Evidence of Living

"everything that cannot be invested in human relationships is invested in objects."

Jean Baudrillard

For reasons known primarily to me, I collect "evidence" of my everyday existence & keep it in a scrapbook the way most people would keep pictures of family. I have books and envelopes full of physical items, like: stamps, ticket stubs, receipts, warning notices, flattened pennies, etc. This, in conjunction with recorded objects, such as dreams, observations, sketches of landscapes, make up my sketchbooks & influence my artwork.

As strange as it may sound, this is not an unusual phenomenon - In fact, it's an ever-growing one. Artists through the ages have collected objects that inspired, intrigued, or made experiences more concrete. They recorded the minutia of their lives, and years later we are still intrigued & craving more. In fact, in today's culture, we're seeing more & more organized movements encouraging the recording and collection of such "evidence."

Why else would we have interest in such things as:

• [Found Magazine] A magazine dedicated solely to the publication of found notes
  
• [Story Corps] mobile recording booths, created for the sole purpose of recording and archiving stories of everyday people
  
• [The Photo Booth Project] Web sites dedicated only to found photo booth pictures
  
• [1000 Journals] waiting lists several years long just to recieve a half used journal so that you may draw or write on one page, then send it on.

There is an intrigue with the stories behind inanimate objects - how & why they were used? who used them? & how did they find their way to this place? And as a collector, we help to perpetuate the story, and in turn become a part of it.

My voice... my action... my proof of existence can all be found in this anonymous, inanimate object.

Evidence: The Art of Candy Jernigan

The works collected here reveal a fierce and funny creative spirit, an artist whose commitment to documenting life as she really found it led her not only to record sample swipes of the food she consumed, but also to stuff a roadkill rat and lovingly arrange it in a diorama. Jernigan's method - using the precision of a scientist to reveal the souls of discarded objects - makes her advocacy of the overlooked at once surprisingly charming and thought-provoking. $29.95 | Buy Now

Scavenging for Inspiration

As a part of my daily "quiet time" today I watched the wild life outside my "office" window.

At some point this summer I thought it would be a good idea to hang a plant and a bird feeder just outside my window so that I might enjoy the beauty and excitement of birds perching within arms reach. What better way to stimulate creativity? I thought.

Of course, it wasn't too long before the plant died, because while I could see it from my window - there was never an easy way of getting out and watering it. And the bird feeder primarily attracted squirrels and a Blue Jay who liked to yell at me for not stocking the right kind of seed.

At first I was annoyed. Here I went to all this trouble to attract beautiful birds with equally beautiful songs to inspire me, and instead I get a squawking Jay and a scavenging squirrel. I have since named them. The squirrel is Rupert and the Blue Jay, Simon. I've noticed that Rupert has the habbit of showing up shortly after Simon arrives at the feeder. Simon beaks through the seed, tossing the stuff he doesn't like on the ground where Rupert then digs through it (smart squirrel). They do this several times a week & I've become accustomed to their company, no longer annoyed, but intrigued by their resourcefulness and routine.

Challenge: Scavenge for Inspiration

As you create your own routine by taking time for yourself, and writing | creating in your journal, why not take a little tip from Rupert & do some scavenging? (all the best writers, artists, and squirrels do it)

Find little snippets of writing (letters, poems, stories, op-ed columns, junk mail, etc), images, parts of conversations, old gum wrappers, neat looking leaves... that inspire you, and incorporate them into your journal.

Activity: Write, Paint, draw your Inspiration

As you find your scavenged inspiration, tape it into your journal, then write about its discovery - why does it inspire you? Or create a little drawing or poem that goes along with it.

Activity: Start a collection of Inspirational Objects

Find a spot somewhere, a windowsill, a shelf, your bulletin board... something you see every day, & keep your inspirational objects there. Make sure it is big enough to accomodate any additions.