One of my favorite artists and photographers: Jessica Drossin. She has been hosting a monthly photo challenge using her textures. Each month has a different challenge.
I was deeply saddened that after two years of doing a 365 project, I could no longer participate. I simply ran out of time b/c my workload became too much. Yet... I value projects like these b/c they keep your creativity encompassing you. As an artist.. that is so important. I am so glad I found Jessica's monthly challenges b/c they keep me CREATIVE.. they keep the emotive side of me challenged, provoked in ways of artistically expressing what exactly I feel.
I decided that since I am only doing a monthly project {for my personal creativity outlet this year} I will put more effort into each photo. This is not part of the assignment - but I have decided since this is a thing I am doing for ME.. each month will be personal for me, deeply emotive and will include... of course, butterflies. I look forward to looking back at the end of the year and seeing each month's photo collage and what it represented to me personally.
This month's challenge is to photograph what you love. Specifically the love of your art, what motivates you to take pictures? Express your artist's heart, feel the passion.
I love so many things. Specifically my children. My family. My friends. My incredible job.
But if I dissect why I do what I do, today... what fuels this love - this passion I have for the love of my art, the art I create... it is my belated sister, Jess. She is the driving force behind the passion of photographing... life. Turning the pain of loss into a driving force of creativity and passion is LIVING over DYING. It's transformation. It is my own personal transformation. To create. To document. To move forward. To remember what is behind.
Love is memory.
Love is my memory of her. Her Bible. Her handwriting. Her wedding day. Her daughter. Her love for life. Her light. The butterfly that flew to me the day before her funeral and the piece of paper I found in her Bible a day later with the same butterfly on it. A monarch.
Love reminds us of what not to ever forget.
"We all have our time machines. Some take us back, they're called memories. Some take us forward, they're called dreams." - Jeremy Irons
