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<title>Morning Pages - Extracts</title><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/index4.html</link><description>Quotes from my daily journey as an artist.</description><dc:language>en</dc:language><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:rights>Copyright 2010 Shane Wilson</dc:rights><dc:date>1998-12-22T14:38:55-08:00</dc:date><admin:generatorAgent rdf:resource="http://www.realmacsoftware.com/" />
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<lastBuildDate>Fri, 20 Jan 2012 20:40:24 -0800</lastBuildDate><item><title>Lee Valley - Cover Photos and Carver&#x27;s Bench</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1998-12-22T14:38:55-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20157.html#unique-entry-id-163</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20157.html#unique-entry-id-163</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[Following Ray Pilon's, Lee Valley Cover photoshoot of 'Celtic Confusion' and 'Dall Sheep 1' in Ontario, the sculptures were shipped back to the Lee Valley Store in Vancouver, where I picked them up today.   Ray included two large format transparencies, one of each sculpture, in gratitude for the use of my work.   They are spectacular, beautifully lit and razor sharp.   The man is a genius.   (Ray Pilon's website)


While at the Lee Valley outlet, I noticed they had the brand new Veritas Carver's Bench on display.   Perfect for my work in so many ways as I'd hoped, I bought it, the first one purchased in Western Canada, complete with a variety of clamps created specifically for the table.   Heaven!]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Ivory Tips&#x2c; Commissions and Tusks</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1998-12-18T14:38:54-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20156.html#unique-entry-id-162</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20156.html#unique-entry-id-162</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[At noon, I met at the Casa Loma for lunch with Sid McKeown and Earl Bennett to talk about ivory carving. ...  It turns out that Earl Bennett is an ivory carver from way back.   Many years ago he came to the Klondike and bought up great quantities of mammoth ivory.   He worked as a carver for a while but gave it up in favour of becoming a banker.   He has a friend, the son of the person who hired him many, many years ago, whose name is Bill Diment, who is an ivory carver today, and we discussed the possibility of travelling to see Bill in order to share our common interest. 


Earl explained that PEG, or polyethylene glycol is useful as a preservative to stabilize ivory, if the tusk is submersed in the PEG when the ivory is still wet. 

...Earl informed me that Erbach, a city in Germany, has been devoted to the art of ivory carving for hundreds of years. 

...Earl&rsquo;s idea for a project is to cut a tusk up in cross section, carve it, and then stitch it back together again with sinew.   That way the natural forces of the tusk won&rsquo;t disintegrate the tusk while it&rsquo;s being carved, and the tusk will be easier to work. 

...Later in the day, after meetings of the Association of Yukon Communities, I spoke with the Mayor of Dawson City, Glen Everett, who wanted to commission me to create an ivory handle for the Mayor&rsquo;s gavel (later changed to the 'Five Dawson Broaches').   Larry Bagnell, the administrator for the Association of Yukon Communities, commissioned me to carve a wolf in ivory (later changed to the 'Shooting of Dan McGrew'). 


After the meeting, at four, I visited Alex Seeley Jr, and purchased an ivory tusk from him for a thousand dollars in order to accomplish the commissions that I have received. ]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Yukon News Article Well Done</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1998-12-16T14:38:54-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20155.html#unique-entry-id-161</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20155.html#unique-entry-id-161</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[The Yukon News article came out today, and it looks fantastic.   It features a picture of me standing with the mammoth tusk, and a picture of 'Duality'.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>My Airport Display Case</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1998-12-12T14:38:54-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20154.html#unique-entry-id-160</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20154.html#unique-entry-id-160</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I had an idea today for the inside of my rented display case at the Whitehorse International Airport.   I&rsquo;ve noticed that the carvings tend to disappear visually, because the viewer can look through the clear case into the busy airport waiting area behind.   I&rsquo;m going to create a black screen that will cover the back two sides of the Plexiglas case in order to highlight the sculpture within. ]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>First Feature Interview</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1998-12-11T14:38:53-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20153.html#unique-entry-id-159</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20153.html#unique-entry-id-159</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[As a result of the press release that Terry Prince sent to the Yukon News regarding the Millennium Tusk Project that I am planning, I was interviewed today by Erling Fris Bastaad, a writer from the Yukon News.   I enjoyed speaking with Erling and look forward to reading the article when it is run in the paper.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Soapstone &#x27;Surprised&#x27;</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1998-12-09T14:38:53-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20152.html#unique-entry-id-158</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20152.html#unique-entry-id-158</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I finished the soapstone grizzly bear sculpture today, a total of 76 hours.   The final name will be 'Surprised.'   Though the result is beautiful, I do not like working in the medium, which I find excessively dusty.   Initial work on the sculpture outside in a breeze covered the neighbour's yard in a fine snow white dusting of soapstone.   When I moved indoors, taking over a small unused greenhouse, the dust became so thick that it was difficult at times to see the sculpture beneath my grinder.   I think I'll stick to antler, horn and ivory!]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Northern Encounters &#x27;99 Invite</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1998-12-08T14:38:52-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20151.html#unique-entry-id-157</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20151.html#unique-entry-id-157</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I received a call today from Bob Kussy, a sculptor from the Northwest Territories whom I met this summer at the Great Northern Arts Festival.   He says that there is a new arts festival being planned for Toronto in July of 1999.   It will be a circumpolar arts festival, called Northern Encounters '99.   It is to be organized by a company called Sound Streams.   The contact is Lawrence Cherney.   I contacted Lawrence, as per Bob&rsquo;s instructions, and he said the festival is a bi-annual event.   It includes visual art, dance, theatre and music from across the circumpolar north.   The emphasis is on northern, native and Inuit art.   I have been invited to attend.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>New Veritas Carver&#x27;s Bench</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1998-12-01T14:38:52-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20150.html#unique-entry-id-156</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20150.html#unique-entry-id-156</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[Checked out the Lee Valley Catalogue today.   They have come up with a brand new &lsquo;carver&rsquo;s bench,&rsquo; called the Veritas Carver&rsquo;s Bench, and it has its very own hold-down clamps.   The bench looks perfect for my uses, and I will consider purchasing one over the next month.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Celtic Confusion Cover</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1998-11-12T14:38:52-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20149.html#unique-entry-id-155</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20149.html#unique-entry-id-155</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[Today I signed the Letter of Agreement with Lee Valley Tools for the photography and use of 'Celtic Confusion' on the cover of their January catalogue.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Organization and Marketing with Terry Prince</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1998-10-22T14:38:51-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20148.html#unique-entry-id-153</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20148.html#unique-entry-id-153</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[Had my first meeting today with Terry Prince from Elk Grove, California.   Terry is a professional organizer who has agreed to help with my marketing efforts. ]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Inuvik Arts Festival&#x2c; 1998</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1998-07-20T14:38:50-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20147.html#unique-entry-id-152</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20147.html#unique-entry-id-152</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[Things have been going well so far at the Inuvik Arts Festival.   One of the sales people said that there has been a serious inquiry by a person who buys each year for someone else who can&rsquo;t make it.   The person in question saw the piece on the internet and asked for it specifically. 

...It has been good to get away from Faro. 

...A photographer from Vancouver, Peter Timmermans, is up doing a shoot on the Dempster for Canada Post and their highway series of stamps.   We had some wonderful chats, and he carved a few things with my tools.   (The festival asks artists to share their skills with other artists and the general public in attendance.)


A painter from Ireland, Cathy Henderson, over to sketch the Festival and its artists, did a watercolour of me at work on 'Candle Ice'. 


A retired art teacher from New York, who I chatted with at length on the boat trip from Inuvik to the Arctic Ocean; both he and Peter Timmermans suggested &ldquo;going where the money is,&rdquo; with the carvings if they don&rsquo;t sell here. 


I have especially enjoyed working with other carvers, including Maureen Morris and Bob Kussy, with whom I shared a carving tent. 


The organizers and volunteers and all the rest have been super, not to mention the people attending the Festival.   What a blast, just talking with people as they tour the Festival.  ]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Arrival at Inuvik Arts Festival</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1998-07-16T14:35:31-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20146.html#unique-entry-id-151</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20146.html#unique-entry-id-151</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I had a really nice shower after setting up the camp, and feel great, lying here in Inuvik with a gentle breeze blowing through the tent.   The Arts Festival looks good, the organizers look harassed.   It should be a really good time.   I have a bit more on Celtic Confusion to do, but it could be set up in the display area if necessary.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Desolate Despite Purchase</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1998-07-02T14:35:31-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20145.html#unique-entry-id-150</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20145.html#unique-entry-id-150</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[Today I feel desolate.   The NSK arrived, and good timing it was indeed.   I am ready for it now, but lack any zeal.   The demons I must face are my own.   No matter who I am, where I go, or who I am with, this will be the case. ]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Tool Upgrade</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1998-06-15T14:35:31-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/page%20144.html#unique-entry-id-149</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/page%20144.html#unique-entry-id-149</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I am considering buying a new grinding tool called the Electer GX made by NSK.   It is an ultra-precision micromotor grinder.   It is quite expensive, working out to about $1246.55, but it promises to be a much better tool for detail work in my carving.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Next Steps on the Lee Valley Cover</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1998-06-12T14:35:31-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20143.html#unique-entry-id-148</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20143.html#unique-entry-id-148</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I heard today again from Ray Pilon, from Lee Valley Tools.   He has received the go-ahead on the catalogue cover.   We discussed shipping two sculptures to his studio in Ottawa, so that he can take the photographs for the January-March 1999 cover.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Energy in Relationships</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1998-06-07T14:35:30-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20142.html#unique-entry-id-147</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20142.html#unique-entry-id-147</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[So much boils down to energy in relationships.   When we draw energy solely from another, we become dependent and fearful of losing that source.   Our job is to seek our energy from within, from the Universe, so that our interactions are not based on consumption but sharing, a subtle but important difference which allows freedom and mutual respect.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>First Request for Use of Carving Image</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1998-05-05T14:35:30-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20139.html#unique-entry-id-146</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20139.html#unique-entry-id-146</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[Received a call today from the Sculpture Forum Magazine, regarding the use of Robin Armour's photograph of 'Duality' in a pamphlet that they are creating to advertize their magazine.   I agreed to its use.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Cover Art Potential</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1998-05-20T14:35:30-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20141.html#unique-entry-id-145</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20141.html#unique-entry-id-145</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[Ray Pilon, photographer from the Lee Valley Catalogue, likes the images I sent of my carvings, and he will get back to me on their use for one of the covers of an upcoming catalogue.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Timeless Natural Moment</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1998-04-26T14:35:30-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20138.html#unique-entry-id-144</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20138.html#unique-entry-id-144</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[A couple of days ago Miranda and I were stopped on our walk, drawn into a small forest along the trail overlooking the Pelly Valley, in the thrall of a timeless natural moment filled with the wonderful scent of last fall's leafy detritus, gentle rain from low hanging clouds and the first refrains from an unknown songbird returned from a winter away. 


In these moments timelessness is reality and our journey through the temporal is not; the stillness and reflection engendered enable us to shed temporal natures and drink from eternity.   We remember who we are and why we are here; we regain a sense of focus and the energy to carry on.
]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Artist and Medium Work Together to Create Art</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1998-05-14T14:35:30-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20140.html#unique-entry-id-143</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20140.html#unique-entry-id-143</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I have decided at least on some of the antlers, if not all, that I&rsquo;m going to trust my inner vision and abandon the use of images by others, save in the execution of commissioned works. 


