Galia Alena, Art is Magic

For the past three weeks, I've been feeling a little guilty: I haven't touched my luscious art supplies or my camera--except for the one on the iPhone to take pictures of tubs and tiles.  It seems like I should be using what I have to make things! (I can hear Kate saying, "Don't should all over yourself!")

For two years, I've been watching weekly art classes by different teachers on Wanderlust.  Sometimes I actually attempt something similar to what's being taught, sometimes I just enjoy watching.

Some classes I've liked a lot, others not so much, but on the whole, it's been a good introduction to different materials, techniques, and teaching styles. I preferred Wanderlust 2019 to the one in 2020 on the whole, though both have given me valuable nudges and ideas.

As this week's teacher, Galia Alena, says, "Nothing is wasted."

What I'm loving about her class is a kind of authenticity and intimacy that feels so right for these months we're all living through.  She opens with short videos of nature, then she talks about her year of tragedies: the Australian bush fires that caused her to have to move out of her home several times, the unexpected death of her mother, and the stresses we all share during Covid 19.

She speaks quietly and slowly--which calms me and grounds me, in  contrast to the hyper-energetic voices on the news.  Her class opens with images of nature, the leaves and flowers around her house in Australia, her fluffy cat.  We never see her face, only her hands on the table with paints and papers and inks.

She admits to having a creative block during Covid, but she prefers to call it a "creative cycle,"--a time of just being in the moments, not feeling stressed about production.  Each morning, she plays music and makes marks that express her response to the music.  "This is not art, this is not for show, this is for me," she says.

And so, in the spirit of Galia, on the last day inside my house before the demolition of the bathroom tomorrow, and happy with the hope of rain, I'm turning off my ringer and relaxing in my bed, with three equally good books to read, a chapter in one, then the other, sleeping and waking and feeling no pressure to do anything but what I choose in each moment.

I made a roast in my little purple crock pot, so all I need to do now is cook some potatoes and squash to round out my lunch when the time comes.