots of ways to get your art out there, into the real world, not just online. Doctor’s offices, restaurants, meeting rooms all have wall space they need to fill. As an exhibiting member of the Corvallis Art Guild, I can sign up to hang my work at various local businesses on a rotating basis. It’s a great benefit to members, in that we don’t have to do the leg work to find places to hang our work independently.

Getting a gallery exhibition is nice, and I’ve had a couple of those recently. I’m finishing up a show this week and will have new Treescapes on exhibition at The Arts Center in March. But to work up to that, it’s helpful to hang in other venues that aren’t quite so formal. It’s helpful to have the reactions of people in the real world, to give you some confidence.

Confidence, and maybe a few great words, to help you describe your work.

February 25, 2014 by Kat

Layers upon Layers

Aaaahhhh, Italia.

Italy seems to be coming up for me a lot lately. Just little remembrances, here and there. It’s like a soft realization that my time in Italy has been absorbed into the layers of me, of my history. No longer the most important layer, or the most fragile, raw layer. A layer that’s been safely ensconced by “before” and “after.”

Italy Sorrento Bicycle Kat Sloma Photography

Sorrento, Italy

Maybe it’s because now — heading on 3 years later — I know there is a “Kat” after Italy. Life has continued to go on. There has been more creativity, more learning. More growth. I’ve reinvented myself again, as a new person, after Italy.

My time in Italy was about reinventing myself. Beyond the scope of my normal life it was this chance in a new place to dig deeper and find who I am at my core. I uncovered the creative, artistic part of me again. I found confidence in myself outside of my previous frames of reference.

But it was still with a frame of reference, and reliance, on Italy. I took my identity as an artist, as a photographer and writer, from the place. From the travels and adventures around Europe. So, coming back I had to reinvent myself once again, in a new context. The context of “after.”

For a while, Italy was still my frame of reference. That layer was on the surface, always to be referred to, compared to, examined against. And then, when it started to get covered up, the top layer was too fragile. I couldn’t dig down to Italy, because I would damage things on the surface. I need to let it go, and move forward.

But now… I can revisit it again. It’s like picking up a treasured object; savoring a special memory. A layer of who I am, like any other. Not one that defines me any longer, but one that enabled my definition. And a layer that, because I found I could transform, allows me to continue to transform. Because of Italy, and the return, I know I can learn and grow and forever change.

I am all layers. I am adding to myself all the time. No one layer dominates. No one layer defines. The beauty is in the strata… Layers upon layers.

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