I spent about two hours last night beginning to design what was going to be a carving called 'Running Wolf' on one of the antlers that I received from Patrick Maloney.   It will now be called 'Triangles' (later, 'Candle Ice') and will consist of a series of triangle shapes that interlock and inter-lap. 


I feel much freer and happier, at peace now with the design process.   The design now can reflect the architecture of the antler rather than placing that innate architecture at the mercy of an external image. 


Rather than the artist and the medium being subject to an externally generated image, artist and medium can now work together on each other to create art.
]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Multitasking Afresh</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1998-03-05T14:35:29-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20137.html#unique-entry-id-142</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20137.html#unique-entry-id-142</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I have been analyzing my production times and patterns, and it is readily apparent that there are plenty of down times where thinking of the next cut or resting to gain a fresh perspective is necessary. 


These times could easily be filled doing other carvings. 


The question becomes how many to begin?   Five per month?   I can work away at different stages on multiple carvings, thus modifying the yucky and time-consuming stages with productive finishing work on other pieces. 
]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Glimpse of Success</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1998-02-24T14:35:29-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20136.html#unique-entry-id-141</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20136.html#unique-entry-id-141</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I caught a glimpse today of future carving success.   I got the sense that I will receive recognition and remuneration sufficient to support my family.


The hand I drew today on the tusk was a little breakthrough, bringing the 'Millennium Tusk' a tiny bit nearer to completion.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Pondering Creative Procrastination</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1998-02-12T14:32:39-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20135.html#unique-entry-id-140</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20135.html#unique-entry-id-140</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I am at the stage with &lsquo;Tribute to Michio&rsquo; where it is necessary to keep the will focused.   I think that one of my time inefficiencies with regard to carving comes at this point.   Is it possible to speed up the thinking and gestation period when little carving is done?   Probably, but I am uncertain if this is possible when the subject matter is new to me.   When the subject matter has been tackled before it may be easier to progress through this stage, but I have yet to determine if this is as true with my carving as it is with painting.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Working Through the Rough Stages</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1998-02-11T14:32:38-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20134.html#unique-entry-id-139</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20134.html#unique-entry-id-139</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I&rsquo;m feeling a little disoriented/disheartened today.   I need to focus and filter out distractions, of which there seem to be many. 


Part of my discouragement seems to be due to the stage of the carving I&rsquo;m at right now, the carving being  &lsquo;A Tribute to Michio&rsquo;.   It is at the &lsquo;yucky&rsquo; stage, there are still many problems to resolve and lots of rough edges. 


Keep working, keep working, keep working!
]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>The More You Do the Better You Get</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1998-02-09T14:32:38-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20133.html#unique-entry-id-138</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20133.html#unique-entry-id-138</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[Jerry Kortello is certainly correct.   The more you do something, the better you get at it.   The bee that I am painting on either side of the tail of Pat McCracken&rsquo;s ultralight is a good example.   The second bee looks much better in my opinion.   I was a little freer with it and went with the internal map created during the painting of the first bee, as opposed to following the model slavishly.
]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Eagle Takes Flight</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1998-01-30T14:32:38-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20132.html#unique-entry-id-137</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20132.html#unique-entry-id-137</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[A rather delightful observation today regarding the eagle carving, 'Eagle On Arrowhead'.   It seems that everyone who has seen it so far has wanted to fly it, to swing it on an imaginary arc through the air as an eagle would soar.   What a lovely compliment to the lifelike nature of the carving, and a relief for me, from the fear of tackiness so associated with eagle art.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>A Perfect Day</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1998-01-25T14:32:37-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20131.html#unique-entry-id-136</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20131.html#unique-entry-id-136</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[My daughter Ceilidh and I went sledding over by the power plant today.   Ceilidh made some tomato soup which we drank after a few runs.   We appreciated the view over the bluff, watched ravens play in the biting wind, felt cheeks and chins freeze, and sledded some more.   The dogs had a great time too, chasing us down the hill and following the odd rabbit scent trails. 


I spoke with Ceilidh about appreciating each day, each sunset and shared a few stories  about sunsets with my Dad on our property near Echo Bay, Ontario. 


We watched the sunset together on the bluff overlooking the Pelly Valley, then descended the hill on our last sled of the day.   On the walk back to the car, I pulled Ceilidh on my sled while she pulled her own. 


A perfect day.
]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Endings With Integrity</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1998-01-23T14:32:37-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20130.html#unique-entry-id-135</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20130.html#unique-entry-id-135</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I was laid off today from Anvil Range - signed my own letter, in fact.


The last several days have been turbulent, to say the very least.   I have done what I thought was right by the employees every step of the way.   I have coped with deceit, fraud, unfair play, back-biting and power struggles, and I have done it with honesty, dignity and strength, without compromising my integrity or spinning out of control. 


Time to close the door on this chapter, brief as it was, and dive back into the carving again.   It has been good to face my demons and survive; very good.   I&rsquo;m very much looking forward to the next chapter of my life.
]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Keeping Head Down - Taking Positions</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1998-01-21T14:32:37-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20129.html#unique-entry-id-134</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20129.html#unique-entry-id-134</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[These last few days have been trying.   Having one&rsquo;s integrity questioned is not a pleasant experience; however, it seems to go with the job.   George Miller, a union executive, gave me a real compliment today, saying that he held me in high regard.   I took some encouragement from his words, especially during these difficult times. 


I have been keeping a lower profile and see now what it means to do so.   When you keep your head down, no one can shoot at you.   When you say nothing, no one can criticize or fight back.   Lightning strikes the highest point, and the same seems to be true with group energy.   I have often in the past popped up as the focus of this energy.   It has surely been a valuable lesson here on how not to do that. 


I have also learned about positions - rather than engaging in confrontational situations, offer one&rsquo;s position and then attempt to work towards finding points of agreement.   If agreement cannot be achieved, at least the parties can retain a sense of integrity.
]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Return to Art&#x2c; Some Reflections</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1998-01-11T14:32:36-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20128.html#unique-entry-id-133</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20128.html#unique-entry-id-133</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[The job of Human Resources Manager is all-consuming.   I have learned a great deal about the kind of people that become leaders, at least here at the mine, and something of how to work with them. 


I hadn&rsquo;t carved since the beginning of October until last weekend, and it certainly feels good to get back into it again.   Posting a work in progress update also felt good.   I need to slide up to the mine today touch base with the president and certain supervisors regarding a union decision yesterday to reject the new hours.   But after that I&rsquo;d like to continue the eagle carving and post another work in progress update to keep the flow going. 


It is highly probable the mine will close soon and we will all be out of work, so getting back into the swing of things with my art is probably wise. 


I have learned much about industry, management, personnel matters and myself during this short time at the mine.   My decisions and ideas have proven sound and I find that I derive  satisfaction from an involvement at the upper levels of decision making.   To be an actor rather than one of the acted-upon feels very empowering.   The role seems consistent with my ability and disposition.   The former Director of Personnel at the mine told me in a recent conversation that working under the present regime at the mine is probably the hardest it gets in personnel, so I'll take heart and enjoy what I&rsquo;m doing while it lasts.
]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Every Man Has His Price</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1997-11-20T14:32:27-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20127.html#unique-entry-id-132</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20127.html#unique-entry-id-132</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[Well, life is full of interesting developments.   I had a talk with the President of Anvil Range Mining yesterday.   He asked if I would consider the position of Director of Personnel.   Art?   I think it will have to take a back seat for a little while.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Stick to the Work</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1997-11-09T23:07:36-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20126.html#unique-entry-id-131</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20126.html#unique-entry-id-131</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[A local entrepreneur invited me to create brochures as a way to increase sales - brochures which he would deliver into the hands of his clients. 


In order to pay for these brochures, I'd need to spend funds set aside to complete payment on the tusk. 


"Would it be foolish to pass this opportunity by?"   I asked Miranda.


Miranda asked me, "What would feel cleaner, paying off the tusk or buying colour brochures?" 


She then suggested I focus less on others ideas for my work, and more on creating the work itself.   The art, she said, comes from within me and not from outside people like the businessman.   Let him and the others who come after him prove themselves first, and in the meantime stick to the work.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Dead End</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1997-11-09T14:45:00-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20125.html#unique-entry-id-130</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20125.html#unique-entry-id-130</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I have pulled back from full-time carving to accept employment at the mine.   Miranda wonders why, emphatic that carving is what I should be doing.   She reminded me that should I finish the tusk I could easily clear the debts.
]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>An Artist&#x27;s Deathbed Regret</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1997-11-07T14:44:02-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20124.html#unique-entry-id-129</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20124.html#unique-entry-id-129</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[An encouraging quote for artists from Clyde Gilmour, the former host of CBC Radio's 'Gilmour's Albums':


&ldquo;No one on their death bed says 'I wish I had spent more time at the office', except artists.&rdquo;]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Use Great Tools</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1997-10-07T14:43:17-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20123.html#unique-entry-id-128</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20123.html#unique-entry-id-128</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I have been commissioned to paint the official lettering on Faro's newly acquired Search and Rescue vehicle.   An exceedingly tedious and difficult task has been made easier by the purchase and use of good brushes in a good work space. ]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>TV Addiction Steals Best of Life - Part 2</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1997-10-04T14:42:03-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20122.html#unique-entry-id-127</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20122.html#unique-entry-id-127</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[Even when it feels like I&rsquo;m not doing much, I remind myself that if I were watching TV I&rsquo;d be doing nothing at all. 


Slow progress is still progress. ]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>TV Addiction Steals Best of Life - Part 1</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1997-10-02T14:41:15-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20121.html#unique-entry-id-126</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20121.html#unique-entry-id-126</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[TV presses in on me like an addiction, promising something just around the corner but never delivering. 


It is said that smoking cuts 9 to 10 years off of one's lifetime.   Interestingly, so too does TV - when one averages 3 hours a day over that same lifetime, 70,000 to 90,000 hours adds up to about 9 years. 


But the real tragedy for the TV watcher is that all of that time is taken from the prime time hours.   A smoker's early demise takes 9 years from the whole day: sleep time, work time and play time.   In other words, if free, evening, prime time comprises about 3 hours per day, a smoker will only lose a year's worth, or 9,000 hours of this time, as opposed to the TV watcher who will lose up to 90,000 hours across their entire lifetime. 


Is this the way I want to spend the best, non-working hours of my life... really?]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Multitasker Fail</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1997-10-01T14:39:16-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20120.html#unique-entry-id-125</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20120.html#unique-entry-id-125</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I don&rsquo;t seem able to manage multiple priorities or multiple projects.   I&rsquo;m a one-at-a-time kind of guy, which means that I&rsquo;ll have to schedule my work projects in a linear fashion.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Ideas for Two Carvings</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1997-09-08T14:34:29-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20119.html#unique-entry-id-124</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20119.html#unique-entry-id-124</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[Concerning Millennium Tusk: Rather than carve the hands grasping the wrists of the other hands, I think it would be better to lay one hand on the back of another in an affectionate way.   I can use different people's hands as models by tracing their hands on the tusk and then take a picture of the hand in place to use as a reference. 


An idea concerning the carving of a moose skull with antlers ('Integration'): I&rsquo;d like to carve a pattern over the whole surface, using the two patterns from 'Duality', extending the two distinct design patterns out into the antlers, or intermingle the patterns over the entire surface of both antlers.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Sucked Back Into The TV</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1997-04-29T13:59:47-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20117.html#unique-entry-id-123</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20117.html#unique-entry-id-123</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I am a little subdued after the last few days.   Calm after the storm.   I watched two and a half videos yesterday.   They were good, but you know, they took me away from myself and back to a land of apathy, impossibility and inertia.   I don&rsquo;t want to go there again; I have been alive for the last few weeks and know its power and possibility.   I am not going back to what I was before. 


