listen!, Monotype of the Day #889

Day 157 of year 3

It's time, The Monotype of the Day Project is coming to an end in this form. Today is day 889, day 900 will be my last day. I will continue to post a monotype once a week (and more if I feel moved). Here on Patreon I will continue to post pictures of what I'm working on in the studio most days along with commentary as seems appropriate and updates on the progress of my book.

When I woke up this morning, it was clear something within me had shifted. I have been desirous of change in my work for a while now, I want to go deeper, to reflect more light, to touch truths unknown. It finally came to me that the root of my block is something I've struggled with for most of my life, sleep. This is a critical issue for both my health and my art. Currently a large portion of my day is taken up with health related activities designed to keep me going. I describe myself as a rickety car that needs plenty of tinkering to keep on the road! That's the day, but then at night I get an average of 3-5 hours of sleep which undermines everything I've done all day. Strange to think I never realized this, but the mind can justify a lot. So for the next 3 months after day 900, my focus will be sleep. Without the daily deadline of my monotype project, I will be able to work in the studio and stop when I need to. I am certain sleep will fundamentally transform my artistic practice. Art and the physical world are inextricably linked. By not sleeping, I resist the natural cycle of life. Resistance blocks the creative flow. Without sleep, I am too tired to be fully present and to listen deeply for direction from The Artist. My work will transform with sleep. It will bloom just as a garden blooms after the dark night of winter. I am excited to discover what will happen! I will keep you up to date about the effects of my new plan on my studio practice. I may take some work to transform a life time of bad habits. Thank you for all your support these last 889 days! Lots of love, Sybil

listen!, monotype, 12 x 14” Sybil Arcibald

listen!, monotype, 12 x 14”
Sybil Arcibald

For the first 24 hours after posting, this piece is 10% off and can be purchased here.

For more information about the process of monotype and the Monotype of the Day project click here. 

groundwork, Monotype of the Day #634

Day 264 of Year 2 (Actually Day 269)

Many of us are in the midst of deconstructing, if temporarily, a way of life. Routines are scrambled and the things we thought would come to pass have not. This is a moment of letting go, of ebb. But if we look to nature, we see that every ebb has its flow. It is the retreat of water that allows the wave. In this moment when it seems nothing is happening, the roots of something new and unknown are taking hold. The unknown can be scary and for some more than others. Tonight's poem is for those experiencing anxiety. My love to all who are sick or suffering. xo

This work is paired with "Retrospective" by Jane Hirshfield

Read it here embedded in this article https://www.vox.com/2020/3/21/21173809/book-review-poetry-poems-jane-hirshfield-ledger

from Ledger https://amzn.to/33nvmXF

embryo, Monotype of the Day #555

Day 185 of Year 2 (Actually Day 190)

I have a number of larger projects bumping around in my head, but I'm feeling at a bit of a loss in the print studio. Getting my show put together was a major energetic completion. The new energies have not uncovered themselves yet. It's an uncomfortable moment which can easily derail an artist. No one likes to feel uncomfortable. No one likes to make work they're not happy with. The trick is just staying with the discomfort. It has to be ok to make incomplete, ugly, unsatisfying, whatever work. My trust in the process is absolute. Knowing that whatever it is being made today is necessary to bring an artist to the next step has carried me through many a rough patch.

From burweed
by Kobayashi Issa, Trans. Stryk and Ikemoto

From burweed,
such a butterfly
was born?

From Zen Poetry https://amzn.to/3anmIeT (A great book with a wide variety of poems and poets)

dream of bird, Monotype of the Day #530

Day 160 of Year 2 (Actually Day 165)

Playing with the ghost ink from yesterday's plate tonight. I liked the beam of light so I reorganized some of the symbols from last night and calmed the emotion. It felt like consciously choosing to shift out of that old energy by rearranging the physical world. I really find the ancient alchemical saying, attributed to Hermes Trismegistus, to be true: "“As above, so below, as within, so without, as the universe, so the soul.” Making art changes the artist. It is so important to be present while working. Otherwise we slip into habits and ruts and loose the opportunity to be changed by the process. Being present keeps the eternal creative fountain running and its constant flow wears away our sharp edges and makes space for more of what is good and true to pour into the work and thereby into the world. xoxo

dream of falling water, Monotype of the Day #529

Day 159 of Year 2 (Actually Day 164)

The last number of days fountain / waterfall images keep coming out, but this feels like the end of that energy for now. I can't say why, but I have real sense of completion. Maybe later understanding will come, maybe not. So many energies that work through us are not for the conscious mind to understand, we must just stay the course and trust. The longer I make art, the more I understand just how essential trust is to the process. Without it the artist is condemned to repeat themselves in an every deepening rut.
The whole intense, fun, and sometimes stressful journey of prepping for my solo show has also reminded me to trust. The more I've let go of control and allowed things to unfold in their own time, the more miraculous instances of help have appeared. I am very grateful and I am really looking forward to sharing more of my work with you.


