A visitor! I love visitors.
Please come in and make yourself comfortable. Help yourself to a cup of tea if you like.
Let me tell you a little bit about this place.
Artful Play is inspired by a real space I used to know well. It was home to artists and artisans who had been working there for half a century. I loved it so much, I wrote a post about it.
Alas, that place no longer exists. So I decided to recreate it right here.
Would you like a little tour?
The blog is sort of my virtual studio. This is where I post my drawings, paintings, and silly writings for all to see. When I’ve been good, that is. You can always come visit and hang out, you know. I’d love to hear about what you’re working on.
Outside there’s a hallway which I’ve got big plans for, but I’m still moving in, you see. Things get done rather slowly around here.
This door leads to a walled garden, one of my favorite places. It’s perfect for wandering in. Here you’ll find fragrant herbs, fruit trees and a wild tangle of grasses. Beside those pear trees you’ll see some chairs set in a circle. This is where I gather with friends to talk about our creative projects.
Upstairs is a little room where I get together with the people I’m coaching. It’s a quiet room, with a comfy sofa and a window overlooking the garden. And lots of empty teacups, hmm, maybe I should clean those up.
On the studio door I’ve got a classy notice board where I occasionally tack up announcements. If you’d like to know in advance about things that are happening around here, you can sign up to get notifications.
That’s it!
Um, and you are?
Oh right, hello. My name’s Sarah.
You may have noticed that I draw and paint and sometimes write silly things. Yep.
I have an unnatural obsession with the color green, but only warm greens (just… humor me). I’ve lived in Italy for ten years now. I love Fiat 500s, a.k.a. The Cutest Car Ever Made, but I don’t own one. Yet. I stop to talk to cats in the street. I also drink excessive quantities of tea. That’s probably all you need to know.
OK, yes, that’s not very descriptive. Here’s the story of me in a few sentences:
I decided I wanted to be an artist when I was very, very small.
Growing up, I took every art class I could get into. I spent way more time than could be considered healthy at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. I even persuaded them to hire me somehow.
Everything was going swell until I finished school and ran headfirst into some very nasty creative blocks.
I spent about nine years mired in procrastination, avoidance, perfectionism, overwhelm, and general creative frustration. I made very little art, and what I did make I abandoned.
In 2009 peace talks began between me and my creativity. Over the course of a year and a half I tried a lot of different things, some of which helped and some of which didn’t. I wrote a post about that, too.
These days, things are pretty darn good. I aim to do something artful every day, even if it’s just five minutes of journaling. I spend a lot of time thinking about play. And art. Of course.
And now, I help other people work with their creative blocks too. It’s just about the awesomest job in the world, actually.
If you like what you’re seeing around here and would like to join in on the silliness, you can head over to this page for more.
I’m glad you’re here. See you around the blog…
PS. Hey! If you’re on the twitters, come say hello. I’m @sarahbairstow.