Artist's Journal

Yesterday I noted a “found still life” in the draping the clothes I was laying out to pack for my big adventure in two days. I love the idea of “found still lives” and anticipate it being a series theme in future paintings. I thought this one particularly poignant as the preparation is very specifically related to my art, and the framed original art in the still life is a charcoal portait I did several years ago.

I heard a quote one time and although I can’t remember the phrase exactly, nor who said it, the essence was if you want me to speak all day I can start now, if you want me to speak for five minutes I will need a week to prepare.

Packing for travel is very similar. Unless you do it so often you have a set routine, if you do not really plan your strategy you can end up carrying things around that you really don’t need. Traveling solo, and knowing elevators are not a given in European train stations and hotels, how much I have to carry could make or break my enjoyment of the trip.

I delight in trying to be a fashionista as much as the next girl, but for the purposes of this trip – taking photo references to paint at a later date, painting plein air, and dinners out with other artists – I’m not going to win any awards for variety, but feel confident I can be clever enough with just a few clothing items to feel comfortable throughout. For what it’s worth, I’m not taking my “best” clothes either, thus if I find a fabulous souvenir I want to bring home… disposable clothes they become.

A few travel tips for those of you who have mentioned this minimalist packing would be impossible for you:

Only wear pants or skirts that are dark or have a pattern so spots don’t readily show.
Pick a few tops to mix & match that are light weight enough you can hand wash them on the fly and they will dry quickly. Don’t forget to pack a half dozen wooden clothes pins to hanging things to dry and a small bottle of Woolite.
A little black dress in jersey fabric with a few key accessories – small jewelry, a scarf, and a sweater -is much better than several evening outfits.
Really think about and minimize your shoe packing. I’m not sure if I will need closed toed shoes, but all of mine are quite large -sneakers & hiking boots – so I did purchase a much smaller pair of casual closed toed shoes to compress in the bottom of my bag.
If you’re finding that the volume of clothes still exceeds the space you have in your carry on, those squeeze-the-air-out bags really do work, just make sure you take a small bottle of wrinkle remover – found in travel size section of the drug store.
Don’t forget to put all of your liquids in the smallest bottle possible, LABEL the bottles, and then put them in a no larger than quart size zip lock bag. I try to recycle hotel shampoo bottles as much as possible, and buy travel size spray bottles of hairspray that I empty to fill with things like fabric freshener (for clothes and/or your hotel room), and for painting, acrylic retarder mix. AGAIN don’t forget to properly label or you could have a nasty hair….. or painting surprise.
I saved a zippered bag that pillow cases came in and put non-liquid toiletries in it when not taking a normal size toiletry bag. It keeps them together and is clear for security inspections.

Of course this is still a bit theoretical until I put it all in the bag tomorrow, but I’m feeling fairly confident that my preplanning will pay off in less things to manage and more time to enjoy.

I’ve tried to write a new journal entry about my upcoming journey a few times over the last week, but each one sounded like a giddy teenager and not really reflective of who I want you to think of when you think of me. After all, these blog things can go two ways; becoming a diary that you assume others care about (and we all know the old cliche about the word “assume”), or a place that offers others benefit from your experiences. It is without-a-doubt my hope that this is the latter.

I have been thinking about this particular trip for 22 years. I know this precisely because it is closely akin to the trip I wanted to take the summer before I married David in 1987. All the wedding plans were complete, and seemingly out of my hands. I guess you might say I thought of it as a bucket list item and getting married was……

Fortunately for me, getting married was not anything near “the end” for me, but a new awakening that has continued to fuel my wanderlust. David used the political climate of 1987 as a reason that I not spend the summer overseas, inferring with its unpredictability I might not get back in time for our wedding. Today’s political climate around the world is even more unsettling than it was then, but we agree that it is worth the risk as any delay in returning stateside would not cause a wedding to be can canceled.

David promised he would take me to Europe as soon as it was feasible and we took our first trip in 2002.

My mother and I celebrated Mother’s day by going to Paris for ten days in 2006. I have been attempting to venture back the last three summers, but with moving into a new home, a child graduating from high school and the other having her tonsils removed, life was not accommodating.

I’m not sure what my adventure would have panned out to be had I taken the trip in 1987, but I’m confident this one will be far richer as 22 years of seasoning can do for a one’s outlook on life, and for me, my passion in life as an artist. I am traveling solo this time because coincidentally David was offered the opportunity to travel with his brothers and fulfill a lifetime dream of his own. He is going to be on a aircraft carrier in the Pacific, a guest of his brother who is a Navy officer.

I’ve discussed this with several friends and dream or not, this is a working vacation for me. As an artist, these working ‘cations have several facets. Obviously, traveling to Italy is an artist’s paradise. Not so obvious though is that I see things differently when I’m alone versus traveling with others as tourist. I love being a tourist as much as anybody, but when I’m observing the world around me, just for me and my artistic muse, the vision changes and is mentally digested in ways that feed my vision for my own original art.

So follow along and I will share with you my big adventure. The kids and I are meeting for lunch on my way to catch Marta (Atlanta’s train) to the airport. The flight is overnight and I have a new super dooper neck pillow that boasts guarantees of sleep while sitting up. My list of things not to forget in my single carry on is ever growing and you can be sure there will be… adventure.

Packing It All In (Archive)

Three Day Countdown (Archive)