I already wished those of you who subscribe to my newsletter a Happy New Year! That’s right, Naw Ruz, which falls on March 21st is the new year for members of the Baha’i Religion.
So of course I spend the first 3 months of the year from the Gregorian New Year until now, introspecting, making plans and not getting much accomplished! So much for making resolutions.
Lately I’ve been thinking about the cycles of life, of the year, and of art, since the Baha’i New Year coincides with the vernal equinox or the first day of spring. Plants begin to wake up because the days are longer. In fact the day and night are of equal length now, give or take a few minutes.
Spring is of course a time of reawakening and new growth. Hopefully as artists we experience new growth as well. We definitely go through cycles.
I see this all the time with my shows. Ideas “spring” up and are developed in the heat of working and focusing on the goal. They come to fruition with the harvest (summer), when the work is shown. This is a jubilant period when you see the fruits of your labor and can share them with others.
Reflecting on what went well and what didn’t is akin to the fall and may be short lived before dipping into the winter of introspection (and sometimes the winter of our discontent).
There is often a let down after a show, especially if it has come before I’ve engaged with new work to keep up my momentum. This fallow period is also necessary to try to figure out where the work will go next.
Then it all begins again.
Just now is the period where the ground is still cold but a few ideas are beginning to spring up. It’s about time!