My Covid Year

 For all of us, 2020 was a challenging year to say the least.We all had to learn to deal with a reality that was so different from anything we had ever dealt with before. One of the many things that I, as an artist had to come to terms with was the cancellation of every Art Show, Art Venue and  outlet that I was used to participating in. 

Like many of my Artist friends, at the beginning of 2020, I found it hard to be creative in.  It was as if all the artistic juice had been wrung out of me. 

But then I got a call from a person who had bought from me at a local show, asking if I could make a custom piece as a gift. That helped get me back into the studio.

Then, I received an email from my Glass supplier that they were going to have a contest. Everyone would get the same piece of glass (a 12 inch chisel shaped bevel) and you could make what ever you wanted with it. Well that seemed to spark something in me and I ended up recreating a USCG boat that my daughter had commanded. 

 

And suddenly I was creating for special exhibits, like "Whats the Buzz", about bugs and spiders in particular, for a local Nature Center.

  

 And I had customers start calling for special pieces and personal gifts like the cat plate hanging for a Sister-in-law, or the cake plate hanging for a                   Grandmother.

   

 

The holidays brought the chance to create some fun pieces for a couple of local Art and Gift shops in the area. which helped while away the cold winter afternoons.

So,by being more open to new and different opportunities,thinking outside the box and staying active and creative, I made it through 2020, feeling productive and creative and excited to see what 2021 will bring. 

 

 

And so to end this Blog, I would like to share my latest piece, that I made for my Orthopedic Surgeon who fixed my left shoulder in January. After years of horrible pain in my joint, he has given me a relief that I have not had in years. So I made him a replica of the Tree from the American Board of Orthopedic Surgery. He just didn't seem like a Butterfly or Dragonfly sun catcher kinda guy to me.