The decor is not important but sometimes is an excellent example of how what's on the outside can profoundly reflect what's on the inside.
When I enter a room, the first thing I do, by instinct, is to look at the decor. Like an x-ray, I easily end up meeting the owner of the space. Another hypothesis is to observe what the person does. The latest takes time.
My main goal is to understand and know them, not judge the space owner. In the end, my last opinion is folded by what people do daily.
The #decor is not essential, people often want to impress us with beautiful and expensive objects that can quickly overshadow us. The best ones end up finding an unperfect balance between organized/disorganized, with a "personal touch" fingerprint.
While going through this pandemia, we all remember this high specialist first zoom talks with chaotic shelves behind them. Later on, they have changed to white walls (or digital backgrounds). Some others went for "instant library."
"Sometimes, before you start solving your problems, you should start by cleaning your homes as a recovery process. - later embellish them." Jordan Peterson
I decided to get a taste of my own medicine by getting a look on #myspace, and I`ve found some issues that needed to be solved.
I live in a rented studio for no longer than two years, and in some way, my emotional struggles are starting to be visible, at least to my eyes. So I thought that clearing it could help me overpass a challenging year that's not over yet.
What did I see? Signs of stuckness, overwhelmed, along with guilt.✌️Where did I spot it?
Piles that needed to be sorted (not big, but increasing);
Broken things that needed to be fixed (only three, but since I've moved);
Organizational systems that aren't working well (mainly related to my work, on my computer);
Unfinished projects (example: the pile of books to read that you've lost interest in, among others);
Spaces that are unfinished or undecorated (like art propped against the wall that hasn't been framed or hung).
For a young apartment, this looks small but starts growing up, so in these last few days of August, I found some time to tidy up, clear out the old, and making space for new ideas and #artwork.
I started very small with the bedside table drawer—no more than five minutes on my first day. Then I kept on going with each corner was demanding my attention. I have a short "To-Do" list that kind of helps me as I go. My wardrobe, entryway, kitchen cabinets, balcony, etc., are finished. Most of them didn't took more than five to fifteen minutes to "fix" or organize.
Others remain waiting for my secret weapon (my staple machine, left in my office) - hopping that they don't end as an "unfinished project" or "broken system" once more.
"When we commit to our present homes, we also commit to our current lives. We can hold our future hopes more gently, knowing that our real happiness doesn't depend on them. We can trust that joy will come in the future while also creating space for it in the here and now."- Ingrid Fetell Lee
Nevertheless, my art space is organized; I'm often readapting it to my needs as I go.
For example, I recently discovered that I didn't need quantity but reliable, good-quality tools and materials. I kept them ready to work, clean, and organize on my art table. At this point, when I grab a brush from the half a dozen I have in front of me, I know exactly how it's going to behave in my hand.
During the day, while working, everything becomes chaotic around me (and the floor included, yes 😁); I leave it like that if I have to leave the house for some time for any other (non) scheduled appointment, but I always clean it all at the end of the day.
In the beginning, I had this temptation of letting it as it was until I was coming back and could restart from the point I left without "losing time."
However, when I was cleaning, storing, and organizing at the end of each session, I realized that I could clearly see the work and prepare my next steps more efficiently.
I also realized that I preferred to start working on a clean and organize space.
Even so, I'm still tidying up my studio; I can already feel the difference.
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