![]() ![]() ![]() The Mint Museum and the Bechtler are both great visits, too!įor food- We’d get sandwiches and drinks from Common Market Oakwald on the regular. We would spend a LOT of time playing around in my studio at VAPA (The Visual and Performing Arts Center)Īny first Friday is always spent well visiting Good Year Arts and the McColl Center. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc. Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Time away can also help clear out the stuck feelings!Īll of my work is motivated by color, it’s my first point of inspiration, bringing exciting colors together to see what sparks! That way when I come back to the studio, I already have part of the solution in my head. If I find myself in a sticky project, I’ll shift to another one, or leave part of the next steps that are clear unfinished. Keeping your muscle memory honed is a huge part of being able to act when the ‘muse’ shows up. There’s no magical formula to create an art practice, it is about showing up even when you don’t feel particularly inspired. My art is where it is today because I put in the time, and do my best to apply to opportunities as often as I can. Could I save time and buy blue yarn? Yes! But what I would miss out on is the variation in colors, being able to get exactly what I want, not to mention I’m never going to discontinue my favorites! Dying my materials means I can give each piece its own character, plus it is one of my favorite parts of being a fiber artist! It’s like a painter mixing their own colors, but I paint with yarn. All of my tufted and wool sculpture work is 100% dyed by me, in my studio. The biggest thing that sets my art apart from others is that I dye the majority of the colors I use, depending on what I’m working on. Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community? It’s a tricky balance, and I definitely overwork myself, but I’m getting better at learning to really rest. Sculpture is also an important part of my quiet time artwork, stitching beads and thread into woolen shapes is another way I “relax” while also being productive. I dye all of the yarn I use, and painting is a safe space to experiment before I head to the dye pot. In quieter times, I paint with watercolors and use them to play around with color, which informs my tufting. When I’m energized I tuft more, it can be physically demanding so I have to be careful to not overwork my hands when I’m in tufting mode. In moments of transition I find my energy for large-scale work shifts towards smaller sculptural work and painting. It’s very dependent on what else is going on in the rest of my life. I try to keep space and grace for ebbs and flows in my studio practice. I have learned to balance out my need to create with the demands of a 40 hour work week, there are a lot of little moments that slowly build up to finished art pieces. Hi Cat, have there been any changes in how you think about work-life balance?Īs an artist who also has a full time job, (I’m a creative project manage by day) I think a lot about work life balance! Because the majority of my week is obligated to my job, most of my creative work happens during my lunch breaks, weekends and some evenings. ![]() We had the good fortune of connecting with Cat Babbie and we’ve shared our conversation below. ![]()
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