Witnessing an Artist
Last Friday, August 29, 2018, a fellow artist and friend, Paige Norman, was the main participant of an Open Mic event at The Machine Shop in Langley, WA. She has been painting for a long while now. Her place is decorated with abstract visions full of colorful characters and scenes. A mix of truth and fantastical elements bred from human experiences and mystics. For the first time, Paige opened up her vulnerable process to the world as she dug through the spiderwebs of her mind, painting what she discovered, in front of an audience.
The entire evening was an experience, to say the least. As she put her heart and soul on the canvas, musicians would join her and compliment her style (and vice versa) on stage. (Side note: The coordinator and host, Raquel, did a phenomenal job choosing artists that complimented each other well.) One gentleman sung a song, titled "Faces", as Paige would draw the faces she envisioned in her Tarot decks and crystal ball that she shuffled and stared through between brush strokes.
I am still attempting to process the evening, now days later. It was almost an ethereal experience. I enjoyed and appreciated every artist to step on stage. Being an artist in front of an audience is such a vulnerable and brave position to be in. Each one revealing themselves, with all their successes and faults on full display.
As for my friend, Paige, I could not be more proud of her. I am in awe of her talent and ability to place herself onto a canvas, in front of an audience, no less. It was an absolute privilege to witness her process, watching her create from start to finish. I thank both her and Raquel, as well as The Machine Shop, for allowing me to be on stage with her to capture the evening through my lens. I will definitely be back and hopefully will continue my own artistic journey with these wonderful local artists!
Below are a few more photos from the evening. P.S. A huge shoutout to artist Abigail Kuchar, whom I have not met, but I used her artwork, titled "Hyphae", to cloud and frame Paige at times. It is gorgeous!
