On Mixing It up!

I was talking with my daughter the other day and lamented that my art seems to go all over the place. “I don't have a clear theme,” I said. “I look at other people's work and it just seems... so... excellent. I try not to compare my work to theirs, but it's hard not to.”

 She said to me, “You and I are very similar. We have so many broad interests that it is difficult - even boring - to stick to one thing, one idea, one theme for very long period. We change it up.”

I thought about what she said for a long time. ADHD (and other neurodivergent, spectrum, and learned behaviors) run in our family. It is helpful to know and understand what those are - to have a good knowledge of the typical behaviors exhibited with ADHD, for example, to have a better understanding of ourselves. Of myself.

I get bored quickly. The boredom is of repetitive tasks. You'd think, then, that I'd get bored with sewing. Actually, I do. But I do not get bored with quilting or my art. With quilting, even traditional block-style quilting, there is always something different to work on: fabric selection, design, cutting, piecing, assembling, quilting, embellishing. And if I change up the design, the art, the creativity, there is even more!

This is one of (not the only) reason I like making smaller pieces. There is a time and space limit to what I'm making, how long that task will last, and therefore I can change things up pretty quickly.

I know of a woman who has so many artistic interests, it is almost as though she is a split personality. She is a singer and makes videos, fashion designer, graphic designer, sews, knits, draws, and probably more. And she has been a success even though she doesn't stick to “just one idea.” I appreciate the work she does and that she goes with the interest she has at the moment.

I may never get so good at one aspect of my art the way other people do. I may never make another piece like “Untitled (with brushstrokes)”, thereby never perfecting any techniques or styles from that endeavor. But I do have some things that others do not have: all my work is unique. Nothing gets repeated. And I stay interested in what I do because I get to change it up. I get to be different and explore new things. I will never be bored.