Hi everyone :)
Today is the day ‘the balancing series’ goes further…This is a series of talks with creative women about balancing life as a successful artist and at the same time being the best mother you can be to your children. With that said I am extremely proud to open 2011 with an beautiful interview with the incredible artist Lisa Solomon!!!! I hope you will all enjoy it as much as I did :)
Thank you so much Lisa!!!
one daughter.
At what age are your children?
she’ll be 2 in jan.
At what age are you right now?
37
How long is a 'typical' working day for you?
I don’t think I have a “typical” work day :)
my day starts around 6am when the little wakes up. And I do lots and lots of stuff until I crawl into bed. These days I try to go to sleep by 10:30 at the latest because I’m not a morning person and 6am kills me every morning.
Do you work from home? If so do you have a separated space to work?
I do work from home. I have a studio in my backyard which we built right before my daughter was born and I also have an office in my home where I take care of lots of computer stuff.
well, it depends on the day of the week. Sometimes I get up, have a meeting or two, check the computer, go to teach and then head home. Sometimes I just get to spend the day in my studio [those are my favorite days.] I’m often making things or putting things together for my art or one of my side businesses at the end of the day after the little has gone asleep. I think the thing about being a working mom/artist is that you figure out what you can and can’t do and you learn how to compartmentalize. I’m really good at gauging what I can get done in an hour. And what the little will “tolerate” me doing in her presence. This seems to be constantly changing as she gets older.
Do you feel like you get enough sleep in general?
sort of. I feel like the sleep deprivation I suffered from having a baby took a really long time to recover from. It was almost as if when she started sleeping though the night I got MORE tired as all the lost sleep caught up with me.
I have learned that I just HAVE to stop and go to bed, though, because otherwise I can’t function and get everything I need to get done :)
so I’m now an early to bed, early to rise kind of gal. I used to be a night owl.
No – which is a relief. But we do need me to make money :) .
Are you working on a dream you have had for a long time(lifetime)? Or is your art something that in a manner of speaking choose/found you?
making art is simply something I do. It’s like eating or breathing – just something that has to happen in my day to day life. I feel fortunate that I’ve somehow scraped together a way of life that allows for me to spend time in my studio making things.
Did your art change when you had a baby? Or the way of creating and/or looking at your art?
everything changed when I had a baby. I don’t think what I make or how I make it really changed – although... I did make some work that really was about becoming a mom and having a child. But what really happened is my method of working had to change. There is much less dilly-dallying in the studio now. I don’t waste time like I used to – when I have a solid chunk of time in the studio I use it. I relish it. I miss my 10 hour studio days. I think my decision making has gotten faster too. I trust my instincts more because I don’t have as much time to just sit and look at things. If I think something is working I just go with it – and if it’s not I try to quickly fix it or I quickly abandon it.
I don’t think so, but I’ll let others be the judge of that.
Are you making different choices in your artistic career? I mean in the sense that for example choices you make about where you show your work and/or how often you show your work. And do you maybe do some entirely different things now, things you might not have done if you weren’t a mother? (Like teaching maybe?)
yes, sometimes I’ve had to make different choices. I have to be really careful what I agree to do now. It takes me much longer to put a show or body of work together so I can’t agree to anything last minute anymore. I also have to just keep plugging away at work almost all the time. I used to take breaks between projects, but now I just know I have to keep working towards the next thing, even if I’m not sure what’s ahead.
I try to work with galleries and people who understand what it’s like to have kids. I don’t want special treatment, but I do appreciate people who can be flexible and who are willing to understand that I may not be able to answer the phone during normal “business “hours – or that I might not be able to come early/stay late at an opening.
I haven’t really changed the kinds of things I do. I was teaching and showing my work before I had a child – just maybe the quantity of things. Not as many classes, not as many shows. But I think as she gets older I’ll have more freedom to participate in more things.
since my daughter is so young I can’t really work with her around. We’re just getting to the point where I can do the dishes while she plays with pots and pans in the kitchen. :)
I’m hoping, though, that as she gets older we can work on things side by side. I’d love for her to learn about how I work and have her help or watch if she is interested.
Do you have a fix few days in the week where you can work, without having to care for your children at the same time?
YES! Thankfully I do.
Have you ever used daycare? Or are you thinking of using it? And how do you feel/felt about it?
yes – she goes to daycare on the days that I teach [so 2 days]. I think it’s great for her. She LOVES her friends there. It’s a very small family run place. 3 adults and 8 kids maximum. The people who run it obviously love my daughter and take wonderful care of her. She comes home with “stories” of things that happened that day. And on her days off she asks about it and when she’s going again.
Is your family(husband/family & friends) supporting your artistic career?
yes. Thankfully I have very supportive friends and family. I don’t know what I’d do if that wasn’t the case.
Is there someone in your life who minds the time you spend creating?
not that I know of.
Do you ever feel guilty towards your children/husband for working so hard on your art?
yes of course. It takes a lot of time and energy and so sometimes I’m really tired by the end of the day and not as engaged with my husband as I’d like.
I often am multitasking all day long and sometimes I feel like everything is not getting an equal amount of attention or what it deserves.
How do you cope being there for your child and dealing with deadlines?
I just try and plan very very far ahead. And keep working bit by bit to get there. I’m also much better about asking for help than I used to be. I used to try to never ask anyone for anything, but now I accept help when it’s offered to me. This has been a big lesson for me.
yes. Thankfully I have very supportive friends and family. I don’t know what I’d do if that wasn’t the case.
