“After a stroke in 2002 that left his right side paralyzed, Mr. Rauschenberg learned to work more with his left hand and, with a troupe of assistants, remained prolific for several years in his giant studio.
‘I usually work in a direction until I know how to do it, then I stop,” he said in an interview there. “At the time that I am bored or understand — I use those words interchangeably — another appetite has formed. A lot of people try to think up ideas. I’m not one. I’d rather accept the irresistible possibilities of what I can’t ignore.’
NY Times; May 14, 2008 Michael Kimmelman “Robert Rauschenberg, American Artist, Dies at 82”
I was captured by this quote as it blessed the way I work. Other than the process of changing directions when “I am bored or understand,” I share little with Rauschenberg but his words from across the grave; they comfort me. I have chastised myself, and been chastised by others, when I change directions. I move shamelessly from painting to photography, to jewelry and back to theology or personality and counseling theory. At some level they interest me at the time and I get fired up. They are all connected in the great mystery of how life and creativity are intertwined. As this blog develops, I hope to explore those connections. Thanks for reading, Cathy
