…blogtober day 19 :: WIP Wednesday…
Sometimes, projects seem to grow legs all on their own. I can start off with the best of intentions to make something quick and simple, and then once I start, the project demands I look in a new direction. Suddenly, what should have taken 10 minutes, is now on day three…and counting.
The inspiration struck late Sunday night. A last scroll on instagram saw the #lacelitober prompt list show up in my feed, with the prompt for the 16th being “Bubbles”. An image immediately popped into my mind, using bubbles of projects on a background formed from a landscape photo of our property. A self-portrait, of a sort. I started contemplating where would be the ideal spot to shoot my background image, when I was reminded of a photo from December 2019, which I also updated in July 2021.
RIGHT: July 2021 – the fire track has almost disappeared under the new growth, just the smallest break in the grass indicating the scarred earth. The rains started in February 2020, and the land is slowly recovering, save for the worst of the fire affected areas.
What if, my mojo whispered, what if this piece was animated. What if the background faded from parched and barren, to lush and green? The bubbles could be projects over the same period, floating up through the frame. That could be cool, my mojo whispered.
And so, “Portrait of a Pandemic” was born. I’m still working on it, after a couple of false starts. 100 frames and 200 layers in, I realised I had made my canvas too large, limiting the frames I had to work with. I started again. The background finished, I was 25% through the bubble animation when I realised I could simplify the movements between frames. Today’s job is to go back and fix those first layers. Now that I am committed to the more involved version, I want to ensure it’s done to the best of my ability.
RIGHT: Sharing from the messy middle – progress on my animation as of last night.
It’s a slow process, far from the quick sketch I imagined. The slowness though invites thought, mindfulness and gratitude, though, in a way a “knock it out” piece wouldn’t have. Frame by frame, I can watch the land heal. I can watch the way I learned to pivot, in those early days, from doomscrolling to craft therapy. Frame by frame, I can allow myself to feel and process the stress and worry of the past three years – and counting. I can acknowledge the bad, and celebrate the good. It’s a catharsis, of a sort. A story in a square that I can’t wait to share with you.
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