reset button
pause, connect to your center, and slowly start again
yancey towne’s art making is a weekly peek into the art studio to share learnings, current projects, and inspiration. Making art is what teaches us who we are, what we believe in, and what we can create… here’s to finding yours.
I decided to let myself rest more a week or so ago, even gave myself permission to skip a post last week. Deadlines are important to me, but I’m also learning how to let them go, especially the ones that are self-imposed. This phrase has come up a lot recently, it’s almost comical, but it has become a little reminder for me to be responsible for the parts I can control—speaking up for myself, asking questions, as well as shifting my attitude and mindset.
With the pause last week I took time to playfully draw creatures, read a couple of books, and varnish some paintings that have been sitting in the done pile for a while. Rather than rushing off to work in the morning, I made space in my schedule to walk a handful of days so I could soak up spring flowers and look for tiny details of inspiration.
Part of this shift in routine happened because I needed a break from the busy, but it also came from the understanding that if I craved calm in my day, I needed to find it for myself instead of waiting for it to appear. I wanted to start playing with the idea of finding my center in midst the flurry of projects and hectic deadlines because using it as an excuse to stay disconnected was only making me cranky. And I didn’t think that behavior was serving anyone—myself, my family, or the people I work with.
I’m holding space for this practice of balancing the push and the pause. The changing of seasons already demonstrates this perfectly, but seeing versus doing is a completely different dynamic. My habit is to push, to keep going, to keep making it all happen. If I stay stuck in this pattern, I don’t notice the learning or appreciate my progress. Pausing lets me see the beauty in a piece and to notice where in my body I feel the connection to my work.
I’m curious to see how this shift will show up over the next few months... 💛
current projects
A few of the projects I’m working on at the moment. This is how my brain works—I have projects set up so I can drop in on any one of them even for a minute or two. The moments add up and I find that even a couple of minutes pushing paint or making stitches helps me feel settled and more connected to my core.
knits: First blocking—nothing too elaborate, just wanted to soak the yarn to relax it enough to sew in a few more ends. I ended up being so excited to wear it that I skipped sewing in any of the ends from the colored triangles. You can’t tell from the outside, so why not!
watercolor: Funny how all my pencil lines wound up meeting in one spot. I added a dollop of yellow to highlight the intersection—like rays of sunny goodness spreading out to all…
patterns: We had strawberry shortcake photoshoot at work, my coworker had a cute set up going, but I thought it might be fun to make it even more berry-filled, so I drew up a handful of simple strawberries and created a quick pattern repeat. Perfectly summer!
paint: A newly finished piece: Puddle Jumping. It’s an ode to spring rains, the short gentle soaks that come on a bright sunny day, passing through to bring a coolness to the air and rainbows to the sky.
Thanks for reading! If you’re working on a project of your own, I’d love to hear about it in the comments.