Last night I had a serendipitous moment. It came to me at a dinner party celebrating a friends retirement. Unbeknown to the host and hostess, another dinner guest and I discovered that we were both fiber artists. Someone mentioned to the group that I was an artist. Regina, a retired high school chemistry teacher said that she was also an artist. The conversation went something like this:
Regina: I'm an artist too!
Jane: Really?! What kind of work do you do?
Regina: Im a fiber artist.
Jane, in amazement: Really?!! So am I! What is your work like?
Regina: I make art quilts.
Jane, aghast: So do I!!!!
Regina: Wait, you're Jane? Jane Jennings? I know you from the fiber arts group.
After I picked my jaw up off the floor, I tried to search my vast memory bank for Regina's face. My memory bank of faces leaves a lot to be desired. I was coming up blank. But Regina was right on the money.
Regina: We were both in Arts Etc. together.
Jane: Oh, yes! In New Smyrna Beach.
Regina: And I also came to the solo show that you had at the gallery.
Jane's brain: Searching....searching... no results found for Regina's face, but I did remember the meeting that I attended where I brought my very first art quilt to share with the group during the "show and tell" portion of the meeting. I had been embarrassed that the filler I used for the quilt was something impossibly rigid, not as bad as TimTex, but close. (Baseball cap rims are made out of TimTex).I didn't have a clue about how to make a quilt, but I did know how to put fabric together with interesting shapes and colors.
Regina and I immediately began talking about the fiber group, which she has continued to be active in and I had only attended 2 or 3 meetings, which were probably I'm guessing, about 10 years ago? We began to talk about her work, which she said she had finally evolved into her own signature style, a major accomplishment for any artistic individual. She and her husband Michael brought two lovely art quilts into the house from their car and Regina explained to all of us her technigue, theme and materials.
On the ride home, it dawned on me that this was not a chance encounter, but it was "in the cards" for me that I reconnected with Regina. She told me about her blog, ReginaDunnblog, her website, her aspiration to join SAQA, and an invitation to rejoin ArtsETc. All this couldn't have been more timely, because for the past months, I have been struggling with what direction to take my work and how to reach more people with it. This was the DIVINE, speaking loudly to me. DO THIS AND THIS AND THIS!
So, now I'm taking direction! I have been asking God,"the universe", to show me the way. Now I see a new path! This, my very first BLOG, is the beginning of a new direction. I'm sharing my work with the global family through social media. I plan on reworking my website, trying some innovative techniques with my current work and moving ahead with plans to be a Creativity Coach for high school students.
The message here is this: listen to the "still, small voice". Be patient and you'll find your way.