I wonder if TV doesn&rsquo;t act as a pacifier for our culture, levelling us out like cows on Valium or Prozac, keeping the engine which drives our consumer ways humming along without a care in the world that we would do anything about.   It&rsquo;s not so bleak as all this, I know, but the effect is there.   Time to go and catch that plane.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Thoughts on Carving a Mammoth Tusk</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1997-04-29T14:30:41-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20118.html#unique-entry-id-120</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20118.html#unique-entry-id-120</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I have been thinking of carving a large sculpture out of a mammoth tusk, an idea sparked by a random conversation with Stewart Schmidt in the Whitehorse Airport, when he asked if I had ever considered carving one. 

...The idea is to represent something on the tusk of our multiracial world working together to build a life on the planet in cooperation with each other and in a tolerant spirit. 

...The hands that I would carve on the tusk, in different shades of brown, given the different shades of brown in the ivory, represent humankind at the turn of the second millennium working together, arranged in a kind of spiral form, representing something eternal, representing something progressive, as we learn to build a life together on earth in a sustainable way for the next thousand years, so that a thousand years from now our ancestors will celebrate the turn of the third millennium. 

...It is important that the hands are identifiable, at least to me, so I should take pictures of the hands that I use. 

...The sculpture should also contain something of our technology: pyramids, boats, planes, ships, pen, paper, computers, rockets, satellites, stone tools, crops, hunting, bronze, printing press, paint brush, hammer and chisel.


...I use it now to remind us of our humble beginnings at a time when these creatures, strange and magnificent, came to the end of their reign on earth.   We move forward, aware of their fate, learning from them that life is fragile, that there are no guarantees in the eternal drama of Creation. 

...I think I should stick with the hands idea alone for the tusk, and leave out the technology aspect, unless I incorporated the basic tools that have made a difference to humanity in one way or another. 

...The hands could go as a strip winding around the tusk on an angle in conjunction with another strip of abstract planes and within the strip of planes or perhaps joining the strip of planes to the hands every now and then a piece of technology held by the hands and detailed in the abstract strip. 

...I think I would leave the last part of the tusk, the tip, in its natural state to represent the future we have yet to create, or, perhaps hope itself.   Leaving the tip in its natural state would give the viewer a good chance to see the tusk in its original form; for that matter, the root of the tusk should also be left in the same natural state, to symbolize the time before man. 

...Stewart did not take payment; he wanted me to check with the Yukon Government first, to see if it is legal to buy and sell mammoth tusks. ]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Satisfied Patron and Website Expansion</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1997-04-27T14:30:40-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20116.html#unique-entry-id-119</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20116.html#unique-entry-id-119</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[Vancouver.   Had brunch today with the Goldsmiths, during which John presented the carving, "Rest and Sing" to his wife Joanna.   They both love it.


I have thought of some additions to the website.   I will add a Materials page, in which I describe the materials I use and where they come from.   Also, a page that describes my philosophy, an Artist&rsquo;s Statement page.   And finally a gratitude page or a Thank You page, in which I'll list people who have assisted in various ways with my art.   Perhaps I need to change my domain name to shane.com or shanewilson.com or shanewilsonsculpture.com.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>An Advertizing Strategy</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1997-04-26T14:29:36-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20115.html#unique-entry-id-118</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20115.html#unique-entry-id-118</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[This will be my centrepiece.   It will be interactive and accessible to all.   Should I purchase a domain name?


...Public display of work, $1000.   Need a place for a single display. ...  Display current work till the next work is complete.


...Advertise in the phone directories, Yukon and SE Alaska.   May need to look at cutting SE Alaska if no business.


...Ads in local magazines.   A: Tourist Guide, $50. 

...CD Rom Phone Directory, $199, through Halo Enterprises. 


Total advertising cost -- $2339.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Peace After Creation</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1997-04-25T14:13:25-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20114.html#unique-entry-id-117</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20114.html#unique-entry-id-117</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[This is the best time of all for me. 


Now that the sculpture, 'Rest and Sing', is standing and has its basic finish, it&rsquo;s alive and ready to fly on its own.   It has life, a life that may exceed those of my great great grandchildren. 


I am experiencing a peaceful quiet feeling, a contentment.   The birth is over, or nearly so, and the new life is begun. 


Creation. ]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Supportive Observation of a Life Gift</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1997-04-20T14:13:24-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20113.html#unique-entry-id-116</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20113.html#unique-entry-id-116</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[Miranda stressed again how enthusiastic she is about the recent attention my work is receiving and emphasized that she felt my gifts as an artist lie with carving, more so than painting or clay sculpture.   Watching me at work carving, she observed that this is what I was meant to do.


Strangely, I have been tempted to pack carving in and start off in a new direction, the challenge of learning a new skill removed with the first blush of success.   It would not be the first time I have done this.   However, this time I think I&rsquo;ll persevere to see how far I can go with the carved medium, to find my challenge in the work and not in the becoming of someone new.   It is time to be grown up and make a contribution with my lifetime. 


Carving comes so naturally and I enjoy all of its related aspects, from finding the raw materials to marketing the finished product, the whole providing a balance to my life.   Different from my former professions -- at which I always felt like an outsider and internally a bit of an impostor -- this is who I was meant to be.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Five New Commissions</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1997-04-14T14:13:23-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20112.html#unique-entry-id-114</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20112.html#unique-entry-id-114</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[Five new commissions! 


Miriam Kaytor would like me to carve an eagle on an arrowhead for her husband, Tony, as a graduation present ($500).   I just finished showing Richard Olson around, and he settled on a moose skull with an abstract pattern ($2000).   It should be a lot of fun.   Pippa Atwood has ordered a grizzly bear in soapstone ($1000 plus materials).   She wants him fairly large, about 18 inches to 2 feet high.   Mom and Dad have ordered a small mammoth ivory sculpture ($500) and Douglas and Jane Kim have ordered a carving on either a caribou or a moose antler ($1500).


I feel honoured and happy. ]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Momentum</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1997-04-04T14:13:22-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20111.html#unique-entry-id-113</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20111.html#unique-entry-id-113</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I put in a couple of hours carving this morning, and I&rsquo;m about to do another couple this afternoon.   The work is going well on the wolves and ravens carving and it is almost to the point where its momentum will carry me to the finish.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Encouraged to Greatness</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1997-03-28T13:39:11-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20110.html#unique-entry-id-112</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20110.html#unique-entry-id-112</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I sketched the details onto the antler for the wolves and ravens, but that was all. 

...I called Maureen Morris, another antler carver, to see how things were going with her and to seek encouragement.   She mentioned that her practice is to carve in two shifts each day; mornings for the hard, heavy work and afternoons for the lighter stuff. ...  In between she takes a break of one or two hours and does something else, like gardening. 


...Another &ldquo;the journey is more important than the end&rdquo; movie, but it demonstrated clearly that to excel, even with a tremendous gift, requires practice, hard work and being pushed to the limits of endurance.   I guess that&rsquo;s why hard work can often compensate for talent, but never for talent and hard work combined.   Difficulties are universal markers on the path to greatness, not obstacles meant to deter, only to deter those not willing to reach, to do all it takes to earn greatness. 


To date I have often been one to turn aside at the difficult markers.   Sometimes I have ridden on with abandon, but never to a goal, never with an end in mind.   Now is the time to reach for a goal. ...  Ne&rsquo;er before in my life have I had opportunity even to glimpse a goal let alone reach and plan for it, and now, here it lies before me and I would faint and turn away to the half-life I once lived. 


...Commissions, yes, but also a show of stunning works so beautiful they take your breath away, carved with grace and polish and depth of emotion. ]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Take Art As Far As I Can</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1997-03-25T13:39:11-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20109.html#unique-entry-id-111</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20109.html#unique-entry-id-111</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I was asked to do a reading from the Epistles at church.   &ldquo;Work out your salvation with fear and trembling.   Do all for God&rsquo;s pleasure.&rdquo; 


It seemed to speak to me as I had contemplated on my way up to church about applying my life to this art and to take it as far as I can go.   To see life in the long term and not one project at a time, yet to be able to throw myself mightily into each work as though it is my only work. 


I have spent a lot of time on the website lately, but it is finally at the level I want it to be.   It is my electronic portfolio.   Last night I was the 200th visitor since March 12.   Not bad! 


Now it&rsquo;s time to get down to the business at hand and finish the wolves/ravens carving.   Much work is left to do, but it is taking shape.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Set Sights on a Star</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1997-03-23T13:39:11-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20108.html#unique-entry-id-110</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20108.html#unique-entry-id-110</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[We had a big bonfire at Johnson Lake last night, and watched the comet, Mars, which is very close, and saw things like Pleiades, the crab nebula, the Andromeda Galaxy, two million light years away.   It was a glorious time.   Dick Fast brought his binoculars, 10 power with lots of light gathering capability. 

...The latest National Geographic has an article on the new Hubble telescope.   Light from 11 million years of travel, galaxies where nothing seemed to be before, fantastic phenomenon beyond my wildest imagination, all simply unbelievable. 


My art is going through a bit of a funny period right now; last week I actually wished for a job with people so I didn&rsquo;t have to face the difficult nature of creation. ...  My horizons are so limited and close, yet I had a glimpse of doing art for a long time and creating all kinds of interesting things, having plenty of time for all my designs and more. 


In the midst of a piece sometimes that&rsquo;s all I see, and so my world looks crude while the piece is so.   Alternatively, my world looks great when the piece starts to look great. 


It occurred to me last night that I need to set my sights on a distant and unmoveable star.   With regard to carving, my commitment is &ldquo;to show up.&rdquo;   The rest will take care of itself. ]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Hale-Bop Comet</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1997-03-12T13:39:11-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20107.html#unique-entry-id-109</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20107.html#unique-entry-id-109</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[Coming home from work tonight, the sky was an amazing sight to behold.   The moon was relatively new in the fairy tale crescent shape from childhood book covers and wall paper.   The northern lights arced mightily across the northern sky, solid green and flowing with energy from horizon to horizon.   To top it all off, the comet Hale-Bop blazed its way statically poised like a photograph, suspended just below the lights, greenery arch, huge to the site, a real spectacle. ]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Quality Bears Fruit</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1997-03-09T13:39:10-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20106.html#unique-entry-id-108</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20106.html#unique-entry-id-108</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I am very happy with the bear.   I would do the eyes differently next time, but overall it turned out very well.   It has an almost jewel-like quality, and I think my philosophy will be to produce quality work that takes time, and steer clear of making loads of cheap, &ldquo;saleable&rdquo; items.   I may continue to do butterflies and things like that though, so long as they reflect the quality of the larger work. 


Richard Olson called the other day to say he may be interested in a piece, although he didn&rsquo;t see any pricing on the Commission Info page on my website.   We&rsquo;ll see if he calls back. 
]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Website Live&#x21;</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1997-02-26T16:28:18-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20105.html#unique-entry-id-107</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20105.html#unique-entry-id-107</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[What a productive couple of days!   The website was up on Monday, search engines registered it on Tuesday. ]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Star Trek Stoic?</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1997-02-23T16:28:17-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20104.html#unique-entry-id-106</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20104.html#unique-entry-id-106</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I awoke at 5 am to see the Hale-Bop comet but was disappointed by clouds. 


When I went back to sleep I dreamt of church and politics, evangelical hatred verses the positive values taught by Jesus.   And I wondered about faith. 


Faith which allows free thought and exploration of life often must live outside the institution.   Yet institutions form the pillars of civilization.   When societies become &ldquo;enlightened&rdquo; and move toward the individual, death of the society and chaos seem to follow.   This is a strange consequence for such an elevated good. 


