Category: Self-portraits

A New Self Portrait Project (I Hope)

Over the past few weeks I’ve been considering what my new projects will be for this year, and I realized I would like to do something with self portraits again. I can’t stand the idea of taking a self portrait a day, and I don’t want to redo 52 weeks of self portraits, but I want the project to have a specific timeline in the same way. I had a self portrait project epiphany one day as I was coming back from a walk, and realized I should shoot one a month.

Hand and eye coordination

It’s the perfect amount of minimal commitment, and gives me plenty of time to work on idea. But now I need to move this idea from the thinking to doing phase.

I’ll only be fully committed to the project once I shoot the first photo. I seem to be procrastinating getting around to it, which is why I decided to write about it here. Nothing like a public statement of commitment to get one motivated…I hope.

Seek Out Inspiration

Be Your Own Beloved wrapped up last week, and by the end I managed to shoot twenty out of the twenty-eight self portrait assignments. It’s challenging to show up for something like this every day because I’m not often in the mood to take a photo of me.

Taking Up Space
Taking Up Space

Part of a bigger story
Part of a Bigger Story

I am very happy with the ideas I came up with for each theme. I managed to keep things interesting and creative despite the limited time I had to work on these each day.

This puppy wanted to be in the picture too
This puppy wanted to be in the picture too

Out of Focus
Out of Focus

I wasn’t feeling very motivated or inspired before the course began but it was just the thing to get me energized and creating new work. It really pays to shake things up sometimes and take workshops with other creative people in order to seek out a new source of inspiration.

Self-Exploration Through Self Portraiture

It’s been an interesting experience the last few weeks to maintain my commitment to the Be Your Own Beloved e-course. I don’t mind taking a self portrait every once in awhile, but doing it every day is tedious. At least that’s how I normally feel about it. But with Vivienne‘s daily email prompts of inspiration to guide me, it makes it easier to get it done. She always provides something personal to reflect upon, as well as a place to start to come up with an idea to shoot for the day.

I really like the work I’ve been creating, and through this series I’ve come to realize I am process oriented even with my photography. The ideas come as I work, rather than being fully formed from the beginning.

Shadow Play
Day 18

Celebrate Individuality
Day 21

You Are the Beholder
Day 22

The creative aspects of this project aside, it’s made me realize a few things about myself. Mostly that I’m not very good at self-care, or about being good to myself. The intensity of the stuff that has come up out of this has really surprised me, but I am determined to create more awareness around this and make changes.

There are just a few days left of the course. I think I will miss the daily excuse to come up with an idea to photograph.

More of the self portraits can be found on Flickr.

Bringing Forgotten Skills Back to Life

As a youngster my initial explorations into art were through drawing and painting. I’d actually reached a point in my teens where I had pretty decent drawing skills (though I’ve never been particularly good with paints), which I mostly seemed to use for drawing dragons, horses, and unicorns. (Every horse is just one horn away from becoming a unicorn). Over time I’ve lost those skills from lack of use and only recently have I been considering ways to develop them again.

Last week I took steps to get started on this and bought a small sketchbook, two drawing pens, and a pencil, then gave myself permission to start drawing again. This was inspired by a review of my sketchbook from high school and seeing some of the work I was able to do back then. Unicorns and dragons aside, it was a pleasant reminder of the repetitive pattern-style drawing I’ve always done that is echoed in my current paper cutting work. I’d never made this connection before.

Hand and eye coordination

In Motion

The drawings I’ve made so far are more like doodles but I’m enjoying the process of creating them. As you can see, a few have made their way into the self portraits I’ve been shooting for Be Your Own Beloved to great effect. I love that I can bring these two different media together and how these are shaping up as a series. It feels so good to have new ideas flowing.

Be Your Own Beloved

For the month of February I’m enrolled in an e-course called, Be Your Own Beloved, which is facilitated by Vivienne McMaster. It is a twenty-eight day challenge to cultivate self-reflection and compassion for oneself through self portraiture.

I’ve been wanting to take one of Vivienne’s courses for awhile. I felt this one was particularly well timed as I’ve been harshing on myself for continued poor health and my frustrations around that. Here’s hoping I will learn to be kinder to myself in the process.

Art as play

These are two of the self portraits I’ve created so far and I’m happy with them. It’s been challenging to find the time and creative energy to do this. My photography skills are rusty from lack of use, as is the part of my brain formerly in charge of visualizing ideas for portraits and self-portraits.

A long walk with Pepper to visit Boris' new space in Gastown.

I like the idea of combining self-portraits with drawings as I did yesterday. It would be interesting if I can come up with a whole series of them over the course of the twenty-eight days.

Excuse My Whinging…

It’s Monday morning the start of a new week and along with it the hopes of finally getting 2013 off the ground. All of January has been a washout because I’ve been down with a stomach bug off and on for weeks. Just when I think it’s gone away and I’m well enough to get back to work, it flares up again. It’s been an incredibly frustrating experience, and I don’t trust it will last when I do feel better.

Week 34 - Rest

I’m normally a very motivated and disciplined person, and I have no trouble getting inspired to create new work. But this illness has left me drained and I’m struggling to find my way back to where I was a month and a half ago. My impulse is to be really hard on myself, when really it’s just going to take time to get back to normal.

The upside to all of this is it’s reminded me to appreciate my health, and take better care of it from now on.

And now I’m going to go cut some paper and get inspired…

This Is How Much I Love Red

I haven’t taken a self portrait in ages, and I miss it. It’s always been a means for me to explore portrait ideas, with myself as the very convenient model. I’m not sure why exactly I’ve lost the habit of doing them, but perhaps it has something to do with my waning interest in photography as my passion for paper has flared up.

This is how much I love red

This is actually a self portrait collaboration with Boris. I loved the idea of a photo of myself surrounded by the red tulips, with me in my red jacket. Unfortunately I didn’t bring a tripod with me so Boris had to play that role. He didn’t quite get the angle I was hoping for so I made some additions and adjustments in photoshop. The results: an endless field of tulips and nothing but the colour red.

A Self Portrait-A-Day-For-A-Month: Week Three.

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Day 14: What to do at the end of a busy weekend
Day 14: What to do at the end of a busy weekend

Day 15: Red shoes
Day 15: Red shoes

Day 17: While the city burned
Day 17: While the city burned

These are my favorite self portraits from last week. Today I shared number twenty-two which will bring me one portrait closer to the end of this project, which is good because I’m running out of steam.

More Self Portraits A Day

Day 9: Lovely bones
Day 9: Lovely bones

Day 10: Shadows on the wall
Day 10: Shadows on the wall

Day 12: Little black dress

Day 12: Little black dress

Today I will be shooting a self portrait for day fifteen. Time sure flies and here I am already half-way through this thirty day project. Maybe next month I will do a second thirty day project of shooting a portrait a day for a month…