Pathways to Creativity:
The Journey Towards Authenticity
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SALLY SANTOSUOSSO
Autobiographical Statement
When not teaching Collage, Assemblage and Creative Processing, or doing mixed Media Fiber Art in my studio, I fill my time with the joys of motherhood, music, reading, gardening, and travel. I am a Level I Certificate Program student at Center for creative Consciousness and a graduate of the Massachusetts College of Art. The steady combination of studio art, teaching and studying keeps my spirit alive and flowing.
HOMAGE TO EMPTINESS
Artist: Sally Santosuosso
Materials: Mixed Media, Handmade Cast Paper, Found Objects
Like most mixed media artists, I am attracted to all sorts of materials and opportunities. Everything stimulates my creativity. Though this makes life very rich and interesting, I often absorb too much from outside sources and take on projects that overload me. Such was the case when I arrived at the winter NEATI retreat. I was so inundated by my research for an upcoming conference presentation that I could neither focus nor slow down.
Determined to break this consuming cycle, I used the entire weekend to create a single Zen-like altar. I also tried a different approach to my creative processing. Rather than sort through piles of materials for the perfect visual image, my only goal was to empty my mind and turn completely inward for inspiration and insights. I needed to feel centered and balanced again.
"Homage to Emptiness" celebrates waiting time and the unknown. I spent most of the weekend listening to my breath and waiting for insights to emerge from the quiet spaces within. I consciously worked as little as possible. Since visuals are important to me, this took discipline. I was raised in a household of achievers, so honoring my non-doing side felt very foreign.
For simplicity, I added only a series of weights to symbolize those things that weigh me down, both as obstacles (lessons to learn) and as anchors (to help me remain grounded and balanced). The remaining objects are energy conductors. They remind me to keep my creative energy within, and not give so much of myself away to others.
Thoughtfully constructing each step of "Homage to Emptiness" with little attachment to the results gave me back my clarity. I left the retreat much more relaxed and prepared to deliver my conference presentation.