Perhaps the &ldquo;Star Trek&rdquo; philosophy, a form of Stoicism, is a better model for society going forward, where duty is mixed with creative problem solving and individual growth?]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Open Door at Thirty Six</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1997-02-20T16:28:17-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20103.html#unique-entry-id-105</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20103.html#unique-entry-id-105</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[Today I turn 36 years old.   I feel very good, very excited about the possibilities this year brings.   The feeling I have had for so many years of waiting to get out of the starting gate has finally given way to an open door into the wonder of life.   I am having fun.   I&rsquo;m also very tired, but it&rsquo;s a good tired based on plenty of fulfilling activity.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Stepping into the Digital Age</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1997-02-13T16:28:16-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20102.html#unique-entry-id-104</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20102.html#unique-entry-id-104</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I arranged with Yukon's internet provider, YKNet, for an internet account and web page site.   Derek McKay will use a digital camera to take pictures of 'Grizzly', 'Rest and Sing', 'Fox', 'Monarch III' and 'Killer Whale' for use on the site.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Good Vibrations</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1997-02-06T16:28:16-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20101.html#unique-entry-id-103</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20101.html#unique-entry-id-103</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I worked on 'Grizzly' again yesterday for the full day.   I think it will take a while for my hands to become accustomed to working with the tools.   The vibration and the gripping cause them to exhaust after 2 hours.   However, yesterday was the longest I have carved in quite a while.   Two 4-hour periods.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Art&#x2c; Time and The Idea</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1997-01-09T15:15:10-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2096.html#unique-entry-id-102</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2096.html#unique-entry-id-102</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[Further thoughts about art - I have had more ideas for animal groups, with tangle blocks, lines, circles et cetera for background, or as part of the surface texture of the animals.


I&rsquo;ll start tracking the time I spend on each piece. 


It occurred to me yesterday that the creative process is central to an artist.   Technique is secondary, secondary because it can be worked on and improved, whereas the 'idea' is that from which all else flows. ]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Trading for a Home Page</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1997-02-03T14:48:08-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20100.html#unique-entry-id-101</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%20100.html#unique-entry-id-101</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[Derek McKay, a computer whiz and the local video store owner, has agreed to trade the construction of an internet home page for my business for the repainting of his D & M Video store signs.   He says the home page can be done in such a way that it can be modified or updated from time to time.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>First Major Commission</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1997-01-24T14:48:07-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2099.html#unique-entry-id-100</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2099.html#unique-entry-id-100</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I just got a call from a gentleman who saw my work this summer at Yukon Native Products.   He wants to commission a piece.   He offered to put 50% down on acceptance of the commission and 50% on completion.   I am overwhelmed and grateful and a little nervous.   I hope I didn&rsquo;t sound too eager, though he seemed pretty eager himself.  


I feel as though the past few weeks and months have been a testing time and I&rsquo;ve passed. ...  But maybe this too is a test.   The key is to ask myself, "do I keep doing stuff others want, or how do I blend themes that others want with my own style?"   I have loads of stuff on wolves and some on ravens.   These are subjects I enjoy and want to do.   Yes, I think this is positive, and I am encouraged to add my own touch.   So yes, I&rsquo;ll do it.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>No Comparison While Making Art</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1997-01-15T14:48:07-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2098.html#unique-entry-id-99</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2098.html#unique-entry-id-99</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[Reading the success stories of people like Bill Gates or a child prodigy who makes millions selling their paintings, I wonder what is wrong with me.   I feel a tremendous sense of underachievement. 


However, I don&rsquo;t feel this way when I create; it absorbs my all.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Pull Back to Block</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1997-01-14T14:48:07-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2097.html#unique-entry-id-98</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2097.html#unique-entry-id-98</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I&rsquo;ve just finished reading a bit of The Artist's Way.   It stresses that a person&rsquo;s life is all they have and what they do with it determines who they are and will be.   It identifies that when I&rsquo;m on the verge of artistic freedom and pull back to do something else, I am doing it to block my own artistic progress.   Very well.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>A Web Page&#x2c; Display Box and Foundry</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1997-01-09T14:48:06-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2095.html#unique-entry-id-97</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2095.html#unique-entry-id-97</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I have been thinking about creating a web page for the business and have a few ideas.   It should include a virtual gallery, with clicking spots for sculpture, paintings, email and ordering.   It should show the studio with a web cam and include a section for selected sections of &lsquo;morning pages.&rsquo; ...  I think I&rsquo;ll leave the idea for a while, and come back to it after I have some momentum and confidence.   I think there would also have to be good reason to have a web page: publicity, accountability, interactive art.


At the Whitehorse airport, I noticed the display cases were empty, and I inquired about rental rates.   They rent for $600 to $750 dollars per year.   A good idea for displaying art work? 


I visited a bronze foundry in Langley, called 'Trio Bronze', while staying in the lower B.C. mainland over Christmas.   An inspiring experience!   (Trio Bronze is now called 'In Bronze'.   It is the foundry at which I cast all of my bronze pieces.) ]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Committed to Carry On</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-12-29T10:11:40-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2094.html#unique-entry-id-96</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2094.html#unique-entry-id-96</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I&rsquo;ve decided to place advertisements for my art business in the phone directory.   It will be costly, but they might help pave the way for exhibitions later on.   This means that I am committed to carrying on.   I'll begin work on the show.   I still haven&rsquo;t decided what the theme will be, but it will have something to do with overlapping shapes, groups, emotions, tangles.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Art as Communion</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-09-28T09:12:21-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2089.html#unique-entry-id-95</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2089.html#unique-entry-id-95</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[Do I make art only to gain approval from others?   I need a certain level of approval to function as a sane human being in society, but art is meant to be a form of communication, a communion of one soul with another.   Approval seeking is biased toward the 'other'.   The other sets the agenda and the other judges the result.   Whereas with communication, each gives of themselves and responds from themselves.   It is mutually enriching.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Can&#x27;t Touch My Dreams</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-11-26T09:12:20-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2093.html#unique-entry-id-94</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2093.html#unique-entry-id-94</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[Last night was a night of dreams.   Perhaps it was the heat.   The dream involved a university cafeteria.   I was with a group of students.   Our table was in an upper level of the cafeteria, with a surrounding railing.   I spoke across this railing with a person from the art department and felt my heart longing to be there, but knew inside that it could not be. ]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Employment Limbo</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-11-19T09:12:20-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2092.html#unique-entry-id-93</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2092.html#unique-entry-id-93</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I have sent off my resume to The Mine and feel in limbo.   Who am I? 


By changing my plans and priorities so rapidly and completely, do I value myself?   Have I applied for work because I am desperate for money?   What becomes of all the effort expended on making art? 


I want art to be my original contribution to the world, this I know, but do I need a job to pay the bills?   The perennial question ...]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Enthusiasm Has Died</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-10-19T09:12:20-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2091.html#unique-entry-id-92</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2091.html#unique-entry-id-92</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I saw the movie 'Tin Cup' at the theatre tonight.   It is an inspirational look at &lsquo;going for it&rsquo; for the sake of &lsquo;going for it.&rsquo; 


I think of my art.   I haven&rsquo;t so much as picked up a carving tool for two months. ...  I am busy doing stuff for other people again. 


Jerry and I talked again about doing a show next August or September.   I said I&rsquo;d look into venues, but I find my enthusiasm has died.   Has 'real life' intervened again?   What happened to my resolve of earlier in the spring?   I&rsquo;m afraid it has melted a bit in the face of other demands. 


However, I will press on.   I very much want to do the show.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Making a Life</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-10-04T09:12:20-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2090.html#unique-entry-id-91</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2090.html#unique-entry-id-91</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[On waking, my first thoughts were that I have been watching too much TV, that I need to fashion my own life and not enjoy others&rsquo; fantasies or lives as a spectator. 


...where myriad souls form a tapestry of their life-experience for all to enjoy.  


By watching so much TV, what new material will we add to this tapestry?   Will our souls exhibit a bland sameness?   After all, we have watched the same programs, listened to the same music, gone to the same movies and heard the same news.


Maybe that&rsquo;s why TV is so addictive?   Cheap experiences, situations, pain, love, hate, rage, hurt, wonder, mystery for the price of admission.   Could I be so blind not to see that life lived with love and hard work isn&rsquo;t the better way?   It is hard and slow, but it is real. 


The power of the universe, the creative energy, is love, and we can turn it on. ...  We are small generators of the universal fabric.   That is why life itself supports us when we love and give ourselves in love. ]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Commissions With Style</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-09-12T12:46:37-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2088.html#unique-entry-id-90</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2088.html#unique-entry-id-90</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I had another insight yesterday about my work habits.   In my former employment, I have been used to responding to the wishes, needs and requests of others.   My jobs have all largely been response oriented, and indeed my personality tends to move me in that kind of direction. 


I could continue in that vein, as a carver, doing commissions, or I could make a choice to do shows based on my own ideas.   If I choose the latter, then I&rsquo;ll need to turn down the volume on others&rsquo; wishes and requests, or I could work out a combination of the two.   Or do commissions in my way, and in my style.   I&rsquo;ll have to think about this a little more.   The insight, though, was that there is a difference between the way I operated before and how I might need to operate now.   I&rsquo;ll need to decide.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Aboriginal Wisdom</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-08-18T12:46:37-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2087.html#unique-entry-id-89</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2087.html#unique-entry-id-89</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[In the book &lsquo;Mutant Message,&rsquo; (since called into question as biography) the author talks about life for the aboriginals of Australia.   In their view we tend to live our lives as &lsquo;mutants.&rsquo;   They feel that much that we do is superficial and unrelated to the real &lsquo;meat&rsquo; of life.   For the aboriginals of Australia, life is about improving the soul, involving the development of talents, a positive attitude to each day, gratitude to the 'Oneness' for every gift, and doing that which always is for the greatest good.   Another facet of their life acknowledges the need to grow and change, to shed the old and to live the new.   Once a life work is complete, or no longer brings joy, it may be time to change, to move on, to keep growing. ]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Found Dream Frees</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-08-03T12:46:36-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2086.html#unique-entry-id-88</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2086.html#unique-entry-id-88</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I am down at the Yukon River in Whitehorse.   It is 10:30 pm and cool with a slight breeze, but very peaceful.   It is easy to be optimistic here.   Life has a fullness and a beauty at these moments that is unparalleled. 


Once a dream is found, it frees the dreamer.   Things click into place and there is a clarity, simplicity and energy about life.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Artists and Income</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-07-31T12:46:36-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2085.html#unique-entry-id-87</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2085.html#unique-entry-id-87</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I spoke with fellow artist Jerry Kortello for a while last night about art and the art business.   He felt a reasonable expectation of income as an artist would be between $800 to $1200 dollars per month.   He talked about Picasso&rsquo;s humble beginnings.   In his early days, Picasso brought a man back to his studio to show him his art.   The man threw some money on the floor and took a painting.   Van Gogh only ever sold one painting, but it was a very beautiful painting according to Jerry.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Some Ideas About My Style</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-07-31T12:46:36-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2084.html#unique-entry-id-86</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2084.html#unique-entry-id-86</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[Do I have a style?   I&rsquo;ll create and remain open and let the style find me.


I like dramatic design, clean lines.   People seem to like Monarch III, which I created recently.   It features abstract planes and lines.   To me this is very exciting because the design comes from within.   It gives me confidence to pursue it further as a design idea.


