I am loving this practice, and . . . it means I’m spending zero time on any other art, and I’m feeling itchy about that. My spiritual director put good words to it: this process is more externally focused and the more abstract, less representational, more playful pieces are more internally focused. I think a year of these is more than I need, and it’s time to have a different kind of daily practice.

For the sake of the kind of symmetry and completeness that please my mind, I’ll continue the leaves through the end of the month, June 30: the midway point of the year. Then I’ll either alternate between the leaves and a more internal kind of art, or just switch to the latter. Either way: art, every day.

When I made this decision, I thought, “But I haven’t even gotten to the toothed leaves yet!” and it’s true, I’m still on simple untoothed leaves, but lo and behold, today’s leaf, while not toothed, is–um–fanged? Due to the sharp spines along the leaf edges, it’s aptly called ilicifolia, “Ilex,” i.e., holly, “-leaved.”

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