Hi Molly, I am dying to know! Are those you're tattoo'd fingers in your
product picks.
Of all your beautiful cards, which is your personal favorite?
Yes, that is, in fact my finger...and yes, it's real. The tattoo is my
engagement and wedding rings. My husband has a band tattooed on him too...till
death or laser surgery do we part :)
My favorite is always changing, but right now, aside from this crazy
collage piece I am working on, my favorite is the this abstract garden set.
I really love the juxtaposition of simplicity and complexity.
That really comes through for me in these cards.
Plus, this design has been the inspiration for several
new ideas that are currently in progress, so I have to love it.
Lina E says:
Hi Molly, tell us a bit of your daily routine and what inspires you.
Daily Routine:
I must admit--I am terrible at routines...But, while my daughter is in
school I’m forced to conform. Wake-up is between 7 and 7:30. The first thing
that must happen is coffee---am not awake, until I take that first sip. Then, I
can conquer the before school needs of my daughter--breakfast, hair, making
lunch. I get her off to school, and am back home by 9am, ready to start the
creative part of my day. I typically work on new ideas from 9-3. Then it’s time
to switch back to my mama role. When my daughter comes home, we either do an
activity together or go outside (when it’s warm enough...i hate
cold)...Sometimes, she’ll just want to paint by herself, so I get a little
bonus work time :). By 5 pm, I am in the kitchen whipping something up for
dinner...This can take anywhere from 15 minutes to two hours, depending on what
I’ve decided to get myself into. Although, during the school year, I try to
minimize the time spent in the kitchen. By 8:30, It’s bedtime for my daughter.
We hop into her bed to read for about 30 minutes (an hour if we get in there
early). Once that’s all done, I either create more or just veg-out with my
husband. Just writing all of this structure gives me the creeps!
Talk to me in the summer, and you’ll se what I mean--we wake up later,
pack several bags of toys/activities and food that can survive the heat and
head outside to the nice big park right outside our apartment by 10am....we
typically don’t come home until dinner time....and that dinner time is a late
one in the summer.
To sum up our ideal: we fly by the seat of our pants!
My Inspiration:
this is a hard one to focus, because I am inspired by so much, and work
on more than just cards as a maker...but for me it all comes together. I will
try to give a general idea about what inspires me; getting too specific will
make a list a mile long.
I am inspired by systems, which is connected to my ideas about
simplicity and complexity--for example: a flower, when looked at by a
passer-by, is this simple, super-recognizable form....But, if that passerby
stops, and examines the flower he/she will notice that the parts that make up
the whole flower are not so simple. Then, go a step farther and look at the
parts of a flower under a microscope and ohhhh boy, have you got yourself some
beautiful complexity. Really, this idea is the same for almost everything
around us. I enjoy that to truly understand and enjoy my surroundings I have to
slow down, and even stop, to see why I am instantly attracted to a form that
looks so simple.
Another thing that I am inspired by is visual trickery, either man-made
or natural....this sounds strange and I will try to explain, again, through
example. I was driving up the NJ Turnpike (crazy major highway) one day, and
something caught my eye. I thought what I was looking at were clouds, in the
distance, low on the horizon. I was amazed by their density and forms. Pretty
quickly, however, I realized I was looking at huge barrels of Hess oil or
gasoline...It was this industrial field of manmade clouds. I have had other
encounters such as this, and they often lead to art-making and poetry.
I also have this crazy attraction to trees---you should see our
apartment--there are branches everywhere. I even wrapped one in yarn and sewed
it to our recliner. The branches that make it into our home have very
interesting organic lines, twisting and curving much like the human
form....this inspiration is seen more in my paintings, which are not for sale
on etsy, but do help brighten our home :)
Lastly, and still connected, in some way to all of the above....I am
inspired by anything that moves me to utilize most, if not all, of my senses.
Any experience that pushes me to truly understand it. Go lay in a field, and
try it...close your eyes at first, feel the way your immediate surroundings
make contact with various parts of your body, breathe deeply, and listen...try
to hear the smallest bugs, after a bit, when you feel that you have absorbed
all that you can, open your eyes, but do not look generally, look for specifics
that make up all that is around you...There’s this book, that explains this
part of what inspires me: Art as Experience by John Dewey.
Peggy says: I am so moved with
your wonderful interview, Molly! I feel that you are a deeply sophisticated
person that gets in touch with all levels of life. Your description reminds me
the shaman’s travels. Please share with us your “truth” from this connection.
This is a tough one. I would say that the one, main “truth” I have
discovered through my connectedness is this:
There is a difference between existing and truly living--to truly live I
feel one has to “look” beyond the face value of an experience...think of it as
a form of meditation. This is beneficial to life in general and to my
art-making--I create the most authentic art when I utilize experiences that I have
allowed myself to become completely immersed in....and then there’s the added
bonus of the art-making experience itself--I find myself in a state of
intellectual rapture when making my most authentic works of art.
Peggy says: Thank you so
much, Molly for this wonderful interview!
Great interview, not to mention all the wonderful photos!!!
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for sharing with us Molly :)