I am feeling lost artistically. Politics and the state of our nation have me down. And, I now have a part time job which distracts me. My art isn’t keeping me afloat as it has in the past. I keep trying to stir my pot, try new things, stir things up. Mostly, I am telling myself that this shall pass and that an exciting bell will ring soon. My ears are peeled.
In the meantime, I am trying new things. For instance, I am informing myself about Common Tern (I recently got a tattoo of two Common Terns, so I am hot on the topic). So this weekend, I took out my three ring binder of drawings and images and began combining as many as possible into a single image.
This piece combines Common Tern, which uses the east coast of the United States as nesting ground, with drawings of chairs from Upholstery Yardage Sheets. This is a visual pun that describes me, an armchair birder! Then I added a drawing of a New York City skyline and the City Hall Subway station. Living in the city, I sometimes forget that Common Terns are living near and around me, as this is a city surrounded by water, marshes and beaches!
I know art can’t be my end all and be all, its just, sometimes you need to show up and do the work! So here I am, showing up and doing the work! And I have to say, its not all bad!!
Melanie Testa 
I really love this. It is like a curiosity box of treasures that have special meaning to you. I love the insects, especially the dragonfly. When Junior disappeared, I became convinced that the dragonflies that appeared in abundance the following spring were a message from him. He loved to catch them, but with a soft mouth, so they weren’t harmed. I’m struggling artistically, too. I went out and printed crap for 4 days straight. The more I printed, the more I learned. Only a few pieces are keepers, I’ll paint over the others, but I learned, experimented, and escaped the world for a bit. Be happy!
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