what would you do with these? what do you keep coming back to?

diatomcollage4

diatomcollage2

diatomcollage3

sometimes i make things i don't know what to do with. like these little diatom-inspired, mixed-media objects.

cells and cell-like structures, patterns and textures have always been frequent visitors to my art - in photography, ceramics, drawing, painting. and this isn't the first time i've made objects that were somehow not quite 2D, and not quite sculptural either.

sometimes, i need to shake up the routine. when i made these a few weeks ago, i really wanted to just get out of my art journal and hold what i was working on - hold it and engage in a simple process with it from more than one perspective. the tangibility and intimacy becomes important - also a recurring theme for me, and often what draws me toward expression off the page or canvas.

i think somehow these fun little contemplative objects represent possibility, and life - or creativity becoming, changing, evolving - even when we don't know how or what that will look like or even what the 'purpose' will be.

plus, they're just fun and lighthearted to make.

now, i'm wondering what to do with this little collection. surprise bookmarks? unique one-of-a-kind cards to my friends? fodder for mixed-media painting? who knows where they'll show up. what would you do with them?

do you have recurring themes in your creative inclinations?

(interesting visual note: that bottom picture - the only difference on the two sides of that diatom is the little purple line around the green dots. totally changes the brown background that the dots are on! i love it when that happens, so i left it half and half.)