Quotes: Virginia Woolf

"What is the meaning of life? That was all – a simple question; one that tended to close in on one with years, the great revelation had never come. The great revelation perhaps never did come. Instead there were little daily miracles, illuminations, matches struck unexpectedly in the dark; here was one."

–– Virginia Woolf (1882-1941), English writer, critic, & publisher 

Source: Virginia Woolf. To the Lighthouse. 

via: Art Alternatives knapsack sketchbook, 2017 a, p. 37.

Quotes: Virginia Woolf

"Let us not take it for granted that life exists more fully in what is commonly thought big than in what is commonly thought small."  

–– Virginia Woolf (1882-1941), English writer, critic, & publisher 

via: Art Alternatives Knapsack Sketchbook,  2017 a, p. 19.

Quotes: Virginia Woolf

"Happiness is in the quiet, ordinary things. A table, a chair, a book with a paper-knife stuck in between the pages. And the petal falling from the rose, and the light flickering as we sit silent." 

–– Virginia Woolf (1882-1941), English writer, critic, & publisher 

via: Sketchbook A, 2018, p. 62.

Quotes 180: Virginia Woolf

"It is in our idleness, in our dreams, that submerged truth comes to the top." 

–– Virginia Woolf (1882-1941), English writer, critic, & publisher

via Commonplace Book 2006, p. 106.

Quotes 133: Leonard Woolf

"Every morning, therefore, at about 9:30 after breakfast each of us, as if moved by a law of unquestioned nature, went off and 'worked' until lunch at one. It is surprising how much one can produce in a year, whether of buns or books or pots or pictures, if one works hard and professionally for three and a half hours every day for 330 days. That was why, despite her disabilities, Virginia was able to produce so very much." 

–– Leonard Woolf (1880-1969), British political theorist and writer

Source: tumblr.austinkleon.com, Tuesday May 25, 2021

via: Book of Commonplace 2020-2021, p. 107.

Studio Series: black & white collage II

Black & White collage II © Karen Thiessen, 2016

The studio is a happening place these days: I seem to have cultivated a new rhythm, a new sense of being alive in my work process. It is all thanks to the six weeks of classes that I took at my local indie fabric shop where I learned how to sew a dress, a flowering snowball pillow, and a pair of leggings. These were all personal projects that took time away from my regular studio work, but this investment of time has paid off in spades. First of all, I am now hyper-aware of clothing construction: of seams, lines, darts, shapes. As a result, I now see that my work could eventually move into three-dimensions. Second: I have returned to my stitching and collage practice with new energy and awareness.

I just finished reading The Art of Slow Writing (2014) by Louise DeSalvo, a book I highly recommend for any creative, whether or not you are a writer. In one chapter about supporting the work, she shares how Vita Sackville-West encouraged her friend, Virginia Woolf, to take time from her writing practice. "From Sackville-West, Woolf learned to be less obsessive about her art and to take more time for relaxation, travel, and excursions to enrich her work. She subsequently spent time bowling, doing needlepoint, knitting, bread baking, and listening to music (DeSalvo, 108-109)." So, I encourage my dear work-obsessed readers (you know who you are) to try something new and see how this enlivens the work. 

Source: DeSalvo, Louise. The Art of Slow Writing: Reflections on Time, Craft, and Creativity. New York: St. Martin's Press, 2014.