Let me introduce myself:
My name is Brie.
B-R-I-E. Like the cheese.
My name is not Brie because of my love for cheese, and likewise my love for cheese is not because my name is Brie. Those things are entirely coincidental.
I decided to start blogging because I like to creative. Now I realize starting my first blog using the word “creative” as a verb when it is clearly a noun has the potential to make readers immediately close this tab in favor of taking the Buzzfeed test “What Harry Potter character are you based on the fruit you had for breakfast last Tuesday?”, but I am willing to take the risk and hope you can bear with me.
I like to creative. I paint and draw and I sew and stitch. I write, words and sometimes music. I create patterns and redo furniture. For me, choosing the medium I like best is akin to choosing a favorite child—sure, oil paint can test my patience, but I would never say (to her face) that I like watercolors better.
There is a lot of creative that bounces around in me, making me feel something like an old-fashioned, noisy pinball machine. It’s a lot of energy. Sometimes it’s too much energy. Too many things I want to make, or destroy, or make to destroy, or destroy and remake. Hence the blog: I’ve got all this creative to share. I’ve also got a lot to learn. I want to learn how to use this energy in the best and worst ways. Also, storing my work somewhere other than my tiny Chicago apartment (bless my roommates and their patience) is a necessity at this point. It’s too easy for ideas to get lost that way, for work to go unfinished.
Finally and most importantly, creativity and art and the general act of expression seems especially vital right now. In 2017 with a president who deals in shock and fear, art can be an outlet and savior. Artists have the opportunity and responsibility to engage with what is happening in a special way:. art can bridge between light and dark, fear and safety. Artists have the voice through their paintbrush, or their camera, or their literal voice to comfort, to share, and to alter the future.
When asked about the role of an artist, Nina Simone said: “At this crucial time in our lives, when everything is so desperate, when everyday is a matter of survival, I don’t think you can help but be involved.”
In this time of confusion and injustice, where and with whom will I stand? What can I do, who can I be, and how can I do and be better? My art is my start on an answer.
My name is Brie, and welcome to my show.