Artistic Differences

Collaboration – a word with varied connotations, yet usually a positive experience in the art world.  At the very least, my last few encounters have opened my eyes to new directions and possibilities for expression.

1.  Recently, we were at the beach with some friends.  One of the younger friends was helping me make a sand sculpture, and it was only when I added eyes to the top of the head that we realized a difference in our vision.  I was making a sand dragon, while he was making a battle rampart filled with munitions.  Adjustments were made to how the tail was designed, and by the end of the day we were both happy with the results.  (Explanations on the physical features of the sculpture were vastly different depending on who was giving the tour of our creature/engineered wall.)

2.  The second encounter also included a sculpting medium, though this time using play-dough.  I was asked to create a Minnie Mouse.  My sculpting skills are not great, but using the patented three circle design (and no – I did not obtain a license for this use), I elaborated a little with the bowtie and high heeled shoes.  My 3-D character was greeted with ecstatic shouts of glee before being flattened by tiny fists.  We called the finalized piece “Minnie in Distress”, and I think it says much about the fall of Disney before its own collaboration with Pixar. 

3.  I am not much for using the oven, but I do love to decorate with candy so sometimes baking is a necessary evil.  This time I had a small helper (complete with her own apron) who seems to thrive on baking cakes.  Little did I realize our differences in baking philosophies.  While I was merely creating a blank canvas for candy embellishments, she was creating a tasty snack that should be eaten the minute it had partially cooled down.  I’m now wondering, if the intent is to eat the actual cake, should I have used a cake mix that had not expired a year ago?