I have an idea to create a monumental sculpture representing our time in history, particularly our time in history at the year 2000, the millennium.   The year 2000 is not that far away, but it will be a pivotal year in the life of the planet during my lifetime.   I am a millennium artist.   In this sculpture I will remember who we have been as humanity, emphasize who we are, and hint at who we might become.


I&rsquo;d like to learn about casting and foundry work.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Injury</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-07-30T10:25:38-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2083.html#unique-entry-id-85</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2083.html#unique-entry-id-85</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I carved for a while yesterday and wounded my leg, getting a little careless with the big burrs.   Fitting then that this morning in the small business class we should be addressed by Worker&rsquo;s Compensation.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Limiting Beliefs</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-07-29T10:25:38-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2082.html#unique-entry-id-84</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2082.html#unique-entry-id-84</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I did a little work yesterday, and watched a lot of TV.   The infomercials generally don&rsquo;t catch my eye, but I watched Anthony Robbins&rsquo; half hour blurb. ...  I am a little skeptical about the cult mentality that seeks out gurus who have 'the answers', though Robins does say some good things. 


...He also refers to the power of limiting beliefs, explaining that we grow to the limits of our imagination and are limited in our growth by our limiting beliefs. 


While swimming laps in the pool this morning, I thought about his words and wondered about my own passions and limiting beliefs.   My passion is art, sculpture; my limiting beliefs are a little less clear. 


I think one limiting belief is that I do not deserve to be successful, that I do not think I can be successful now or ever.   I postpone my success to some future date so as not to be disappointed. 


Another limiting belief may be that I shouldn&rsquo;t plan for the future, as it either implies some kind of lack of trust in the present or more probably an unwillingness on my part to exclude any possibilities that might arise. 


A limiting belief that I heard growing up &ldquo;if you could make money at that, someone would have already thought about it, and would be doing it.&rdquo; 


A limiting belief from the Bible might be "there is nothing is new under the sun&rdquo; - a real killer for creative types. ...  &ldquo;Greater things than these shall ye do&rdquo; or &ldquo;Sing a new song&rdquo;?]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Demo at Gallery</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-07-27T10:25:37-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2081.html#unique-entry-id-83</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2081.html#unique-entry-id-83</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[It&rsquo;s been quite a day for Canada at the Olympics, winning two gold and two silver medals including Donovan Bailey&rsquo;s record-breaking 100-meter dash!


I demonstrated working on my art at Yukon Native Products again today with mixed feelings.   I've been struggling with price, but decided to have confidence in myself and price the stuff as fairly as I can, while keeping a vision of what I want to accomplish so that I am not sidetracked by petty criticism.   Actually, there was no criticism today, really.   People liked my stuff, they just weren&rsquo;t buying.   The printed promotional materials are good, though I may have printed a little too many artist&rsquo;s statements and bios. 


And I&rsquo;ve made a start on 'Grizzly'. ]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Drawbacks to Artist Lifestyle</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-07-25T10:25:37-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2080.html#unique-entry-id-82</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2080.html#unique-entry-id-82</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[The artist&rsquo;s lifestyle I almost live here in Whitehorse during this small business course is great in some respects, but there are drawbacks. 


I am only as good as my last piece. 


Production on a consistent basis is important in general and it is a solitary pursuit.   I find myself a little lonely at times. ]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Motivational Tips</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-07-23T10:25:37-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2079.html#unique-entry-id-81</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2079.html#unique-entry-id-81</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[One of my small business classes dealt with personal motivation today.   Some of the tips: 


...Use a starting ritual to get going each day.   Make it regular.


	2.   Use good planning techniques and plan for a steady pace.


	3.   Use rewards and breaks and end of day expectations.


	4.   Make contact with people you enjoy.   Network as necessary.   Telephone or do lunch.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Gallery Feedback</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-07-15T11:02:50-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2078.html#unique-entry-id-80</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2078.html#unique-entry-id-80</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I visited various galleries and gift shops in Whitehorse with the works I have created to interview the owners to determine whether what I have done would be suitable for their stores and to garner any feedback they might offer:


...- the killer whale carving needs to be shortened, the lines should be more crisply defined, the tail and the flukes thinned to be more representational, and the stand simplified, since it is too distracting (retail between $1200 to $1500 CAD)


- they liked the fox though the tail was a little big, and thought the butterfly pins were a great idea (retail: between $125 to $150 CAD) 


- they will "go to town" if they can be an exclusive representative of my work: putting on a show, advertise and give a space in the store


...- they sell most items if they are priced retail under $500 dollars and even more if they are under $200 dollars


...- also noted that the tail and back leg of the fox could use attention (retail: fox $150, the sheep horn carving $500, the killer whale $175 dollars - the low price for the killer whale was justified because the flukes appeared to be stuck on and that if there was more flow in the piece it could go for up to $500 dollars, the butterfly brooches $30)


...- when local people purchase at this gallery for others, they will spend up to about a hundred dollars, but if they are purchasing for themselves, they&rsquo;ll spend between $300 to $500 dollars


...- I was told that if I am going to be an artist, my main concern will be to worry about inspiration, not dollars


...- only a body of work that is &ldquo;edge stuff&rdquo; will be considered, since they will not display simple animal art


...- they felt that the price range for the work I showed was between $150 and $250 dollars


...- they said that the Americans who purchase are generally pensioners on holidays, who usually spend under $100 dollars, though Europeans and Christmas shoppers will pay more


- they liked the butterflies as well and thought that they would go well on a chain if they could be made to sell retail for under $90 dollars.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Ravens and Roses</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-07-07T11:02:49-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2077.html#unique-entry-id-79</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2077.html#unique-entry-id-79</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[The ravens were having a rather strident conversation on our roof this morning at 4 am.   Their raucous exchanges penetrated shingle, wood and insulation, sounding to sleepy ears like they were sitting at the head and foot of the bed. 


When Miranda went out onto the balcony to shoo them away, she noticed that the rose I planted this year was beginning to bloom. ]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Creativity or Conformity?</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-07-06T11:02:49-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2076.html#unique-entry-id-78</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2076.html#unique-entry-id-78</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[Much of what we learn in youth depends on conformity: language, behaviour, goals, hopes, dreams et cetera.   We are trained to &ldquo;fit.&rdquo; 


Creative thinking is almost always met with resistance but is transforming once people see the power of a new way.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Not So Long Lengths - Part II</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-07-04T11:02:49-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2075.html#unique-entry-id-77</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2075.html#unique-entry-id-77</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[During my swimming time this morning I again thought through my life during the laps.   I was struck again by the shortness of my life so far.   Thirty five years is a very short time to be conscious. 


I was also struck by the arbitrary way certainty and certainties became a part of my thinking.   Perhaps it is because of the shortness of life that we adopt certain values and attitudes as certainties by necessity and without reflection, so that we can function - equivalent to instinct or instinct&rsquo;s function in animals?   Is university a place where youthful certainties are challenged?   Or are the certainties of youth simply replaced by the dogmas of professors? 


As we mature, we see things more clearly as they are, but early acquired certainties are ever hard to disregard.


I finished mounting the Dall Sheep Horn carving onto its newly completed base yesterday.   Exhilarating!]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Not So Long Lengths: A Swimming Excercise</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-06-27T11:02:48-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2074.html#unique-entry-id-76</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2074.html#unique-entry-id-76</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[While I was swimming lengths in the pool today, I tried a little exercise.   I tried to imagine what I was doing in my life each year during each of the first thirty five laps of my swim. 

...I realized that I have always been on the move, on the go; the world, in my mind, resting on my shoulders. 


There were also whole episodes of my life, which I remember as being very significant, which passed in two or three lengths.   Many lengths passed during which it was difficult to recall anything.   Strangely, I don&rsquo;t recognize a lot of me in my life.   Life has happened to me, with no thought for the future and blind trust in the present.


It occurred to me during this review to lighten up a bit and enjoy my kids and my wife, to treasure my family.   That it is good to do the things that make our hearts glad and to hell with significance, it has played the role of the impostor too long. 

...While swimming lengths for exercise it seems that the first thirty lengths take forever, but the rest fly by.   Will this also be true of my life's 'laps'? ...  I will put myself in the way of art and see where life takes me.
]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>I Did It&#x21;</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-06-27T10:38:07-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2073.html#unique-entry-id-75</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2073.html#unique-entry-id-75</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I did it.   I carved again yesterday, and it was great.   I need to just be there and start, and then the activity takes over.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Nothing Holding Me Back But Me</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-06-26T10:38:07-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2072.html#unique-entry-id-74</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2072.html#unique-entry-id-74</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I don&rsquo;t really feel like writing today because I have not been successful at all about carving.   Today, however, opens up new possibilities, both for failure and success.   I just need to walk down the stairs and do it.   There is nothing holding me back today, no calls, no jobs, no assignments, no interruptions, save the kids, and that&rsquo;s ok.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Church No More</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-06-23T10:38:06-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2071.html#unique-entry-id-73</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2071.html#unique-entry-id-73</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[Today is Sunday.   It is finally sinking in that I am no longer responsible for church.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>On Decisions</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-06-20T10:38:06-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2070.html#unique-entry-id-72</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2070.html#unique-entry-id-72</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[As I consider my own decisions, endless decisions, I reflect on how other people make decisions, and live their lives. 


Some are limited in their choices, and so their lives are limited.   Some are trapped, while others recognize no boundaries.   Some are selfish; some give, expecting some recognition or recompense.   Everyone is motivated by something, and by and large decisions are not a big deal. 


In fact, decisions are easy to live with.   What is difficult to live with are excuses, deceptions, lies, dishonesty to self, the avoidance of decision and responsibility.   There is a time to gather information and to consider, and there is a time to act, to decide and to take responsibility. 


This I must do.   This I can do.   This I will do.   Just not yet.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Encouraging Words</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-06-09T10:38:06-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2069.html#unique-entry-id-71</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2069.html#unique-entry-id-71</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I heard a voice saying to me, "Do your art, enjoy it, relish it, be free of worries about significance.   Live the abundant life."]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>When You Come to a Fork in the Road</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-05-28T11:40:05-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2068.html#unique-entry-id-70</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2068.html#unique-entry-id-70</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I still seem to be stuck at a crossroads.   I&rsquo;ve resigned from the church, but I'm afraid to reach out and touch the dream which is now just about within reach, and I need to do that but I am also afraid it will not be enough. ]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Star Trek Wisdom</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-05-21T11:40:05-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2067.html#unique-entry-id-69</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2067.html#unique-entry-id-69</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I saw the last bit of a Star Trek: Next Generation episode yesterday.   It must have been an early episode because the acting was very bad. 


However, when Worf expressed the oft-repeated pearl that a warrior&rsquo;s true battle is in the heart, that to gain control of the self is the most difficult of battles, I was struck afresh by the notion that we don&rsquo;t achieve our goals by magic, but by self-control.


Obvious, yes, but it takes on fresh significance for me in my current position for there will be few if any sources of external control.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Motivation Within</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-05-19T11:40:05-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2066.html#unique-entry-id-68</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2066.html#unique-entry-id-68</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I rented a video and went to bed early last night.   No carving.   However, I thought a lot about carving. 


I read a little from The Artist&rsquo;s Way.   It&rsquo;s a comfort to know that others experience artist&rsquo;s block too. 


I thought about my lack of will, my escapist desire to be elsewhere, anywhere "the action is", and realized that this is the challenge I'll need to face next in life.   I will need to find motivation, guidance and power within to live creatively.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Reading and Life</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-05-18T11:40:05-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2065.html#unique-entry-id-67</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2065.html#unique-entry-id-67</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I wonder if life reaches stale points sometimes because of a lack of thought; if there is a certain energy for living which comes directly from thinking new thoughts and considering fresh ideas.


