Good Things: June 2023

Updates and other good things from Gill D. Creative

Image above: a drawing of Oakland that I found while cleaning out my files. I stopped working on it because I didn’t like how it was going but now I feel like it is just done.

Past & Presence

The other day I finally engaged in some “spring cleaning” and set forth to clean my flat files of art supplies and old drawings. As I began organizing and purging supplies and artwork, the nostalgia began to creep in until soon I was on the floor surrounded by my old drawings, marveling at how much myself and my work have changed (I know you’ve been here!).

I don’t spend nearly enough time reflecting on the past or acknowledging recent accomplishments. My life has often been about the next thing and where I’m going rather than taking stock of where I’ve been. Every year I vow to spend more time reflecting, both on my recent past as well as digging deeper into my ancestry, and every year these seem to be the first things to get put on the back burner.

While I have been putting off actively reflecting, I have been trying to become much more intentional about being present. I’ve been working on my meditation & mindfulness practice for years and lately the “practice” part seems to be kicking in— it turns out if you continue to be intentional about something over a long period of time you will start to get better at it, who knew!

Alongside these skills helping me become more present and reduce my anxiety in the moment, I’ve also noticed that they’ve also been helping me gain better insight & connection to my past. When I can be truly present, I feel a deep connection to my core self and it feels like this self echoes throughout time, back to college me and then young me and then to my mother and the mothers before her. It’s like when I can let my mind quiet and simply connect with the environment and people around me, a whole series of connections light up. Have you ever experienced this? I used to think mindfulness didn’t really “work” for me but the deeper I get into it, the more value, both expected and unexpected, seems to come alongside it.

I’m still very much exploring what works for me in terms of maintaining presence throughout my days but am feeling so grateful for the perspective that presence & reflection have been bringing me lately. As we shift past the summer solstice and move into the second half of the year, I hope you get time to enjoy the moment and reflect on where you’ve been too!

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Image above: a photo of Carmen Mcnall carving away on a painted piece

Featured Maker: Carmen Mcnall

One of the hardest parts for me about weaning off of instagram is not getting to keep up with the work of artists I love, and one of the ones I’ll miss the most is Oakland- based Carmen Mcnall. She doesn’t post often (which I very much respect and love to see from a successful artist— it is possible to be successful and productive without being consumed by the social media slog!) but every time I see one of her paintings it really sticks with me— the colors, composition, and patterns are always so fantastic! I also love how she combines painting and carving to create a lovely intricate textural effect. I will simply have to keep poking in every now and then to see what she’s up to. For now, here is one of her recent lovely paintings— I highly recommend checking the rest out!

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Image above: a drawing of a sweet road through a vibrant countryside

June Playlist: Country Drive

I am talking more about a “drive in the country” kind of vibe than a “country music” kind of vibe here but have been jamming to some pop country hits in the car lately so wanted to create a playlist that reflects this moment! Featuring two Sheryl Crow songs because I simply could not decide. Best enjoyed with the windows down en route to a beautiful natural space.

1. Man! I Feel Like A Woman! : Shania Twain

2. Red (Taylor’s Version) : Taylor Swift

3. All I Wanna Do : Sheryl Crow

4. Dancin’ In The Country : Tyler Hubbard

5. This Kiss : Faith Hill

6. Shark Smile : Big Thief

7. Baltimore Blues No. 1 : Deer Tick

8. Our Hearts Are Wrong : Jessica Lea Mayfield

9. Butterflies : Kacey Musgraves

10. Everyday Is A Winding Road : Sheryl Crow

11. California Stars : Billy Bragg & Wilco

12. House of Winston : Shakey Graves

13. Thirteen : Bedouine, Hurray For The Riff Raff, Waxahatchee

14. Ballad of the Golden Hour : Widowspeak

15. Santa Monica : Everclear

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Image above: a snapshot of a recently excavated corner of my room that hopefully will be used for painting

Recent Work: Cleaning

As mentioned above, I’ve been cleaning and re-organizing a lot lately and am very excited to have created space for a nice little painting corner as a result of that! TBD as to where this will take my work but it has been very nice to have a seasonal refresh. I’ve also restarted The Artist’s Way (see below for more on that!) which also feels like a nice little reset. I had been feeling a little guilty about not “making enough work” in the first half of this year, but after some major ReFlEcTiOn time am feeling content with where I’ve been and ready to move forward. Here’s to the second half of 2023!

Also, I deleted instagram from my phone again (thanks to my friend Matt for reminding me how bad it is for me again) so am hoping to share more work either here on Substack or on my Tumblr. I am once again here taking your recommendations for how best to share work without getting sucked into social media— for me, it’s more about documentation and a sense of progress than needing to share or promote. Here for your thoughts!

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Image above: cute lil purple flowers with yellow circle centers

Some Other Good Things

• Marlee Grace is running an Artist Way book study and I’m very excited to join! I’ve tried making it through the book multiple times, sometimes with friends and others alone, but have never gotten to the end. My #1 goal is simply to stick with it for the full 12 weeks this time! If you’ve ever considered using this book to kickstart or reboot your creative practice, now’s a great time to jump in! (also, I’m already behind but still determined to keep up if that helps encourage you to join :) )

• This article on the power of Taylor Swift for teen mental health is 100% chef’s kiss and I recommend it even if you aren’t a swifty (I haven’t even listened to midnights yet, don’t come for me!!)

• After visiting the Petrified Forest outside of Calistoga earlier this year I’ve become obsessed with California Historical Landmarks. One very ambitious California couple set out to visit and document every single one of them and, with the help of their son, created this fabulous website that is such an excellent resource for those who would also like to visit these landmarks (there is even a map!).

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Thanks for reading – see you next month!