Notes For The Artistic Journey
As autumn brings us into the shifting cycles of life and rebirth, and we look forward to a season of holidays and a new year with a fresh start, I am again reminded of the shift that takes place during this time. Days are shorter, the inky nights longer, and we wrap up our bodies against the cold as we anticipate wrapping up the journey we’ve been on for the year, looking towards a new beginning. Swedish folktales tell of the tradition of “year walking,” where someone seeking answers would wander alone into the cold forest during winter to find portents of purpose, to see the future. In a way, creating art and expressing ourselves is a bit like that. Before us lies the unknown — a black forest, a white canvas.
There is a certain harmony in finding the exterior geography of purpose and direction that maps to our delicate artistic hearts. Despite our desires, though, it’s not something most of us stumble upon right away. Often the path to finding the creative expression that our hearts yearn for is indeed a path into the unknown. For some, this comes suddenly, thrust into our lives by urgent, sharp clarity. For others, like myself, it comes as a combination of early revelation and frustratingly slow simmering.
My Artistic Path
My path into art started early, but it was by no means a single line towards clarity. Growing up, I would find makers, movements, and mediums that profoundly moved me to the point of obsession where I felt I just needed to reflect that somehow. Sometimes this led me down paths that had a definite end, fizzling out in frustration or futility (I was not cut out to be a punk-metal musician, and I don’t look good in a ponytail). Other times, these influences matured over time, changing from youthful enthusiasm to settled determination. Regardless of their length in proximity to my journey, all of these served their purpose in growing me artistically and emotionally.
See, I grew up always knowing I was going to create art. Specifically, I wanted to be a cartoonist. My young world was newspaper comics: Garfield, Calvin & Hobbes, Pogo. Then, not long into this journey, I discovered writing, and suddenly it was as if my ability to express myself was set on two trains traveling at two very different speeds. For me, writing was a means to explore what I couldn’t quite get out with my art. My art, my comics, and cartoons were means to a nonverbal and sometimes subtler expression, albeit more limited at the time than what I could produce via word on a page. It wasn’t until into my 20’s that I discovered Jeff Smith’s Bone, an epic 1400-page fantasy graphic novel that combined some of the world-building of Tolkien with the visual whimsy of those great, old comic strips. It opened my mind to possibilities not just in cartooning, which I already was in love with, but also with what layered and nuanced storytelling could look like within the medium. This led to me creating a short-lived fantasy graphic novel series and leading to the completion of two more full-length graphic novels.
This was the first time a torch was lit across the variety of paths before me and showed that they could, indeed, converge into a direction not of parallel, never-meeting paths but of a stronger, connected one. However, it wasn’t the last time this sort of realization happened. Moving into my 30’s, I fulfilled a long-held dream of starting an independent game studio and publishing my first interactive project, a mobile game called OBVERSION that told a story of ghosts and forgiveness. Although not industry-changing by any stretch, for me, this game was another chance at convergence, combining all of the interests and any skills I was developing (composing the music, writing the script, drawing the artwork) into one produced result.
Moving forward with new projects, taking inspiration from unfinished ones from the past, and lingering (sometimes too long) on the possibilities of the future, I’ve found this truth to remain throughout the dark uncertainty, the flashes of divine clarity reminding me to trust God’s timing. Seriously. It took creating a steady stream of small projects before I was ready for my first game to come to fruition.
Life’s Dark Forest Illuminated
As we head out into life’s dark forest, keep in mind that we have a limited view of the path before us. But we follow the One whose light illuminates the world anew. Yes, each of our paths is different and unique, and that’s a good thing; that’s a holy thing, for we are all God’s masterpieces, His works of art. Like a sculptor creating with clay, this path-finding journey of purpose-seeking feels like we are pressed, squished, and molded in ways we might not like. However, each of those movements, each of those iterations, reveals the fingerprints of the Divine on our journey. Our works of art are imbued with uniqueness as we illustrate God’s love of diversity.
Maybe you’re struggling on your path of purpose. Are you looking for what makes you come alive? Perhaps you’ve had some sense of settledness in expressing your creative call. Either way, I hope these small snippets from my story help to nudge your heart towards MORE. Look for what God is putting before you: those mediums, materials, and relationships. Look for those creative sparks in the darkness and let them illuminate your path beyond what you currently see. Feel the nudges.
So, as we anticipate both the holiday season and setting goals for a new year, I offer this gentle reminder: Go forth and gratefully explore the paths before you! See what sparks. See what fizzles. Create powerfully and passionately and embrace the creativity of the One who made you who you are.
