2012 i can almost taste it

oh it's the end of the year. that time when thoughts and memories and people and places and things from the entire year swirl around in a strange nostalgic brew. small moments poke their heads up, screaming for attention while big things take second fiddle, and in then turn to push their weight around. the joys, the struggles, the entire blur pushing against a membrane stretched taught - hoping to break free - to frolic around as they were in their glorious minutes of actuality. more likely they are destined for refiling and reprocessing and perhaps colorization [slightly off]. ghosts from years past descend too - reminding you how young you once were, how life is so different and yet eerily the same, how they are so missed, and how really. really. you have to try. more than try. shoot for - reach - stretch to pay attention. for just being present. because you will miss it. it will happen when you blink. and you can't recall what you simply just missed.



and what captures that nostalgia for me - holds it, and mirrors it, and reflects it back to me instantly [pun intended] are polaroids. these are from the italy trip earlier this year. definitely one of those things that made a mark on 2011. a permanent mark on me in many ways.



here's all of them - if you are inclined to view them: [and thank you the impossible project for the new film to try]:

Get the flash player here: http://www.adobe.com/flashplayer

did you have a good holiday? my grading is DONE. my studio visit for my upcoming spring show - DONE [and work was genuinely liked i think. phew and horrah!]. i can actually ring in the new year without those albatrosses around my neck. i thought i'd share 2 of my favorite gifts this season:



i would be so content if i could make art that just did this. if my art looked like this. these pins make me happy in a way i can't even describe. the colors are perfect. the shapes. everything about them. i would think about making art with them except for that i think they are perfect the way they are.

i also got the agnes martin documentary with my back to the world. if you've been around these parts for awhile you know i mention her now and again. i've been wanting to watch this so much. and now i have a copy !!! my students will most likely be watching this as well. wink.

and so...to this audience of mine... for new readers. old readers. those that comment faithfully. those who no longer do that, but are still here.... to those that have faded away but are really still here in spirit or are forever entombed in comments past... i am grateful. as i get older i'm realizing that it's not necessarily about how much or how long or if things stay the same, but more about what was said, felt, meant, and indeed happened - especially what made me think, change course, and especially made me feel connected to a greater world. i'll take that whenever i can get it. thank you.

may 2012 be all that you hope for [with a few surprises thrown in for good measure]. happy new year.