Day 45 of Year 2
I am feeling unsatisfied in the studio this week. This happens, it's part of the creative process designed to keep an artist growing. I still feel immense gratitude for each monotype that comes through and I really like this print. It's not that, it's more that making this week's prints felt too safe and easy. There is a tension between experiencing flow or being "in the zone" and the discomfort of exploring new territory and the potential for failure. The potential for failure is so important to keep the work alive and energetic. Safety is the enemy of art. Patience, I tell myself again, have faith and keep working. I am delving for the eternal fountain of creativity deep inside and those who seek will find.
The Fountain
By Denise Levertov
Don’t say, don’t say there is no water
to solace the dryness at our hearts.
I have seen
the fountain springing out of the rock wall
and you drinking there. And I too
before your eyes
found footholds and climbed
to drink the cool water.
The woman of that place, shading her eyes,
frowned as she watched — but not because
she grudged the water,
only because she was waiting
to see we drank our fill and were
refreshed.
Don’t say, don’t say there is no water.
That fountain is there among its scalloped
green and gray stones,
it is still there and always there
with its quiet song and strange power
to spring in us,
up and out through the rock