No Leash, No Lead

 I know, I am all over the map now here in New Zealand - literally, creatively, metaphorically - and in that way, this trip is exactly what I had hoped for - to fling open the doors of possibility and allow what comes of the diversity of life I am experiencing. But there is a fine line - when anything goes becomes an inability to focus - and my attention span is fugitive here in New Zealand.

There were times in the past when I had a choke chain on my work, giving it a decided yank on the leash lest it veer too far to the right or left. But this is not one of those times - my Pandora's box is open and I am in unadulterated play; cutting, pasting, collaging from whatever sources I can find. Another visual book begins to take form - each painting a sort of short story, as collectively they don't much relate to each other. Never mind, it's not necessary that they do.

Artist book page with map of the Kaipororo region of New Zealand where I am staying.

Sometimes I grasp for continuity - looking for a thread that binds this work to itself and the place, but it is better to just stay open and honest in the process. It is enough to have come so far, and I revel in the freedom I have chosen to be here, playing, on the other side of the world.