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Bex Hall > the 100 day project

the 100 day project

Fake handwriting as meditative practice

May 15, 2021

Remember fake cursive?

Fake cursive with highlighters

Who remembers fake handwriting? 

As a youngster, I would sit in the office at our stable and compose fancy cursive business letters to tack and feed companies. I wrote and asked for free samples of horse treats, brushes, or any paper advertising materials printed with pictures of horses.

What showed up on the page however, were indecipherable scribbles.

Recently, Lynda Barry (@thenearsightedmonkey) posted about how she used to do fake handwriting and she revisited the practice with ball point pen on a compbook page. She calls the movement of a pen on the paper as “finger skating.” She inspired me to try my hand with it this morning.

It was difficult to NOT form actual words. The first couple of index cards I struggled to make the loops and whorls be nonsense. After more attempts, it was easier to clear my mind and let the scribbles skate across the card.

Fake cursive

As Lynda writes, “It was unexpectedly good to do this.”

I agree.

Fake handwriting as meditative practice

Filed Under: Art Projects Tagged With: creative life, creativity exercises, ICAD, the 100 day project

Set a timer, beat procrastination

May 14, 2021

Nature journal finally caught up

April 2021 Nature Journal

“Procrastination is the bad habit of putting off until the day after tomorrow what should have been done the day before yesterday.”

— Napoleon Hill

It’s the middle of May and I’m just now finished with April’s phenology wheel and nature journal page. I kept putting it off because with each day that passed, the job got bigger. Would take more time. Further and further behind and the inner critic screamed “YOU MIGHT AS WELL JUST QUIT!”

I sat with the resistance for a few days and searched for the reason why I wasn’t making the time to paint. 1. I’m “supposed” to be writing, and 2. I know if I start, I won’t want to stop.

Conundrum.

I set a timer for 20 minutes and painted. An hour or so later, it was done. And I don’t remember hitting stop on the alarm.

Now I’m free to write. 

If you’re struggling with juggling and tending to a project, try setting a timer and work on one thing.

Tick tock!

April Monthly
April 2021 Phenology Wheel
April 2021 Nature Journal

Filed Under: Art Projects Tagged With: creative life, creativity exercises, nature journal, phenology wheel, the 100 day project

You make the world a better place

May 10, 2021

Just by being in it

Create a better world

This means you!

Happy Mugshot Monday everyone.

Day 100/100

Filed Under: Art Projects Tagged With: mug shots, the 100 day project

Today marks the end of The 100 Day Project

May 10, 2021

I am forever changed

Create

Every one of us began this 100 day journey equipped with talents and gifts. We came together to practice these passions and learn. To listen for the whispers that call us forth to create whatever it is that needs creating.

The things only we are called to make.

We are asked to use our gifts and our talents, not let them lie dormant. We are asked to shine a light where there is darkness and bring beauty into being.

Individually we are writers, artists, explorers, photographers, filmmakers, podcasters, musicians, poets, designers, dancers, authors, illustrators, and artisans. We are makers.

We are creatives.

But now, having walked this 100 day path together, we are more. 

We are forever changed.

Because of the 100 day project
Cassette tape memories
Painted hands
Lunchbox love note blackout poetry
I can see the moon too!
First snail of the season
What if?
Make inspiration happen.
So far, so good
Looking up iPhone 11
A wing and a prayer
So far, so good
Always believe in yourself
View from Studio BE
Don’t ever give up - the power of kindness
Watercolor play
March Phenology Wheel
Misty magic
Mia among the blossoms
What resonates within
The Doodle Revolution by Sunni Brown
Mugshot Monday Victories
Every sign has a story
Bex Hall
Ellie’s hands
Campfire Over Yonder
Cheez-It®️Scrabble Junior™️ Crackers
Like a phoenix I have risen from the flames
A little bird told me
Uncaged bird
Outback and Over Yonder
February Phenology Wheel
February P wheel
The Crossroads of Should and Must
The Artist’s Way & Morning Pages Journal
Watercolor practice and reflection
Installed
An Artist’s Blessing prototype
The Art of Connecting workbook
We are all in this together
Fun florals
Yearly Phenology Wheel
Never give up. Keep going.

I cast a wide net when I set my goals for the project: Show up every day behind the pen, the brush, or the lens and share my work. And so I did. Some days were meh, but some were out of this world fantastic. Most were ordinary but extremely satisfactory. I learned when I practice creativity regularly, make it a priority, good things happen. Serendipity occurs often. Aha moments become more frequent. Breakthroughs. Flow. Opportunities. Harmony. Peace. Increased confidence. More experience. Discovery. A body of work. Community. Connections. 

The first step is to simply show up.

Onward.

Filed Under: Art Projects Tagged With: creative life, creativity exercises, inspirational, the 100 day project

It’s not just about creativity

May 9, 2021

It is about the person you’re becoming while you’re creating

Painted hands

This year for Mother’s Day I had the privilege of assisting my granddaughter, Ellie, with the art she wanted to create for her mom and Nana.

I showed her how to mask and she showed me her tapping-on-the-wet-brush-splatter technique. She experienced the thrill of reveal when peeling tape from the painted canvas and the satisfaction of signing finished artwork.

We belly laughed about the “I have an idea!” comment I made when we saw the light bulb lamp glowing over her head in a photo.

I have an idea!

The hands-as-flowers are for her mom, and she wanted a bigger canvas so she could glue thousands of them to the surface. Because that’s how much she loves her.

She got to feel what it was like to start a canvas with an intention, make additions, work it into something completely different, play with the colors and use different tools.

Mother’s Day handmade flowers

As she brushed and swirled different colors of paint, the canvas became a sea of shimmery aqua. She painted waves and declared it a gift for Nana, who loves the ocean.

She got to feel that process, finish the piece, and then love it. There was no inner critic present. Only the joy from the experience.

Happy Mother’s Day to all who are celebrating. 

It’s not just about creativity, it is about the person you’re becoming while you’re creating.”

—Charlie Peacock

Day 99/100

Filed Under: Art Projects, Creative Education Tagged With: creative life, the 100 day project

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About Bex

 

Bex Hall

Her writing has appeared in various online and print publications, most recently in Kerning, a literary magazine, and in the Stories of Hope Collection in Transplant Living. Her artwork has appeared and sold through the Grayson Gallery. She blogs here about creative life and creates in Studio BE overlooking the Ohio River. Her work in progress is a memoir about the secret life of objects.

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  • The 100 Day Project

    50 short stories in 100 days.

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  • Creative practice goals:

    Show up every day behind the pen, the brush, or the lens and share my work.

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