11 Comments
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Maurissa's avatar

A few failed attempts at a collage essay? I really enjoyed your pieces. Especially after reading the essay in its normal formatting, I found myself finding nuanced differences in how the collage version felt. Hearing the original read in my head as my eyes scoured the collages images. Beautiful! Thank you!

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Duane Toops's avatar

Wow!! Thank you so much! I really appreciate this. There's an interesting breakdown between the art that's in your head, the art you end up making, and the what the audience sees. It's three different things. The artist has to make peace with the fact that they weren't able to bring the piece to life in the way they envisioned it, but the audience doesn't get to see that. They only see what's presented to them and they get to look at without the baggage, the disappointment, or the preconceived ideas. No matter how many times you do it, you never quite get used to it.l, lol. Thanks again!

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Maurissa's avatar

3 truths all at once - the amazing paradox of an artist. And you’re so welcome, thanks for sharing your thoughts. Excited new subscriber, here!

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Duane Toops's avatar

Exactly! So so kind of you! My pleasure! I'm really excited to have you with me! Next week will be a little light because of the holidays, but I'll have a newsletter coming out on Wednesday!

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mad mayday's avatar

This is really beautiful.

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Duane Toops's avatar

Thank you! It didn't turn out at all like I'd hoped, but few things do I suppose. Thanks again for reading!

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Carolyn Jones's avatar

I’m so so glad you shared this! In sharing our failures (if you can call this that) we learn and share our experiences with others. We learn and others learn.

"Our greatest glory is not in never failing, but in rising every time we fail." ― Confucius

An enlightening piece!

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Duane Toops's avatar

If I didn't share my failures I'd have nothing 4onsharw at all 🤣😂

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Carolyn Jones's avatar

🤦🏼‍♀️😂

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Victoria SkyDancer's avatar

Dude.

This totally sounds like the inside of my head in 2018-2019, when I was inching through my caregiving odyssey. How did you peek into my brain? 😳😜

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Duane Toops's avatar

🤣🤷 beats me, I found a door that looked interesting, and I stepped through.

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