Strangely, I have always viewed reading as extraneous to living.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>How Little Importance</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-05-17T11:40:05-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2064.html#unique-entry-id-66</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2064.html#unique-entry-id-66</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[It is done.   The letters have been delivered.


It is amazing to me and somewhat comforting to discover how little people actually care that I have resigned my ministry.


There is a tremendous freedom from obligation, which I have usually imagined, to follow one&rsquo;s heart and no excuse to do otherwise.   To say my life is my own is for me both joyous and empty.   I have laboured under the impression that what I have done has mattered.   However, time and again over the last few years, I have discovered the relative truth of that statement.   No more &lsquo;shoulds,&rsquo; just life.   Just life. 


I have had an idea.   Why not combine antler and bronze in a sculpture?   Or perhaps other materials, like marble?]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Resolve Needed</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-05-01T09:22:06-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2062.html#unique-entry-id-65</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2062.html#unique-entry-id-65</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I loathe myself for being so pathetic.   People cloud my vision and priorities so easily, as I take on, conform to, rebel against and react to their whims and desires for me.   I must make a strong proactive decision about my future direction and stick to it this time, and I want that decision to involve art.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Artist Anger</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-04-24T09:22:05-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2061.html#unique-entry-id-64</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2061.html#unique-entry-id-64</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I&rsquo;ve been miserable lately, I think because I haven&rsquo;t done much in the way of art.   I have had a craving to read the book The Artist&rsquo;s Way again, and did so last night.   The author explained that artists do become angry and destructive if they are not creating, because the artist&rsquo;s child within is fighting for its life.   The artist needs to create. 


Perhaps my bitterness and cynicism and blaming of late is due more to my own lack of time spent on art, than on the things that others have done or not done.   Those things that others have done or not done certainly seem to fade into the background when I am creating.   I know that when I am involved in my art my happiness overflows and not much can get me down. ]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Universal Quest for Significance</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-04-20T09:22:05-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2060.html#unique-entry-id-63</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2060.html#unique-entry-id-63</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[Yesterday afternoon, while talking with Leah, I realized that everyone wants to be noticed or significant and that my own desire is a universal one.   No one wants to be forgotten or passed over, unnoticed.   But whose job is it to do all this noticing?]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Anticipated Joy</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-04-16T09:22:05-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2059.html#unique-entry-id-62</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2059.html#unique-entry-id-62</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[As I pass by my studio, on the way out of the house and to work, I get a good feeling as I anticipate getting to it. 


I saw Lena yesterday, and she said she will need me to carve a butterfly for her newfound daughter, to take with when she goes to visit her in July.   It will be a pleasure. ]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Celebration of Creativity</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-04-13T09:22:05-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2058.html#unique-entry-id-61</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2058.html#unique-entry-id-61</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[A celebration of creativity, from carving and sculpture to writing, free-flowing and from the soul.   This will be my contribution to this world.   Joy, celebration, life, death, suffering, pain, love, hate, the range of human emotional and spiritual life and the beauty and power of creation itself are what I wish to express through what I will do.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Fear of a Wasted Life</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-04-12T09:22:05-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2057.html#unique-entry-id-60</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2057.html#unique-entry-id-60</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[Just before lunch a kind of depression hit, probably from fatigue, the lateness, the running, partly from lack of food, but it consisted of a distress that life is going by and I may be wasting mine.   I have so much going for me, and yet do so little.   I feel as though I should be doing something significant, but what does that mean for me? 


Is it adventure I long for?   Perhaps I need to learn to make the most of my current place in life.   Rather than bemoan that I am not someone else, somewhere else, I will be me, here.   I still think it would be great to take a year off to travel the world.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Artist or Priest?</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-05-05T09:22:04-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2063.html#unique-entry-id-59</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2063.html#unique-entry-id-59</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[Another good sleep with a few strange dreams, one of which included living inside a huge old and wrecked building. 

...Is my life so small that I dwell in a small part of the building rather than the whole thing?  ...  Am I trying to take what is essentially a hobby and turn it into a life, or is that hobby meant to be my life and I keep it suppressed as a hobby?


...If I could identify the right path, would it lead back to the ministry as an Anglican priest or towards art? ...  I want to do art, but at the same time I want to be God&rsquo;s friend. 

...I have skills that allow me to make a living doing ministry, counselling, teaching, administration, and these have served me well, but these skills have a limit into which I have bumped. 


...In the parable of the talents, Jesus exhorts us to use what we have been given and not to deny it for some supposed thing we think God requires.   Certainly my heart has always been with art, from the pre-ministry days all the way through. 


...I&rsquo;ll draft my letter to the church board on my return from Glacier Bay.   This will give me a little time to try on the decision.   I am serving notice to myself that I will resign from ministry to do art. 

...As I write, I feel slightly detached from this decision, but it is the right decision and these words mark the spot. ]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Write My Own Story</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-04-11T09:21:54-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2056.html#unique-entry-id-58</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2056.html#unique-entry-id-58</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[What a wonderful artist&rsquo;s date last night.   I finished reading &ldquo;Paddling My Own Canoe&rdquo; by Audrey Sutherland.   I felt so good afterwards, energized.   Questions about self-worth, shortness of life, &lsquo;this is my time, what am I going to do with it?&rsquo;   emerged again yesterday.   The answer: I need to write my own story.


I felt again the possible freedoms I might experience as a self-employed artist.   I wondered at my &lsquo;production-based&rsquo; attitude, challenging again the notion of making for the sake of making.   Given my limited life span, should I not do the important or timeless work?   I mean, to the exclusion of all else?   Or should I make all pieces of a high quality, so as to become cherished, and therefore timeless?]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Creative Breakthrough - Genesis of My Style</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-03-29T11:27:03-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2055.html#unique-entry-id-57</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2055.html#unique-entry-id-57</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I will combine concrete shapes with abstract shapes and design butterflies, ravens, and other realistic images with abstract, twisty tubes and planes.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Patrick Royle on Production Pottery and Fine Art </title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-03-29T11:19:05-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2054.html#unique-entry-id-56</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2054.html#unique-entry-id-56</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[(Patrick Royle is a potter living in Whitehorse, Yukon, Canada, best known for his production pottery, Fireweed Series)


I talked with Patrick Royle last night about "production" pottery.   I was curious to learn if he would rather work at a "regular job" and work on his "fine art" pottery in his spare time.   This, instead of barely making ends meet with the product line he swore he'd never do. 


His answer to taking a job was an unqualified no.   He said that he loved his medium and was happy to work in it all the time.   He has decided to do both and to give one full day a week (or more, before a show) to his fine art clay.


What a great attitude, one which I will emulate.   The appreciation for the fact that I'll be working in antler, horn and ivory alone will be enough to carry me through the "production" pieces and fire my creative energies for larger pieces.   Actually, I may be lucky in that every piece I do is an original, which enables me to take creative freedoms with each piece.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Tea with Maureen Morris</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-03-28T15:16:18-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2053.html#unique-entry-id-55</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2053.html#unique-entry-id-55</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[(Maureen Morris is an extraordinary antler carver, living in Atlin, British Columbia, Canada)


Maureen's studio is currently located inside her funky log home, close to the road which runs along the shores of Atlin Lake, just north of downtown.   The place is something to behold!   There are bones everywhere, inside and out.   Antler dust lies inches deep in the studio, thick, thick, thick, representing so much amazing work, so much creativity!


She'll soon move the studio out of the house and into a new building further back on the property, on the crest of a small rise.   It's a much larger space and it commands a wonderful view of Atlin Lake. 


Maureen takes summers off to work her large greenhouse, located just behind the house, and what a greenhouse!   A paradise of  wonderful humidity bearing the sweet smells of all the beautiful plants she grows.


I told Maureen that I admired the dedication she brought to her art.   She demurred, explaining that it was easy, she was "just selfish."   I reflected that her "selfishness" has given a lot of people pleasure.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Doubts Reinforced</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-03-28T15:00:27-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2052.html#unique-entry-id-54</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2052.html#unique-entry-id-54</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[In the midst of an art marketing workshop in Atlin, B.C., Canada:


I have been stressed lately about my ability to do art for a living.   I know that it is largely a psychological block, but it is very hard to get past.   Again, I take refuge in the fact that I can make art despite the stress and, in doing so, the stress often goes away.


But the workshop has not helped.   I was informed by Larry Garfinkle, one of the facilitators, that people will not buy my stuff outside of the Yukon.   Apparently, artworks created with antler, ivory and horn are mostly an "up here" thing, with the exception of native art.


This does not have to be.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Some Design Ideas</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-03-27T14:34:03-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2051.html#unique-entry-id-53</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2051.html#unique-entry-id-53</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[(Hands in various postures along a tusk or sheep horn ...) 


(Carvings with several small designs, patterned across the medium: hands, abstract ...)]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Antler Carving Workshop with Maureen Morris</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-03-23T14:10:33-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2050.html#unique-entry-id-52</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2050.html#unique-entry-id-52</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[The workshop went well.   Last night we reviewed Maureen's work and had a look at tools.   Maureen uses sanders, polishers, files (for cleaning lines) as well as Dremels and Foredoms.   For finishing work she uses bits that look like a sharpened stick, none of which I have. 


Today we watched Maureen carve a bird from start to finish.   She takes a lot of time over her lines, using various rounded or tree bits, then refines the lines with cylinder bits and finally uses the spear-like finishing bits.   Her eyes she makes with the cylinder bits and refines them with the finishing bits.   Maureen works the whole carving at once and makes decisions as she goes about where to place decorative lines and feathers.


(burrs recommended by Maureen Morris during the workshop - good recommendations all! ]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Secret of Success as an Artist</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-03-19T14:13:56-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2049.html#unique-entry-id-51</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2049.html#unique-entry-id-51</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I thought I'd carve last night but instead I watched a movie, and a bad one at that.


I realize now that being successful at art is about creating pieces.   Without the pieces there is nothing to sell and no business.   This is the magic formula, there is no other.   This is within my power to do.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Failing to Impress</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-03-14T13:06:04-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2048.html#unique-entry-id-50</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2048.html#unique-entry-id-50</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I think I was hoping to impress Ruth McCullough from the Yukon Arts Branch with the horn carving, but no such luck.   "That must have taken a lot of time," she said, somewhat absently.   Oh well. 


Jerry Kortello came to her portfolio workshop tonight "to coast", but worked a bit and wrote an artist's statement.   Ruth learned that Jerry had a BFA and expressed an interest in his clay train sculptures,  so we set up a rendezvous at Jerry's for beer after the workshop.   When she saw his 'Decision Making Train', she exclaimed, "This is the best, most creative work in the Territory!" 


Ruth is now keen to have Jerry create a work for the wall in the new tourist information complex in downtown Whitehorse. 


I feel a little let down personally, but am really pleased for Jerry.   I hope he pursues the idea.   I guess I also feel a little inadequate as an artist.   I have not been through art school and this seems important for establishing credibility in official circles.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Still Blocked&#x2c; Need Focus</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-03-10T17:53:02-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2047.html#unique-entry-id-49</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2047.html#unique-entry-id-49</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I could not carve yesterday.   I am still blocked - what is it?   I think, for starters, that I am panicked or overwhelmed by the expectations I have for myself.   When I go into the workshop now, rather than just seeing one project, I see many and it's hard to make a start.   I need to develop a selective focus.   I set too much for myself to do then get lost in the vast amount of tasks and do nothing.   Like I do at work, I need to bring one project or task to completion before moving on.


