A ROOM OF ONE’S OWN…VIRGINIA WOOLF MADE THE PHRASE FAMOUS, AND IT IS AN IMPORTANT STATEMENT ABOUT HOW TO LIVE A CREATIVE LIFE. WHEN I WAS 13, I STARTED TO FEEL THE NEED FOR A ROOM OF MY OWN, SO I MOVED MYSELF OUT OF THE BEDROOM I SHARED WITH MY SISTER, AND INTO THE BASEMENT. IN SPITE OF MY FEAR OF SPIDERS, AND DAMP AND DARK, I INSTINCTIVELY KNEW I NEEDED A PLACE OF MY OWN.
I PROCEEDED TO DECORATE THE PLACE WITH ALL MANNER OF THINGS CURATED BY MY DEVELOPING AESTHETIC. SEASHELLS WERE ARRANGED SPILLING OUT OF A BOX. TOULOUSE LAUTREC PRINTS COVERED THE WALLS. I MADE A TINY COZY CORNER WITH PILLOWS ON AN OLD STEAMER TRUNK. THERE I WOULD SIT INTO LATE AT NIGHT READING AND DRAWING. IT WAS MY SAFE PLACE TO TOTALLY BE MYSELF, NOT HAVING ANY INPUT FROM THE OUTSIDE, A TIME AND A SPACE WHERE MY REAL SELF COULD SURFACE, AND BREATHE….TO SORT OUT THOUGHTS AND FEELINGS, AND TO BEGIN TO DREAM.
OVER THE YEARS, I’VE MADE THAT SAFE PLACE FOR MYSELF A DOZEN TIMES, IN A DOZEN MAKESHIFT WAYS. ONCE IN A GARAGE, ONCE, OUT OF DESPERATION, IN A LARGE CLOTHES CLOSET, WHERE I HUNG FAIRY LIGHTS AROUND ME. ONCE IN MY VOLKSWAGEN VAN, WHICH I OUTFITTED WITH CURTAINS AND A TINY DESK. THESE PRIVATE SPACES HAVE SHRUNK AND EXPANDED MANY TIMES, BUT ALL WERE EQUAL TO THE TASK OF KEEPING MY MOST PRIVATE SELF ALIVE.
NOW I HAVE TWO WONDERFUL PRIVATE SPACES I CALL MY OWN, AND FEEL RICH WITH THE POSSIBILITIES OF SOLITUDE: THE IMAGINATION, UNHAMPERED BY THE CRITIQUE OF OUTSIDE VOICES…THE PLAY OF THE INNER VISION, WITH NO IMPERATIVE TO BE PRACTICAL.
MY STUDIO IS STUFFED WITH VISUAL TREASURES AND INSPIRING MATERIALS I HAVE ACCUMULATED OVER THE YEARS, BUT THAT’S ALL JUST WALLPAPER. REALLY, I WOULD BE JUST AS HAPPY TO BE IN AN EMPTY ROOM WITH ONE CANDLE, AND MAYBE A PENCIL AND A PIECE OF PAPER, AND START ALL OVER AGAIN TRYING TO FIGURE OUT WHO I AM.
DURING THESE STRANGE TIMES ITS EVEN MORE ESSENTIAL TO CARVE OUT FOR YOURSELF A PRIVATE SPACE, HOWEVER MODEST, AND SOME TIME ALONE. GO THERE, AND LIGHT ONE CANDLE. OPEN THE DOOR TO YOUR SECRET PLACE, AND START DIGGING.
