Today we have a fantastic interview with Lisa Solomon of Lisa’s Musings

1.Tell us about your style of work.

oooh this is hard. I tend to like to use all different kinds of media to express myself. Often times I respond to a found material or paper – like rifle targets or vintage school paper [do you remember the kind that had a big space up top to draw and some lines on the bottom to write?? That kind!]. I have always loved and respected all things crafty and thus also wanted to incorporate those types of elements in my artwork. Thus there is often embroidery – thread of some kind, crochet, or other such things in my work. I tend to like to use thread as a drawing element. As a line quality. I have this whole philosophy of the front side vs. the back side of embroidery – and how both sides are actually beautiful and imply different things. I am really drawn to the idea of the domestic [celebrating that] – of how we clue into what is read as masculine and what is read as feminine. I am also fond of the idea of noticing the ordinary… And I’m fond of space…. How negative space is just as important as positive space.

I tend to see myself and my work in a framework of being hybrids… The idea that things cross pollinate and inform one another to become something different

does that sound too hoighty toity?? I also like to make t-shirts and stationary and pillows and skirts…. Just making in general is fun!

2.You have an ongoing project where you do a drawing a day, can you tell us about that?

I started the drawing a day project after buying 50 spools of gutermann thread on ebay [my favorite type of thread for the amazing color palette!]. I had just seen a show of Richard Tuttle’s work at SFMOMA and was amazed at how prolific he was… How many drawings there were…. How the drawings informed his other work.

I knew that I was about to have a really crazy schedule with teaching and free-lancing and that my studio time was going to be limited…. And I didn’t want to loose the connection to making things. While looking at the thread I realized – wow 50 is almost 52 – 52 weeks in a year… I could do a drawing a day w/ one color of thread for a week! that would be fun! it would keep me doing something everyday. I could get inspired by the color of the thread! and I wouldn’t get bored either because it would just be one week….. Then I realized that if I put the pressure on myself to do it 7 days a week I’d never do it. So I said 5 days – Monday – Friday. That seemed possible.

I really also had to let go of the idea that they would all be good. Some of them are down-right awful! but the idea was that I would be able to play – to do things that I couldn’t do while trying to make a “body of serious artwork” [whatever that is .... ]. I wanted to allow myself to make one in 5 minutes or to take hours on one…. It was the idea of play – of goofing around, of learning from mistakes – of trying anything and everything.

3.How do you find the motivation to do these drawings when you’re feeling uncreative?

sometimes it is INCREDIBLY hard…. But I’m one of those people where if I’ve really decided to do something I want to follow through. So I sit and look at something right in front of me… Or think of something I saw earlier in the day and try to do a drawing based on that. I remind myself that they don’t all have to be winners…. I try and let the color of the thread take me in a direction… I just try to make some kind of mark!

sometimes a bit of tea or looking through a book or walking outside and breathing some fresh air will help. So will snuggling with my pets or reading someone else’s blog where they just posted some amazing project…. I try to let being uncreative be OK – that is is also part of the creative process as a whole. It’s about just trying. Sometimes that has to be enough!

4.What inspires you?

EVERYTHING inspires me. The list is gigantic! all the kooky things that surround me that I collect… Nature…. Loved ones…. My own body…. Things that I read….. Things I see other people making…. I walk around everyday and try to notice little details. Things that make me smile, things that make me think, things that make my heart pound, my jaw drop, my gut wrench…. It’s hard to hold onto inspiration I think – so it’s a constant search!

5. What’s in store for the future?

oh my – the future?? I’m just trying to get through February! :) hopefully more teaching… More making things…. Enjoying this incredible online community…. And also some sleep. I’d like to catch up on that a bit!