(Later)  I feel good about the carving I did tonight.   The horn is beginning to look finished.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Coasting&#x2c; Not Living</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-03-09T23:25:14-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2046.html#unique-entry-id-48</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2046.html#unique-entry-id-48</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[My blocks seem to be related to time, money or willingness.   I think I'll start keeping a record of activities and a monthly tally of finances, to see where my time and money go.   Though we make a lot, we seem to spend a lot.   Also, as I've mentioned, I have been impressed lately with the brevity of life and therefore the importance of living each day, so I will find out what I do and make it conscious.   Jesus' admonition to live each day takes on a renewed meaning, but it is something I need to remind myself about as I tend to coast rather more than I tend to live.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Moving Past Artist Block</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-03-08T22:53:25-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2045.html#unique-entry-id-47</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2045.html#unique-entry-id-47</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[The last few days I have been blocked, but went into the studio last night to have a look at the horn and saw a number of places for improvement.   I think I will get the definition I need when I finish the eyes and refine the legs and finish the rocks - two layers at the back and three on the front.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Ellen&#x27;s Painting - Some Fears</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-03-07T17:49:15-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2044.html#unique-entry-id-46</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2044.html#unique-entry-id-46</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I'm afraid my painting of Ellen Bruce will be stilted and not accurate.   I really want the picture to look like Ellen and I'm afraid it won't.   I'm afraid I'm not meant to be a painter and so finishing the painting is pointless.   She is in her eighties, so I'm also afraid that she will be dead by the time I do finish it. 


I will finish the painting and it will be for the love of Ellen, alone.


(I did complete the portrait, which Ellen displayed in her living room, along with some of her many honours and photos of family.   Apart from the hair, which she felt was rendered with a little too much white, she seemed to like the likeness. ...  Ellen Bruce passed away in her home in Old Crow, Yukon, on October 17, 2010. ...  If memory serves, she was 78 when the photo, upon which the portrait is based, was taken at Rampart House, Yukon.   Clearly, she was right about the hair.)


...Ellen Bruce in 2007, with a portrait painted by Shane Wilson, which he completed in 1996.


Ellen Bruce's home in Old Crow, Yukon, Canada, 2007]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Mentor and Friend</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-03-06T12:06:23-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2043.html#unique-entry-id-45</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2043.html#unique-entry-id-45</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[Gerry Kortello, the local high school art teacher, paid me a visit today to check  the progress on the sheep horn carving.   He seemed genuinely appreciative of the work done and noted the difficult nature of carving with the horn's curve.   He had a few positive suggestions regarding the composition, which I will incorporate into the sculpture. 


I asked him if he would be my critic and mentor, and he replied that he would be my friend.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Getting Through the Day</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-03-06T12:00:37-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2042.html#unique-entry-id-44</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2042.html#unique-entry-id-44</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[The fact that all die means that I will die.   That the words on this page may well outlive me is remarkable. 


Today the world seems so much more vibrant and alive,  pulsating with surprising energy, but my tired eyes close it off in order to "get through" the day. 


What a statement!   What a mistake!]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Art Work as Play</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-03-05T11:22:06-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2041.html#unique-entry-id-43</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2041.html#unique-entry-id-43</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[What a great insight Julia Cameron has about artistic work.   She recommends we consider it not work but play.  


Because of a need to be perfect in my art, I have lost any sense of play. 


However, I have been trying on the idea of "making a date with my artistic child to play" and it has great merit.   If I say to myself, "Let's play at this today," even the most daunting task becomes a joy. ]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Henry Moore&#x27;s Older Brother</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-03-01T11:53:51-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2040.html#unique-entry-id-42</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2040.html#unique-entry-id-42</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I watched a video about the great British sculptor, Henry Moore, last night.


Moore talked about an older brother who inspired him to draw.   He said he was quite good but never chose to make anything of it.   I guess such a fate is possible.   I did not carve last night.   I think carving is still on the same level as flossing: good and important but not yet psychologically mandatory.   Both need to be 'must dos' every day.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Two Hours To Creative Freedom?</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-02-29T11:40:07-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2039.html#unique-entry-id-41</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2039.html#unique-entry-id-41</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[After the video, I slipped into the workshop and began.   Two hours later, I emerged. 

...I can see the end of the horn carving now.   It does not seem to be a medium that will hold detail exceptionally well because of the hair structure of the horn.


When in the process of creating, I could work forever. ...  However I notice that after two hours, I tend to get a little careless.   Yet this is the point when I begin to make cuts and shapes freely.   Perhaps this is the time barrier to creative freedom?


After carving, I watched another library video on working in metal and stone.   There are yet many great carvers in the world.   I too can be one. 

...There is more than enough room for all art in the world, even my own. 
]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Treating Self As Precious Object</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-02-22T13:44:37-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2038.html#unique-entry-id-40</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages%2038.html#unique-entry-id-40</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA["We only have a chance of accomplishing that which we actually do."   Mike Mentzer


Though Mike advocates a punishing routine to accomplish his goals (he is a body builder), Julia Cameron speaks about treating ourselves as precious objects.   She explains that "treating myself like a precious object will make me strong."


How do I treat myself as precious? 


I value the time I have and don't waste it on junk activities that clutter and take away from what is important.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Determined to Stay the Course</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-02-19T13:40:26-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages37.html#unique-entry-id-39</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages37.html#unique-entry-id-39</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I have determined to stay the course despite emotional storms and tides.   There is tremendous strength in this determination.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>God as Fellow Artist</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-02-17T13:33:46-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages36.html#unique-entry-id-38</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages36.html#unique-entry-id-38</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[Julia Cameron writes that God does not think our ideas for art trivial.   She thinks God is an artist and artists like fellow artists.   I've wondered about this for years, often thinking of God as an artist, but in doing so, found my own work trivial and crude by comparison.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Snowing and Down at Week&#x27;s End</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-02-16T13:06:51-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages35.html#unique-entry-id-37</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages35.html#unique-entry-id-37</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[It's the end of the day, Friday.   A wet snow is descending happily upon us, enclosing us for the weekend. 


How am I feeling?   A little lost right now.   Tired at the end of the week, mostly.   I feel as though I am trying to build a life on quicksand.   As fast as I build, it sinks into oblivion.   I must have faith in myself - one day, one project at a time.


Writing has a way of helping to focus my thoughts in a linear fashion, instead of them banging around inside my head all at once.   These words are my lifeline, constantly saving me from drowning in a sea of self preoccupation and internal chaos.


I would like to try art again this evening after vacuuming.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Poor Investment</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-02-15T13:03:40-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages34.html#unique-entry-id-36</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages34.html#unique-entry-id-36</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[Listening to the radio, it seems like there are more and more references to the environmental meltdowns affecting our long term future.   One commentator said this morning that the likelihood of people accumulating a million dollars in an RRSP and actually being able to use it in 2020 was remote.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Tired</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-02-15T13:00:39-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages33.html#unique-entry-id-35</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages33.html#unique-entry-id-35</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I made an interesting discovery yesterday.   When I'm overtired I tend to overeat.   Also, my creativity is down to zero.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Life as a Golf Game</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-02-10T14:06:02-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages32.html#unique-entry-id-33</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages32.html#unique-entry-id-33</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I wonder if life moves from a state where time moves so slowly, to an awareness that life is slipping by, to a panic and race against time, to a making peace with time and mortality?   I am just becoming aware of how fast time is slipping by and twinges of panic occur every once in a while.


I am reminded of the game of golf.   Where once I was eager to get on to the next hole, I now savour each one.   Focus and deliberation, a sense of fun and persistence, despite a bad stroke or three, and never giving up ... all good life lessons!
]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>My Ideal Work-Live Environment</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-02-09T13:54:58-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages31.html#unique-entry-id-32</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages31.html#unique-entry-id-32</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[The latest exercise in The Artist's Way asks me to envision my ideal work-live environment.


My ideal environment is wilderness - in fact right where I am currently living in Faro, Yukon.   My favourite season is Fall.   There is a magic atmosphere in Fall when things are changing - smells, colours, anticipation of the first snow. 


I love a warm, sunny, Fall day - remembering Johnson Lake, lying in the grass and leaves on the hill by the shore and watching Miranda and the kids sail and canoe on the lake.   There is a stillness and beauty in such days, moments in eternity. ]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Finally&#x2c; To Work&#x21;</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-02-08T14:10:12-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages30.html#unique-entry-id-31</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages30.html#unique-entry-id-31</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I did it!   Finally tonight, with everything put in place yesterday, I worked for over an hour on Maloney's sheep horn carving.   It felt so natural, so simple, so unspectacular - one wonders why go through such tremendous feats of avoidance to not do that which is so easy to do.   I suppose, like anything, the battle is in the mind.   I feel a little as though I've been away for a long time and now I've returned - I've recovered.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Infant Internet</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-02-07T19:54:00-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages29.html#unique-entry-id-30</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages29.html#unique-entry-id-30</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[There was a presentation tonight at the College about the Internet.   We had a chance to surf.   Much of the Net is dry and dull - very static.   It seems miraculous though, that we were able to connect by a phone line to computers in other parts of the world.   The occasional site is good and attracts a lot of attention.   "If you create it, they will come."   There is potential here.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Artist&#x27;s Date</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-02-07T19:51:56-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages28.html#unique-entry-id-29</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages28.html#unique-entry-id-29</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[Artist's date again tonight.   I finished cleaning and setting up the studio.   There is still drywalling, trim, painting and flooring to do but the main thing is that I am ready to get to it! ]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Which Comes First?</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-02-07T19:32:41-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages27.html#unique-entry-id-28</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages27.html#unique-entry-id-28</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I continue to play the self-sacrificing saint all too often.


The thing I wish I was doing and still am not, is actually working on my art!


I read a quote recently that speaks to a tendency to place material security in front of practice.   Reality, however, is reversed.   First comes practice, then the ordering of affairs to achieve financial and other goals.   This calls to mind Jesus' wisdom, "Seek first the kingdom of God and all else will be added to you."


I think that this is probably true.   If we had waited to enroll in seminary, for instance, until all the finances were in place, we might never have gone.   The flip side was that we lived in poverty.


Even now, with a fair amount of savings in RRSP's, I wonder when enough will be enough?   When to risk leaving paid employment?


I should be working on my art.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Wisdom from Mary Pratt</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-02-04T15:44:32-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages26.html#unique-entry-id-27</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages26.html#unique-entry-id-27</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I feel refreshed and energized in a quiet way this morning.


Adrienne Clarkson featured Mary Pratt on her show last night.   I enjoyed it very much.


Mary uses slides for her paintings like I do, except more so.   She paints off a slide initially to gain an outline, then uses an "inboard" slide projector to work from as she fills in her work.


She says that the first while is the hardest, filling in colours and values, etc.   Often she feels tempted to give up on a piece, until she reaches the final stage where it begins to look like she wants it to, then she can play, adding highlights and touches, "bringing out this and pushing back that."


...She talked about the inspiration for her painting coming from "her world" and not trying to "keep up" with the art scene.


Mary also talked about the importance of light and darkness in her works, both as values and as clues about life.   She doesn't feel it is possible to truly make art unless a person is in touch with both of these sides of themselves.   She talked about noticing the dark and the many shades, colours and textures which it contains.


The reference slides she chooses to create her paintings must be utterly captivating to her, otherwise, the long hours needed to complete a work would be unbearable.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Weathering Emotional Storms</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-02-02T15:31:45-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages25.html#unique-entry-id-26</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages25.html#unique-entry-id-26</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[Emotional storms will come and go like the weather.   If I am to succeed, I'll need to walk my plan on rainy days, sunny days, cloudy, stormy, snowy and freezing days.


