From Mr. Art Hunt to the Canvas Killer

My world is quite functional. It functions to serve as a studio for my artwork. My surroundings have always been filled with a clutter of art supplies, sketchbooks and inspirations. I do not care for nice furniture or fancy decor; I just want space to create. During my recent travels a real difficulty has been revealed to me; transitions from one place to another makes it very hard to create new work.

You see, I am Mr. Art Hunt. In the last 6 years I have performed 20 miniature art hunts in 8 different states across the country. I hide original paintings in public places and people are invited to search for the hidden art and win prizes. I love doing them. However, there is an extreme sacrifice of my ability to create work during each hunt and during the travelling and preparations before and after. Some of the art hunts have coincided with more permanent moves from one state to another, or back and fourth, and big moves like that make finding time, energy and space to create even more challenging.

Each time I need to work in a small space, or in a borrowed temporary space, I spend more time pulling out my materials and cleaning up than I do actually creating work. It is possible to plan projects that are smaller, need less materials, and take less time. While this does satisfy me on some level, when the option to create large works is not possible I find myself feeling very trapped. When I live in a tiny space, shared space, or work too many hours in a non-art related job I find myself in a frustrating mood. Never feeling able to fully express myself.

What does that mean? Why am I writing all this? Well, Mr. Art Hunt has just finished Art Hunt season and I am now rebounding back to Minneapolis, Minnesota. A friend has rented me an excellent space, with the ability for me to create large works again. My first reaction was to let out this huge sigh of relief. Pent up relief. I had not even realized how long I have been waiting to paint again. The clouds of travel have departed, and now I can switch from Mr. Art Hunt back into the Canvas Killer.