Is there someone in your life who minds the time you spend creating?
not that I know of.
Do you ever feel guilty towards your children/husband for working so hard on your art?
yes of course. It takes a lot of time and energy and so sometimes I’m really tired by the end of the day and not as engaged with my husband as I’d like.
I often am multitasking all day long and sometimes I feel like everything is not getting an equal amount of attention or what it deserves.
How do you cope being there for your child and dealing with deadlines?
I just try and plan very very far ahead. And keep working bit by bit to get there. I’m also much better about asking for help than I used to be. I used to try to never ask anyone for anything, but now I accept help when it’s offered to me. This has been a big lesson for me.
there are some things that are “systematic” in the way that I work. Usually I get an idea, I have to do some research to figure out how to make my idea happen, or figure out what materials I need... And then I start to work. I tend to try and leave something slightly unfinished in the studio so that when I return to it I know where to start.
I think I do both – I sometimes work organically – I’m very interested in process and accidents and the only way to have those happen is to just work. To not feel restricted and to be free to explore things. But I also know that I have to work quickly and get things done. So it’s a tricky balancing game. I try to make days in the studio where it’s all “fun” so if I’m between deadlines, or have a “day off” I feel like it’s OK to play.
Do you feel you can still go deep into your the themes/subject that play a big part in creating your art work? Has that changed in any way since you became a mother?
Yes. I still feel like I can explore my ideas deeply. I don’t really have a choice. My work tends to haunt me when I’m not making it. It’s not as intense as it used to be before my daughter – but pretty much I feel like my art is always bubbling below the surface.
I don’t think so. One of the things I’ve learned being a mom is that you simply can’t plan for everything. You have to learn to go with the flow. This is easier said than done, but....
If you aren’t yet a mother you have no way of knowing how motherhood feels. This makes it very hard to not feel insecure and imagine how it must feel to be a mother and at the same time be an artist and lead a creative business.. So for those women who already are on the good road with their creative lives and are thinking of becoming a mother, what advice would you give them with the knowledge you have now?
I waited to have a child until my mid 30’s. I felt as though this gave me enough time to explore my life and do things that I knew would be harder or impossible with children. While there are some things that I think would have been easier if I was younger, I know I would have been less patient and also less sure of myself as a person if I had a child earlier in life.
I was REALLY anxious about being able to maintain some sense of myself. I had seen many women – who although they seemed happy and fulfilled – give up making art after having kids. I didn’t want that to be the case with me. I think it’s really important to figure out how to maintain what is important to you and your personality. I think that being a “satisfied person” only makes you a better mother. Now that I have a child I realize I shouldn’t have worried so much about “losing” myself. I’m still definitely ME – although my roles in life have changed greatly, and there are moments where I feel like all I am is MAMA, I have not lost anything. I’ve just shifted.
I think the best advice is to be sure and take help that is offered you. And to figure out a way to have some time to yourself every week. I think, too, that the more women are honest with each other about how hard it is... It is also wonderful and amazing and exciting – but it is HARD – the more prepared you can be. If you are thinking about having children ask every mother you know what their experience is like – because each child is completely different – and they certainly come with their own wiring and personalities.
And lastly – trust your instincts. You will know your child the best. Don’t get caught up in what you “should” and “shouldn’t do”. There was a moment where I got completely wrapped up in my inability to do what many books said was “right”. It caused me more pain and stress than I needed. A few months later everything fell into place and I wish I had not spent so much time thinking that I was doing things wrong.
If you aren’t yet a mother you have no way of knowing how motherhood feels. This makes it very hard to not feel insecure and imagine how it must feel to be a mother and at the same time be an artist and lead a creative business.. So for those women who already are on the good road with their creative lives and are thinking of becoming a mother, what advice would you give them with the knowledge you have now?
I waited to have a child until my mid 30’s. I felt as though this gave me enough time to explore my life and do things that I knew would be harder or impossible with children. While there are some things that I think would have been easier if I was younger, I know I would have been less patient and also less sure of myself as a person if I had a child earlier in life.
I was REALLY anxious about being able to maintain some sense of myself. I had seen many women – who although they seemed happy and fulfilled – give up making art after having kids. I didn’t want that to be the case with me. I think it’s really important to figure out how to maintain what is important to you and your personality. I think that being a “satisfied person” only makes you a better mother. Now that I have a child I realize I shouldn’t have worried so much about “losing” myself. I’m still definitely ME – although my roles in life have changed greatly, and there are moments where I feel like all I am is MAMA, I have not lost anything. I’ve just shifted.
I think the best advice is to be sure and take help that is offered you. And to figure out a way to have some time to yourself every week. I think, too, that the more women are honest with each other about how hard it is... It is also wonderful and amazing and exciting – but it is HARD – the more prepared you can be. If you are thinking about having children ask every mother you know what their experience is like – because each child is completely different – and they certainly come with their own wiring and personalities.
And lastly – trust your instincts. You will know your child the best. Don’t get caught up in what you “should” and “shouldn’t do”. There was a moment where I got completely wrapped up in my inability to do what many books said was “right”. It caused me more pain and stress than I needed. A few months later everything fell into place and I wish I had not spent so much time thinking that I was doing things wrong.
Thank you so much Lisa!
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