Inktober Week 2
Well, what is there to say? When you can make it through a week of artistic tribulation with only manageable to moderate psychological scathing, it’s better to count your blessings rather than recount the events. It’s better to lick your wounds in silence and retreat, than to relive it all over again. And yet, here we are. What is there to say? Creativity has had a longstanding affair with suffering. Perhaps there is a kind of masochism underneath all artistry. At least you won’t be able to see me flinch and twitch as we go through this. Let me know if the voices in my head start to bother you.
If you missed my recap of Inktober Week 1, you can find it here.
Day 8 - “Toad”
I wish there was some clever commentary to add to this one. I wish there was some strategy, some method, some reasoning. What is there to say? There was a prompt that seemed absurd, if not impossible. There were scraps, and desperation, and a shortage of time. At least, I found green letters. At least I got it done. At least I was able to move one.
Day 9 - “Bounce”
Of the pieces made this week, of the pieces made so far, this one is my favorite. The mixed blessing of collaging is that it’s messy. What is there to say? It’s detritus, and discard, and debris. “New ideas are formed by interesting juxtapositions,” Austin Kleon says, “and interesting juxtapositions happen when things are out of place." A cultivated mess is the source of emergent properties.
I knew I wanted to say something about resilience and persisting. Something about ‘bouncing’ back. Something about recovery. I just didn’t have the structure. I didn’t quite have the words.
The O and the N of this piece were strewn atop a pile of inked papers in way that sparked the idea. The rest of the letters came together. I couldn’t find a B I liked so I made one. Finished it off with label maker words, and there it it. What is there to say?
Day 10 - “Fortune”
What is there to say? I hoped I could get lightning to strike again, and perhaps it did. Just not as strongly. I like the arrangement of the prompt word in the background of the previous piece and thought that was a concept worth exploring.
In Lewis Hyde’s book, Trickster Makes This World, he talks about how the latin root of the word for opportunity. An opportunus is a kind of porta, an entryway, a door. In the case of the Romans, a porta fenestella was a small window built into the city walls. A place where Fortune could come through. What is there to say? It’s an idea I love. One that I’ve tred to write about before.
Day - “Wander”
By the time I made it to day 6 of Inktober last week I was already struggling. Already in a slump. It was only a J.R.R. Tolkien quote that managed to get me back in the game. What is there to say? This week was no exception. I was stuck and scrambling again a this point in the week, and it was Tolkien who saved my ass and the day.
Day 12 - “Spicy”
I love anything spicy. Hot is never hot enough for me. What is there to say? I keep a well stocked pantry of hot sauces, but that provided with me with no advantages when it comes to the prompt for this day. I tried to be clever with the red O, it worked only to questionable degree.
Day 13 - “Rise”
I mentioned to one of my fellow Inktober contributors that I feel like I’m starting to hit a creative wall. What is there to say? That’s part of challenge of the marathon approach to anything.
Like the previous day’s piece I returned to the approach of implying the prompt rather than addressing it directly. I wanted there to be a kind of musical quality to the idea of ‘rising’. I brushed a heavy ink wash onto a piece of sheet music, and hoped the idea would be strong enough to push through, even if I might not be able to.
Day 14 - “Castle”
This was the closest I’ve come to not completing the prompt on it’s given day. I spent the day running errands, spending time with my kids, trying to finish two upcoming newsletters, and spent the evening helping my daughter write an essay.
What is there to say? It was late before I even started and I had no ideas when I did. For some reason, the only thing that was coming to mind was an admonishment from the Buddha to “Be an island unto yourself”. If being an island is a matter of refuge and self-sufficiency, than a castle should be even better.
All in all, it was a tough week. Each challenge increasing in difficulty. I can feel my creative well starting to run dry. What is there to say? Fingers crossed for next week.
If you’d like to see more contributions be sure to check out
, , , , andAnd if you feel like tapping into both your suffering and your artistry, conisder giving Inktober a try.
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It got away from me, Duane. This happens sometimes with these kinds of events. Perhaps I'll dive back in. But I've enjoyed watching you and the other writers on Substack.