The Gathering

To GATHER, is defined as the following:

to form a group,

to harvest something

to collect data,

to find inner strength,

to surmise and

to lift something up

Folks gather.  We create a little circle of energy around babies, birthday cakes and hospital beds.  We disperse common thoughts of congratulation, prayers and advice.  While these moments may be short, each participant having projected these collective thoughts and pooled them in the center of this group, takes a bit of that mixed up energy away with them.  These tiny moments of communal thought can shift the course of my day, sometimes just adding a smile to my lips or keeping me from honking at an obnoxious driver.

When artists gather together, especially on a regular basis, we pool powerful creative energy.  When I first was given the opportunity to join a fine art and an illustration group that met once a month, I worried that I wouldn’t have much to contribute. I felt guilty that I wasn’t in my studio working.  I didn’t realize that the act of coming together as a group would make me more productive than spending that time in my studio alone.  Over the last year the impact these gathering have had on my work, and me, has been enormous.

We gather.  We give.  We get.  We gather again. We give more. We get more.

This is the spiraling effect of proximity and participation with my creative community. I put myself out and I get back, inspiration, applause, empathy or suggestions to ponder. I bring home much more than I came with.