This work is paired with "For Presence" by John O’Donohue from To Bless the Space Between Us https://amzn.to/2PRTsVm

rooted II, Monotype of the Day #502

Day 136 of Year 2 (Actually Day 137)

Focusing on finishing up two new large sculptural paintings for my solo show in January. I have the strong desire to spend a whole day in the print studio but this other work calls. Instead, a print studio day will be my present for completing these last two pieces. I have way more work than gallery space and yet I am compelled to make more. I guess that is the nature of being an artist. The natural generative creative flow that undergirds and carries all life forward is infectious if you are listening.

rooted, Monotype of the Day #500

Day 134 of Year 2 (Actually Day 135)

Day 500! The second two lines of tonight's poem (see below) encapsulates this project for me: "I feel my fate in what I cannot fear.
I learn by going where I have to go." I am grateful that this is where I have to go. Thanks journeying along with me. Woohoo for reaching 500 and here's to day 501. xo

The Waking
By Theodore Roethke

I wake to sleep, and take my waking slow.
I feel my fate in what I cannot fear.
I learn by going where I have to go. We think by feeling. What is there to know? I hear my being dance from ear to ear. I wake to sleep, and take my waking slow. Of those so close beside me, which are you? God bless the Ground! I shall walk softly there, And learn by going where I have to go. Light takes the Tree; but who can tell us how? The lowly worm climbs up a winding stair; I wake to sleep, and take my waking slow. Great Nature has another thing to do To you and me; so take the lively air, And, lovely, learn by going where to go. This shaking keeps me steady. I should know. What falls away is always. And is near. I wake to sleep, and take my waking slow. I learn by going where I have to go.
From Collect Poems https://amzn.to/2sezWck)

weathering the storm, Monotype of the Day #499

499.jpg

Day 133 of Year 2 (Actually Day 134)

Something about the stream of images last few days has felt important, like a major shift of energy. The move from falling to repose feels good. Since my life and my work are so intertwined, it's not surprising that there have been lots of small positive shifts there as well.
Tomorrow is day 500. That feels like a milestone, but milestones can be tricky. It's important to keep moving and not get caught up in labels. When I hit day 365, it threw me a bit and took some perseverance to get my flow back. Tomorrow presents just another invitation to work in the studio which I will gratefully accept.

home, Monotype of the Day #498

Day 132 of Year 2 (Actually Day 133

It's comforting to see this figure finally come to rest and stop falling. I feel at peace.

The Mystery
By Dorothy Walters
Some come at it
with weights and measures,
some waving a sieve.
Some sing to it,
ballads and carols,
hoping to coax forth
its hidden center,
unwind the sheath
of who it is.
Some tap on it,
or deal heavy blows
with hammers,
trying to smash
its thick shield,
force it to bow down.
Some seek ways to clamber in,
explore its hidden vaults
and chambers.
Some lie down beside it,
breathe its cool scent,
become its own self.

From The Ley Lines of the Soul https://amzn.to/2qtRCAl

Light, Monotype of the Day #485

Day 119 of Year 2 (Actually Day 120)

This project has become a habit for me, I could no more go to sleep without making my print than I could without brushing my teeth. It makes me think of all the destructive habits I have and gives me hope that new more supportive ones can be formed. The most destructive habit I have right now is going to bed too late. How much more work could I accomplish with a well-rested form? I think it would be considerable. In my mind, staying up will allow me to accomplish more work but in truth I am unconsciously stealing from tomorrow's work energy. This monotype project is slowly waking me up from my unconscious state. I am being schooled and changed each night by the images that come through. I have tried so many things to shift my bad sleep habit, for now I will take the guidance in tonight's image to stop trying and learn to receive. I will set my intention, continue my work, and trust in the Light.

XXXVI, II, 126
By Kabir, Trans. Tagore
Oh Friend, awake and sleep no more!
The night is over and gone, would you . lose you day also?

From Songs of Kabir https://amzn.to/2CrUa48