What shows
how little
we know?
What can be is
oft far less than
what we expect.
What is now
has never been
what it was.
07/25/2024 j.g.l.
value beyond
Simplicity.
Is there emotion in austerity?
Humanity?
What do you see when attempting
to define your limited visibility?
Minimalism, abstract impressionism
or incorporeal thought.
Less is more, but is it enough?
Texture, tone, and value beyond
your current scene. If you take it to an
extreme, you will question
what it means.
What is really there?
What line do you cross?
Can simplicity be complicated, or
should it even be attempted?
07/23/2024 j.g.l.
Mondays are just young Fridays
Things will not go as planned. Intentions will be disrupted, even overlooked, in the aftermath of an unexpected reality.
Where you are headed will not be the place you end up, undoubtedly or undeniably. No matter how hard you attempt to make each gesture, brushstroke, promise, prayer, or pastime as perfect as you believe it can be, many times you will not arrive at a perceived destination. All too often your endeavors never hit the mark; at times your work may be better than expected (celebrate those moments), but everything (even your judgement) is subjective.
You are not limited to, or by, the colours in your paintbox or progression of your process.
Imagination is as limited or expansive as you want it to be. Give it time to blossom; in certain instances, you may even have to reel it in. This is all about possibilities, no matter which media, method, or style you are beholden to.
You owe your art (or life) nothing but your presence; the value comes from the practice, as rudimentary or spontaneous as it is or will become.
07/22/2024 j.g.l.
I'm like a pencil;
sometimes sharp,
most days
well-rounded,
other times
dull or
occasionally
broken.
Still I write.
j.g. lewis
is a writer/photographer in Toronto.
Mondays are just young Fridays
Posted on February 15, 2021 by j.g.lewis
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Today is a civic holiday Monday in Ontario. Family Day, a three-day weekend; a welcome break.
There’s not a lot going on with all this pandemic stuff, and there is little to celebrate, but a day off is a day off.
I’m taking it.
I’ve got nothing planned and no excuses for it.
Yes, I’ve got plenty of work that I could do, and a desk that needs to be sorted, and several projects in various states of undress with pressure, or guilt, attached to each one. Yet, today, I’m not getting caught up in any of that.
I’m simply going to relax.
I can do that, I just normally don’t.
Regularly, given a free day or statutory holiday, I’ll make plans to do something creative or otherwise, and I’ll hunker down at the laptop, turn my attention to a manuscript, and fill my day word by word.
Usually it is satisfying, but often it doesn’t give me the break I need.
We all need to take a break now and then; it’s good for the self.
It is good for the soul.
Unscheduled time is a rarity in an era of busy. Find it when you can, take it as you will, but make sure you take the day.
No excuses.
02/15/2021 j.g.l.