There is a strength that comes with perseverance that I want for myself.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>The &#x22;Money&#x22; Issue</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-02-01T15:26:18-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages24.html#unique-entry-id-25</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages24.html#unique-entry-id-25</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[A serious challenge to my plans this evening for an art career: the "money" issue.   I'll need to prove that my art can pay for itself and allow me to hold up my end of the financial responsibilities. ]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Hold the Line</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-01-31T15:16:36-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages23.html#unique-entry-id-24</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages23.html#unique-entry-id-24</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I really need to hold the line today on self-worth and direction.   Hold the line!]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Resolutions Not Yet Realized</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-01-29T22:12:13-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages22.html#unique-entry-id-23</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages22.html#unique-entry-id-23</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[From now own I'll do my own work.   No more commissions.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>At Eight and Eighty from Year Thirty Four</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-01-29T20:38:32-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages21.html#unique-entry-id-22</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages21.html#unique-entry-id-22</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[Time Travel Exercises from The Artist's Way: 'Describe Yourself at Eighty and also at Eight'


I think of myself at eight.   The whole world was ahead of me, but rarely did I stop to think about where I wanted to be at thirty-four.   To an eight year old, thirty-four is forever away. ...  I remember playing with friends and trying to look older by wrinkling my eyes.   Teenagers were impossibly sophisticated and way out of reach, and to be thirty-four? 

...When I think of being eighty and looking back, I used to think I would say to myself, "Experience life. ...  Partly because eighty is a lifetime away for me now, it is just as unthinkable.   But thirty-four has come to this eight year old and so too will eighty.   Now both ages say to me, "Make something of your life. 

...My parents encouraged me by saying that I could do anything.   But not to choose something is to wander, to do nothing. 
]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Step in the Right Direction</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-01-29T18:33:54-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages20.html#unique-entry-id-21</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages20.html#unique-entry-id-21</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I have decided to go to the three day arts business workshop in Atlin, even though it might make my work life at the College a little more complicated.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>If It Didn&#x27;t Sound So Crazy</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-01-27T16:52:42-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages18.html#unique-entry-id-20</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages18.html#unique-entry-id-20</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[From an Artist's Way excercize:


14.   If it didn't sound so crazy, I'd work as an artist full time, making sculpture and carving.


18.   Learning to trust myself  is probably the best thing I could do, in all areas of life.   It would lessen the need for approval all the time!]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Scads of Time</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-01-29T16:46:29-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages19.html#unique-entry-id-19</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages19.html#unique-entry-id-19</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I finished the floor and the drywall in the new room yesterday evening.   It's amazing, really, the amount of time that actually exists in the evening after supper.   Time that is normally lost watching television. ]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Blocked Artists Blame?</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-01-23T16:27:31-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages17.html#unique-entry-id-18</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages17.html#unique-entry-id-18</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[It's funny how some days I get up and feel enthusiasm right away - other days it feels like I've been hit by a large truck.   I guess it depends what one wakes up for - what one is looking forward to.


Maybe there are many blocked artists who use others to do their blocking for them.   It's easy to blame - harder to do. ]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Memories of My First Jackknife</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-01-22T16:05:25-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages16.html#unique-entry-id-17</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages16.html#unique-entry-id-17</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[Carving is my own.   I was drawn to it at an early age and reinforced positively when Dad bought Kent and I jackknives (Jason was too young).   Did Mom fret that we might hurt ourselves?   How I wanted to carve a ship - to create a small world of my own from a piece of wood.


Jason, Shane and Kent Wilson, carving near Baddeck, NS Canada (circa late 1960s)]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>House Call</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-01-19T15:53:17-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages15.html#unique-entry-id-16</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages15.html#unique-entry-id-16</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[Pretty low profile today.   Dr.   Russell Bamford stopped by with pills in a ring box.   I asked if he could bill for a house call.   He said yes.   Noting that he walked, in his parka of many colours and with his border collie, I asked if he could also bill for mileage.   Without missing a beat, he replied, "Twenty five cents a step and I bill that direct."


The temp is supposed to stay below minus -40 until the beginning of February.   I'm glad we're using wood, otherwise we'd drain the oil tank dry again.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Artist&#x27;s Date</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-01-19T15:01:35-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages14.html#unique-entry-id-15</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages14.html#unique-entry-id-15</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[The 'Artist's Date', as recommended in the book The Artist's Way, went well last night.   I'm proud of my accomplishment: the work bench is now finished.   I thought the idea of Artist Dates was a little hooky, but experience tells me that they are actually quite a pleasant experience.   They also go a long way to solidifying my identity as an artist!]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Meaningful Art</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-01-18T14:47:43-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages13.html#unique-entry-id-14</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages13.html#unique-entry-id-14</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[It is still cold, minus -45 degrees C with no break in sight.  


This morning, in the 'warm' light of day, I can see art accomplishments as meaningful milestones in life - so long as the art doesn't become 'busywork' with no meaning.   The more I invest myself, my spirit, into a piece the more meaningful it becomes.   It then resonates with its own life. 


Making art is a little like planting trees.   Others will enjoy the fruits of your labour and rest in the shade of your effort.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Thinking about Death</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-01-17T14:43:51-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages12.html#unique-entry-id-13</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages12.html#unique-entry-id-13</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[I thought on waking about death - it will really happen to me.   When I die, I wondered, will all the rushing around be important?   No.   Will the things I do be important?   No.   Even carving?   No.   What seems of most importance is who I am in relation to other people, the simple virtues of gentleness, humour, love, forgiveness and generousity.   We tend to horde out of a fear of extinction.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Expectations of Failure Chill</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-01-15T14:16:32-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages11.html#unique-entry-id-12</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages11.html#unique-entry-id-12</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[It is minus -48 degrees C.    The wood stove is proving its worth again.   Yesterday I was up until 6AM trying to thaw the upstairs water line.   For some reason the hot water line would not thaw.   In the end I went to bed, leaving the all the taps on and a few hours later the hot water thawed and poured into tub and sink.


I have been thinking about a tendency I've had since youth to perform well under low expectations and fold when expectations are raised.   Perhaps it is my own underlying expectation of failure?   Recently, I have created more positive expectations for my self.   I believe I will succeed at work.   I function without a doubt that I'll succeed and so I do, but there exists within a dark voice of pessimism. ...  Wanting me to succeed, the voice I remember is one of great apprehension and focus on the possibility of failure. 


...I will not give up on what is important. ]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>High School Art Lesson</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-01-13T13:47:43-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages10.html#unique-entry-id-10</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages10.html#unique-entry-id-10</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[My high school art teacher, Mary Eaton, did me a great favour when she critiqued my clay pot which collapsed and became an abstract face.   I scratched a hasty design on the back, which she explained was poor, not on its own merits,  but because it was not consistent with the design of the piece as a whole.   Years later I remember that lesson.   She was absolutely correct.


An excerpt from The Artist's Way describes a central problem faced by artists when they are overly focused on outcome, they lose creativity.   A corrective prayer or mantras might be "God, I'll take care of the quantity, if you'll take care of the quality."]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Cool to be Fit</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-01-12T13:23:03-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages9.html#unique-entry-id-9</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages9.html#unique-entry-id-9</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[The temperature has dropped again today to -40 C.   Naturally, it's a jogging day. ]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Tempted by Manual Labour</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-01-11T14:57:38-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages8.html#unique-entry-id-8</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages8.html#unique-entry-id-8</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[Yesterday I took the Yukon College class I am teaching up to the mine for a tour.   I really enjoyed working there before, but would I consider working there again?   The place draws me like a narcotic - the thought of working there, of belonging, of doing something not held in distain by the majority of people here. 


But what about all this? 


Do we need the money?   What about the money from carving?   Where are my values? 


Strange how, for me, town work and life seem artificial compared to work at the mine.   I wonder why?   Is it because mining is a primary activity: basic, real, foundational for our society?   Without the primary harvesting of resources, whether big or small, civilization would not exist. 


Perhaps the narcotic for me is being where the action is, being rooted, being extraordinarily common - how far away from the work of priest, counsellor, teacher, artist. ]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Morning Pages and Flossing Teeth</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-01-10T14:55:19-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages7.html#unique-entry-id-7</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages7.html#unique-entry-id-7</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[Like flossing teeth, this process of writing Morning Pages will become routine when I decide it is not optional.   This writing about 'anything' comes back to me like an old friend.


Life happens and I allow myself to be taken in its flow rather than directing that flow in a responsible and creative fashion.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Beginning of Morning Pages</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-01-08T14:49:20-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages6.html#unique-entry-id-6</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages6.html#unique-entry-id-6</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[Today is my first day of 'Morning Pages'.   I have found the first chapter of Julia Cameron's The Artist's Way quite freeing.   Framing art as a positive alternative/choice with successful options is a giant mental leap and one well worth taking.   I have decided to simplify my life and concentrate on art.   I have told  the Church Board that I will be resigning from the church this spring.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Adriene Clarkson Interviews Robertson Davies</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-01-07T14:42:48-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages5.html#unique-entry-id-5</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages5.html#unique-entry-id-5</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[Adrienne Clarkson interview with Robertson Davies: she quotes Carl Jung as saying that from the middle years on, having come to grips with our upbringing - good or bad, we should address the true task of our lives. 


Davies says life is not about conclusions - that describes death - rather, life is dynamic, moving, now.   Such a life cannot end.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Ideas for Work</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1996-01-07T02:39:20-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages4.html#unique-entry-id-4</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages4.html#unique-entry-id-4</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[Carve details into moose antler base and sides in all pieces, which serves to unify theme (intricate and abstract).   Possibly also a good way to do caribou antlers: in abstract curves, threads, cubes, etc.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>From a December Sermon</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1995-12-15T14:37:03-08:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages3.html#unique-entry-id-3</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages3.html#unique-entry-id-3</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[Giving is not about saving up a reward until the 'end' but about developing a character of giving freely out of love - like God.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>From Con Carlson&#x27;s Funeral Sermon</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1995-10-01T15:07:13-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages2.html#unique-entry-id-2</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages2.html#unique-entry-id-2</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[Lesson learned from Con: In the hustle and bustle of life we often forget what is important to us.   Life has a way of distracting, enticing, seducing us to do and be something we are not.   Forces and dependencies and needs motivate us to strive after things "they" believe are important.   We lose that sense of peace within ourselves to be replaced with anxiety, worry - "will I do enough, be enough, succeed enough?" 


At the moment of our deaths - and make no mistake we all will die - what really matters is what we think and feel about our lives.   Am I happy with my life?   Am I at peace with myself?   If our answer to these questions, if asked right now, is "no" then something is wrong.   Fix it.   Find peace.]]></content:encoded></item><item><title>Reconsidering Life as a Priest</title><dc:creator>shane@shanewilson.com</dc:creator><dc:subject>MORNING PAGES</dc:subject><dc:date>1995-07-25T12:46:10-07:00</dc:date><link>http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages1.html#unique-entry-id-0</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.shanewilson.com/pages/files/pages1.html#unique-entry-id-0</guid><content:encoded><![CDATA[Time to throw away old things no longer of use.   Papers.   Ways of being.   Priorities.   Move on into the mists of the middle years.   Comfortable with ambiguity.   Tired of the easy certainties.   Question priestly role.   What is my path?]]></content:encoded></item></channel>
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